Reshma Valliappan

Reshma Valliappan, also known as Val Resh, is an artist-activist for a number of issues related to mental health, disability, sexuality and human rights. She is the protagonist of the Public Service Broadcasting Trust PSBT documentary A Drop of Sunshine which is based on her true story of recovery and living with schizophrenia without medications which has been the subject of controversy till date. Being compared to John Forbes Nash as A beautiful mind, yet again she is an artist with a different beat of her own. She is a face that is difficult to ignore, with numerous piercings, tattoos and her distinct personality she was spotted as one of the faces for a feminist human rights organization CREA's special series on United Against 377 for Youth Ki Awaaz and in CREA's photo book publication by artist and photographer Rebecca Swan.
Her book, an autobiographical account of her life before being diagnosed with schizophrenia, is "Fallen, Standing: My Life as a Schizophrenist", published by Women Unlimited. It is the first of its kind on schizophrenia, shedding light on the issues of stigma, human rights, legal rights and what it means to live without medications.