In Treatment (2008–2010): Season 3, Episode 13 - Sunil: Week Four - full transcript

You will be pleased with me, Paul.

- Why?
- I've been trying to make an attempt,

to be different.

Julia is not a good match for Owen.

I would understand you're feeling critical
of your son's marriage, but...

- At the same time...
- Jealous?

Why would I be jealous of a marriage

in which a vain and immodest wife
having an affair with another man?

You seem convinced

that Julie is having an affair.

It was obvious.
She took my hand and



kissed my cheek.

And she was wearing this perfume...

Lying in bed I wondered
"even one year from now...

Julia would still be around.

Where else will she be?

Are you...

Are you gonna finish
your cereal?

I'm not that hungry
this morning.

So did you...
Did you fall behind

in your homework this weekend,

running around Baltimore
with Steve and your mom?

No, I just...

I just forgot I had this.

Can I...



Can I have a look at that?

Oh, I remember this.

See, the interesting thing
about the equation

is that it solves
not just the side length,

but the area of the squares

that the sides represent, see?

So, let's see...

A squared

plus b squared...

So the sum of these
two areas...

The squares...

Equals...

Oops...

C squared...

The area of the third square.

A pretty cool theory
from our friend Pythagoras,

don't you think?

Okay.

I'll see you after school.

Okay, see you later.

( Door opens, closes )

( Theme music playing )

Hello, Sunil.

Hello.

I... I prepared
some tea.

Thank you so much, Paul.

You... you're taking
birth control pills?

I'm not, no.

Are you feeding
your Lily plant?

No no, my plant is thriving
already, don't worry.

I found them in Julia's study.

In Julia's study?

And she's quite private
about this mysterious room.

She keeps it so clean
and organized,

it's like...

It's difficult...

It's like entering
a personal museum.

And Arun is the only one
who is allowed to go in there

when he brings her cappuccino.

But you went in there?

Yes, do you remember
Mr. pale fox?

Pale fox...
Do you remember pale fox?

You mean Ethan Barr.

So now he has written
another book.

It's called "the young
boy and the cave."

All week she was on the phone

with such passion in her voice

and speaking of it to Arun
and her colleagues

as if it is
"David Copperfield."

Oh, how pitch-perfect
it is.

Oh genius.
Genius.

So when you went into
Julia's study,

is that what you were looking
for... Ethan Barr's manuscript?

It is supposedly
about a young boy

who gets lost in a cave

and who discovers a group

of displaced American
veterans from the Iraq war

who are inventing a game

using a giant ball

made of their shaved hair
and shoelaces.

And she goes on and on
about how the men

who are inventing the game
are so heartbreaking

because they are trying
to regain their innocence

and playing this game
would somehow reverse

all the terrible things
they did in the war.

So apparently they teach
the boy how to play the game.

And then the boy teaches them

how to become boys again.

See how pitch-perfect
it is?

Did you consider asking
your daughter-in-law

if you could read the book?

Did you read it?

No, I... I...
I did not locate it.

But I can assure you
this is ridiculous.

Yet you still felt compelled

to search for it
in Julia's study, yeah?

And this is what I found.

And this is
an absolute proof

that Julia is having an affair

with Mr. pale fox,
a.K.A. Ethan Barr.

Don't you think
it's at all possible

that Julia might be
taking these pills

because she and your son
have chosen to

in order not to get pregnant?

Arun has told me more than once

that he wished to have
another son.

And need I remind you

that when I moved in their home

it was clearly stated

that my room on the
third floor was temporary;

and it would be

eventually transformed
into the new baby's room

and I would move down to the
basement? Do you remember?

Yes, I remember
you told me that, yeah.

If this is indeed the case,

then can somebody
please explain to me

why Julia is using
contraception's?

If Julia intends to have
another child with my son,

she should be trying to do so.

But clearly
this is not her wish.

This obviously
upsets you...

This aspect of Julia
and Arun's private life.

He's my son.

I understand that, Sunil,
but he is also a married man.

And the issues of
contraception and childbearing...

Surely they're
between him and Julia.

Isn't it rightfully
their business?

And not mine?

- I have nothing to do with it?
- I'm not sure that they would think so.

- I'm his father. Sir.
- I understand that you are...

I'm his father.
It's my family too!

