ABSTRACT
Madness in Hindi films has not been ignored. It has been used as a peg in the storyline, as a punishment, and as a crime solver; and psychiatrists have been shown as buffoons, sages, detectives, and punishing fathers. Such repetitiveness influences culture but the changes in the culture of the country at large and culture of the cinema have contributed to an understanding of how an individual behaves. The fact that over the past 50 years or so the portrayal of madness has moved from gentle to psychoanalytic to psychopathic is beyond dispute. The role of the all-forgiving and allsuffering woman needs to be put in the context of the culture where it is expected. Thus, there is no surprise that in films like Basevaa the madness appears and disappears according to the degree of sacrifice that is expected from the woman.
