In India, the lifetime prevalence of mental health disorders is estimated

at 13.7% of the general population, yet 70–92% of individuals with mental

disorders never receive treatment. Most individuals with severe mental

illness in India prefer to stay with their families. This preference has

created a growing population of unpaid caregivers and leads to a

significant caregiver burden. Additionally, there is a lack of research on

the political, social, and structural barriers and opportunities of unpaid

caregiving in India; more attention needs to be paid to this topic due to

vast mental health treatment gaps and a lack of support for caregivers.

The present study aims to fill this gap by exploring the challenges,

cultural understanding of caregiving, and political and social determinants

of healthcare associated with unpaid caregiving in India. To facilitate

this understanding, the arts-based approach photovoice — a visual

participatory method in which participants use photography to reflect on

their experiences and represent their communities — will be employed with

8–10 unpaid caregivers in India. Over six sessions, participants will be

introduced to photovoice as a method, take photographs related to their

experiences, and engage in group discussions related to their photographs.

The photovoice group discussions will occur in three phases: 1) selecting

photographs, 2) storytelling and contextualizing, and 3) codifying the

themes of the photographs. Additionally, a plan will be developed with the

community to share the research and photographs through an exhibition.

Lastly, the photovoice process will be supplemented by 20 additional

interviews.