The Curtain

Logline: A middle-aged bipolar patient apparently finds the perfect way to heal all his wounds and erase the inglorious past after an unusual salesman introduces him to an unearthly product— "Alienator."
Synopsis:
Abinash Burman is a middle-aged man who took early retirement from his job and lives an apparently peaceful life in the City of Joy, Kolkata, India, with his wife Dipali and daughter Munni. Abinash has a background of bipolar disorder, both manic and depressive episodes.

At the beginning of the story, Abinash notices certain changes within and suspects another manic episode may be just around the corner. Based on his experience, the symptoms look familiar, and he visits Dr. Chattaraj, a psychiatrist, to validate whether it is truly a signal of the onset of the same disorder.

During the therapy session, Abinash describes he is experiencing mood swings. At times he has excessive sympathy for someone. He can't control the outburst of tears listening to others' pain. For example, he tells Dr. Chattaraj about his maidservant Swapna whose drunk husband Nikhil is physically and mentally assaulting her. Swapna's domestic violence had a profound impact on Abinash. He also reports suffering from palpitation and restlessness, citing a visual of possible gang rape that he witnessed in the dead of night. Dr. Chattaraj prescribes mild medication to relax his nerve and warns him to watch out for further symptoms.

On a lazy late morning in Kolkata, when Abinash is alone in his residence, a peculiar salesman visits. The salesman, named Abaran Rakshit, claims he has a unique product called "Alienator," and Abinash needs it more than anything else to get rid of his crisis. Rakshit explains the reason behind the nomenclature as the product can detach or isolate a person from what is happening around him, his peripheral existence. Such a description leaves Abinash bewildered. However, he asks why Rakshit thinks it is necessary for him and how come an alienator helps solve his problems.

According to Rakshit, people like Abinash are sensitive by nature. But they are hesitant too. Their inhibition or fear comes as a roadblock at the time of action. At times, they may be of some help if the crowd also acts in the same direction. However, they can't swim against the tide. People in this class witness some wrongdoing or painful visuals but can't fix them. They wash their hands off, telling themselves— "we aren't responsible for everything around. There are Police, administration, and other machinery to do the needful."
However, these memories haunt and bite them back. Their inability to extend their hands creates a crisis. The guilt— the wound caused by the conscience gives birth to this.

Meanwhile, Swapna's domestic violence continues. Despite her initial resistance, Abinash convinces her to lodge a police complaint against Nikhil. Abinash takes her to the police station. On the way, Nikhil, an auto driver by profession, blocks their road dramatically. He warns Abinash to stay away from their family matters. Other auto drivers and the random crowd support Nikhil and the public sentiment goes against Abinash. Swapna gets scared and refuses to file the FIR. A humiliated Abinash heads back home.

To add insult to injury, Dipali invites her brother Bitan with his wife Priyanka, Mr. Sen, a neighbor, and Sujay, an ex-colleague of Abinash, to an evening tea party. The tea party soon becomes a family-and-friend version of a kangaroo court against Abinash, where consensus has already been gained. The verdict is delivered that it was a stupid move for Abinash. Everyone tries to make him understand that he should not get involved in Swapna's family matter. Sujay, who had witnessed the entire incident, repeatedly describes how he managed to rescue Abinash from the agitated mob like a guardian angel. Sujay exaggerates and adds a lot of dramatic colors to his story. Only Munni supports Abinash's act and tells him she is proud of her dad, and given the situation, she would have done the same.

Abinash seems to have the illusions of the rapists. Abinash's psychological condition worsens. Dr. Chattaraj refers him to take some time off for a family vacation. Abinash, along with his extended family, visits Takdah, North Bengal. During his morning walk in the misty valley, he finds one of the rapists, which he thinks is an illusion, initially. To his surprise, Abinash later figures out that this young man named Amit is none other than the son of Dr. Chattaraj, who co-incidentally came to Takdah for a vacation at the same time. Dipali invites Dr. and Amit to a tea party where the family finds Amit could be a perfect match for Munni. Abinash becomes very violent at this and gets a panic attack. The next day he meets Dr. and his son and tells them that he can no longer live with this guilt and would like to inform the Police about the whole incident. He wants to testify in court against Amit. At this point, Abinash reveals that he has seen the rape victim in broad daylight and was able to track down her address. Dr. Chattaraj threatens that he won't certify that the patient's mental state is stable enough to be treated as a witness for such a sensitive case.

A helpless Abinash tries to fight against his inner conflicts and finally overcomes the state of self-denial. He agrees to meet Abaran Rakshit and enquires about the Alienator— what it is and how exactly that functions. Rakshit shows him the gadget, which is nothing but a pair of sunglasses and a small mp3 player-like gadget with earpieces. Suppose one wants to ignore the painful, ugly audiovisuals that are going on in front of him, he can simply select a mode like 'autumn in Germany' or a 'picturesque lake in Kashmir' from the gadget, and everything will change accordingly. A curtain will be drawn, and the reality can be left behind the scenes. The same applies to sound. A cacophony can be simply replaced with a soothing instrumental.

Abinash asks what about the memory of the incident that one knowingly ignored for some time. Won't the memory keep on haunting you? To his surprise, Rakshit explains Alienator has an extraordinary capability to cause selective amnesia. Just like deleting a bad sector from a computer, it can move a painful wound to the trash. Such memories can be recovered or deleted permanently to get rid of the guilt. Abinash takes the product.

A repeated sex offender on a public bus molests a college student. The man inappropriately touches the girl. The girl feels very unsafe, but the co-passengers are reluctant enough to ignore the sex offender completely. Abinash feels very uneasy and almost starts feeling chest pain as he realizes the man has opened his zip and starts touching the girl with his private part. Abinash finally decides to use the alienator to isolate him from trouble. However, one final time life shows him that augmented reality cannot take the utmost control ever. A curtain is drawn once only to unveil the truth another time.