The series does not make a straightforward assertion that the family wound up dead under a spell of collective madness, but in its social autopsy of the police, medical examiners, therapists, friends and extended family the potential impact of insanity is highlighted. It looks at how rationality can be weakened and mad thoughts justified by invoking spirituality. ![]() In the process, the Indian spirituality is showcased in an unusual manner. It tries instead to find the reason behind the strange behaviour: were the victims motivated by a superstition or were they suffering from collective psychosis. The series does not dwell on the forensics or evidence-gathering. It was apparently in attempting a barh puja, a religious rite invoking a banyan tree, that the entire family met its death. His word was law for the Chundawat family as no one dared question the ‘messenger’. During the ‘possession’ he would instruct his family to follow certain practices and perform some rituals. Hand-written notes in 11 diaries and notebooks reveal that Lalit, the youngest sibling, was believed to be possessed by the spirit of his deceased father. In her efforts to explore the mysterious deaths - clear evidence to call the deaths murder or suicide is lacking - she has highlighted the potential role of certain myths related in the contemporary South Asian society. While the very idea of an entire family of 11 dying over a single night and none but a dog surviving sounds like the perfect pitch for a whodunnit-series, director Leena Yadav has tried to steer clear of sensationalising the material. ![]() ![]() H ouse of Secrets, the new documentary series on Netflix, follows the death of 11 members of a family through a unusual lens.
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