India’s Elderly and the Long Road to Elderly Care

An illustrated story that uncovers how palliative care in India is quietly collapsing.

Seventy-year-old Ramveer Mahajan sits on a wooden bench outside his home, gazing across a quiet field. The sun has dipped low. His knees throb from years of work, and there’s no one around to talk to. His children have moved away. The rural village is still.

The pain in his elbow comes and goes, but mostly it stays. So does the silence. The clinic is too far, and the idea of asking for help feels heavier than the limp in his step. So, he waits. For relief, some company, or just something a little meaningful.

Ramveer’s story isn’t uncommon. In fact, it reflects a rising crisis.

In 2022, India had 149 million people aged 60 and above, accounting for 10.5% of the population. By 2050, that number will grow to 347 million, or nearly 21%. A staggering 71% of these elders live in rural areas, far from reliable healthcare.

61% of older people in India do not receive the palliative care they need. 

Most remain economically dependent on their families. Many are illiterate, unaware of how to access support and provide elder care. And 61% of older people in India do not receive the palliative care they need. Chronic illnesses go untreated. Pain lingers. The financial pressure on families grows. And when it gets too much, it sometimes turns into silence or neglect.

Why This Story Needed a Different Lens

At Simit Bhagat Studios, we didn’t want to just talk about elder care. We wanted people to see it. Not just read about the issue, but feel it. To imagine the rooms, the silences, the aching joints, and the missed meals. To understand how it plays out in real lives.

We didn’t want to just talk about elder care. We wanted people to see it. 

That’s why we chose illustrated storytelling. A format that works across languages, education levels, and experiences. A format where someone can look at a scene and understand its weight, even without reading a single line. Sometimes, pictures do what paragraphs can’t.

The Bigger Picture

India’s healthcare system still focuses largely on emergencies and hospital stays. But what about the long stretches in between? The months, sometimes years, of quiet decline. Of needing someone nearby. Of needing time, conversation, and small acts of care.

Families are doing their best. But love without resources wears thin. Especially when there’s no backup, no affordable support, no guidance, no relief.

This story isn’t just about what’s missing. It’s about what we forget to see.

Let’s Not Turn Away

Growing older is something we all understand. What we often don’t understand is how lonely it can be.

Geriatric Care: Closing the Gap isn’t just about medicine or policy. It’s about showing up for the people who once showed up for everyone else.

If your work touches elder care, rural health, or storytelling that makes us feel something, let’s talk.


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Swanand Deo

Web Development Specialist

Swanand Deo is a WordPress and Web Development Specialist working on various digital projects. With over a decade of experience in the design and development space, he has collaborated with over 50 national and international clients. He specialises in User Experience (UX) design, WordPress development, and creating engaging digital experiences. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Pune.

Mrinali Parmar

Associate (Partnerships)

Mrinali Parmar works on operations and building partnerships with social impact organisations. With five years of work experience, she has focused on education and promoting awareness of climate change and sustainability in her operations role. She holds a Master’s Degree in Commerce from the University of Mumbai and is passionate about linguistics, speaking six languages.

Swarnima Ranade

Voice Actress

Swarnima Ranade is a medical doctor turned voice actress who has done voice-over work for everything from commercials to documentaries to corporate narration to children’s books. She has worked with numerous noteworthy businesses in the past, such as Tata, Uber, Walmart, and YouTube Kids. She graduated from SVU in Gujarat with a degree in dental surgery.

Kumar Shradhesh Nayak

Illustrator

Kumar Shradhesh Nayak is a professional artist, illustrator, and graphic designer who studied at the National Institute of Fashion Technology in Hyderabad. His experience includes stints at EkakiVedam and Design Avenue, both of which are prominent advertising firms. He enjoys trying out new approaches to illustration and creates artwork for a variety of projects.

Divya Shree

Content Producer cum Editor

Divya Shree is a media alumna from Symbiosis Institute in Pune who loves producing and editing non-fiction content. She has directed, shot, and edited videos for various productions. Her strengths are research, audience awareness, and the presentation of intricate topics with clarity and interest.

Manish Mandavkar

Motion Editor

Manish Mandavkar has studied animation at Arena Animation in Mumbai. He has previously worked on animated videos and motion graphics for brands, including Unilever and Zee Movies. An avid gamer, he is also passionate about sketching and photography. He holds a degree in Commerce from the University of Mumbai.

Joel Machado

Film Editor

Mumbai-based creative consultant and film editor Joel Machado has worked on documentaries as well as films in the mainstream Bollywood sector. He was also the Chief Assistant Director on the Jackie Shroff short, “The Playboy, Mr. Sawhney.” In addition to earning a B.Com from Mumbai University, he attended the city’s Digital Academy to hone his script writing skills.

Apoorva Kulkarni

Partnership Manager

Apoorva Kulkarni is the Partnerships Manager, and is responsible for developing strategic alliances and collaborative initiatives with other organisations in the social development ecosystem. For the past five years, she has been employed by major corporations, including Perthera (USA) and Genotypic Technology. She has written and published poetry, and she has been an integral part of The Bidesia Project. At Georgetown University in the United States, she earned a Master of Science in Bioinformatics.

Aliefya Vahanvaty

Sr. Creative Partner

Senior Creative Partner, Aliefya Vahanvaty has worked in a wide range of editorial roles over the course of her career, gaining experience as a correspondent, copy editor, writer, photographer, and assistant editor at publications like the Times of India, Forbes India, Open Magazine, Impact Magazine, and others. In addition to her MA in Sociology from Mumbai University, she also has an MA in Photojournalism from the University of Westminster in the United Kingdom.

Simit Bhagat

Founder

Founder, Simit Bhagat has worked in the fields of filmmaking, project management, and journalism for over 15 years. He has served in a variety of positions for organisations like the Times of India, the Maharashtra Forest Department, the Tata Trusts, and the Thomson Reuters Foundation. From the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom, he earned a Master of Arts in Science, Society, and Development.