No one can erase this fact...

That I'm his father!

Knowing what I know, how
can I not be concerned, Paul?

She is taking
these pills secretly.

They were not found in the
medicine chest of her bathroom.

They were not
on her bedside table.

They were hidden in a drawer

under some papers in her study.

Now I can only conclude

that she is conducting
an affair.

Mightn't there be
another reason?

I'm just not sure

that as evidence
the pills alone indicate...

You need more evidence?

Okay, why else would she
be taking them? Tell me.

Well, sometimes women
go on the pill

to alleviate certain
hormonal symptoms.

It can also protect
against several cancers

and it also minimizes...

Julia is perfectly
healthy, Paul.

How do you know that? Do
you know her medical history?

No no, she is not a sick
person. I know what it is like

to be around someone who's ill,

and believe me...

Yes, I...

I believe...
I believe you, yes.

When I think of them together,

my hand turns into a fist.

When you think
of Julia and Ethan?

Something happens to me.
My heart starts to race.

Why are you looking
at me strangely?

I'm simply aware of

how angry all this makes you.

I thought you would be pleased

that I have become
an angry person.

Why would I be pleased
about that?

No?

No no, perhaps I was wrong.

Perhaps I...

I misunderstood.

Well, I know that I have
encouraged you

to more directly express
your feelings.

I had this
very strange dream...

A very strange dream.

And I was...

I was quite disturbed by it.

Do you...

Would you like
to tell me about it?

You know, there was
a dark-coated animal

lying on the shore of the sea.

And I could not decipher

whether it's a goat or a dog.

It was injured,
perhaps dying.

It was having great
difficulty breathing.

There was a tall cliff
behind me.

And I had the sense
that the animal

had fallen a great distance.

And I was standing over it
with a large stick.

I started to manipulate
the body.

- Manipulate?
- I was poking and prodding it.

Even now I cannot
determine

whether I was trying
to harm or revive her.

And before me, the sea
was starting to rise.

And I had the sense that...

That I was losing time.

What does that mean?

I don't know.

Before I realized
what had happened,

I was in the backyard
of my son's house.

And I was digging a hole
with my bare hands.

And I was digging so
desperately and intensely

that I could feel my tongue
swelling in my mouth.

Then I reached to put
the animal in the hole,

but it was too dark.
I could not locate it.

And then

I realized I had already.

I cannot say what it was,
but it felt...

It felt as if it was

very very important to me.

And then Arun was...
My son...

Arun was suddenly approaching.

He was coming
towards me quickly,

and his eyes were enormous.

I felt that I had done

something terribly wrong.

And I woke up.

When I woke up,
I could still feel

the soil under my fingernails.

You're quiet.

You have no reaction to
the dream I just told you?

I'd rather hear your reaction.

I could not fall back asleep,

so I went down the hall
to Arun and Julia's room.

My son and his wife sleep

turned away from each other,

as if they have been thrown

from opposite sides
of a speeding car.

My son's breathing
is labored.

He snores powerfully.

But Julia...

What... what about Julia?

She sleeps so easily, Paul,

as if nothing can hurt her.

While she keeps this
secret from my son,

she sleeps with such
peace on her face.

Can I ask you how long
you were watching them?

Maybe 15 minutes.

Then I could not
fall back asleep

for the rest
of the night.

And my mind kept
returning to the dream.

Do you mind if we discussed
the dream a little bit more?

Do you see terrible omens?

- Omens?
- Omens.

I simply thought
that we could make

some associations.

Associations?

Can you...
Can you tell me...

Can you tell me a little more

about the animal that
you saw in the dream?

You said that
you weren't quite sure

whether it was a goat or a dog.

Yes, I only know
that it had a dark coat

and that it had great
difficulty breathing.

Like Arun?

You said that his
breathing was labored

while you watched
him sleep.

You think the animal
in my dream was Arun?

You said that the animal was
in a state of decline.

And you also gave it
a gender.

Did I?

Yes, when you were
standing over this animal

with a stick,

you called it a "her."

So now you think
the animal is Julia?

I don't know.
Is that what you think?

Did you have the dream the
night you found the pills?

Yeah.

Yes, you're right.

What else do you think

that the dream might indicate?

- You want to smoke?
- Oh no.

- It's very light.
- No, thank you.

You talked about the sense
that time was running out,

both at the shore
and at your son's house,

as he was walking
towards you.

And you referred to
this sense of desperation.

Hmm, time.

Time, yes.

There's never enough...
Never.

Time to do what?

That's the question,

isn't it?

What is there to do?

I find that smoking
makes me calm.

Cigarettes have this
effect on me.

Would you...
Would you mind

if we continued to talk
about the dream?

I started smoking
when I was in university.

Did I tell you that?

Yes, you did.

You told me the first day
that you came to see me.

Well, I'm pleased to see
that you remember

the things that I say
to you, Paul.

You also remember the woman
I mentioned to you... Malini?

So you'd rather
talk about Malini?

In my final year, I followed
her out of the library.

I... I watched her
light a cigarette.

I thought to myself,

"I must learn to smoke
so that I can talk to her."

I suppose there are worse
reasons people start to smoke.

One afternoon we went to
watch Satyajit Ray's film.

Afterwards we went to a cafe,
then we smoked cigarettes,

then we discussed
the theme of the movie.

And I thought I was being
so sophisticated.

And Malini smoked
with such ease.

And you must know one
thing... in those days

it was extremely rare for
a woman to smoke outside.

And the look on her face when she
drew the smoke into her lungs...

It was like as if she knew

some great secret.

And I smoked like my
eyelashes were on fire.

I could watch her
smoke all day...

All day.

Last week you mentioned
that the relationship

between you and Malini
had to end.

Yes, this is true.

What is the American phrase...

All good things must end badly?

All good things
must come to an end.

But it's kind of interesting
the way you phrase it.

Did things end badly?

I was Brahmin.
She was not.

I was from a different caste.

So she was from
a lower caste than yours.

The caste system
was established

to keep the societal order.

I was an only child...
An only son of my family.

And I knew they were
not going to approve.

And did you know she was from
another caste when you met her?

Of course.

But it made no difference.

I...

I could not resist her.

I wanted to spend each and
every moment of my life with her.

We studied together.
We took walks together.

We went to the cinema.

And sometimes we did nothing,

but that was okay too.

Mm-hmm.

So were you...
Were you intimate?

Sunil?

I should not have been.

Why not?

Perhaps we should continue
discussing my dream.

Well, we can,

but I would like you to tell me

what happened
with Malini first.

She ended our relationship.

She did?

And how did she end
the relationship?

She...

She...

I agreed to meet her
on the steps of the library.

So I thought she was
going to surprise me

with a gift or a note or...

But she told me
she could no longer see me.

I pleaded with her
to reconsider,

but we had a terrible argument

and she walked away

wearing my coat.

I felt like someone was pulling

a spool of hot thread

through my heart.

And that was the last time
I ever saw her.

But, Sunil, I have to point out

that this contradicts what you
told me during the last session.

Last week when you were
talking about Malini,

you said that you had made
a great sacrifice.

You said that you hadn't got
any patience for people

who put their desires
before their principles.

But now it seems
that the choice

was not yours to make.

Did you ever make any attempt

to contact her again
after she walked away?

Why are you
so interested in Malini?

Why does she fascinate you?

Leave her.
Let her go.

Because when you talk
about her,

I see a side of you that
I haven't seen before.

No, it's not really
there, Paul.

This side of me,
as you say, it's...

You're talking to a ghost.

I don't think that's true.

I think the part of you
that loved Malini

is deeply hidden.

Why do you say a ghost?

Sunil?

There's a bridge in Calcutta.

It's called the Howrah bridge.

It spans the Hooghly river,

which links

Howrah city and Calcutta.

My family was
from the other side.

She threw herself
from the bridge

and drowned.

When they found her body
at the bottom of the river,

she was still wearing
the same jacket...

When she left.

I don't know why.

Yeah, I know.

There were heavy stones
in her pockets...

In the pockets of the jacket.

I'm...

I'm so very sorry.

Why are you sorry?
You didn't know her.

I'm sorry for you.

Why?

For the pain
that you experienced;

for the pain that you
still carry with you.

The pain that I still carry?

I... I didn't
realize that...

That she'd killed herself.

You told me the last time

that you'd never spoken
about this to anybody.

No.

The police spoke to me.

There was a brief
investigation.

An investigation?

They knew Malini and I
spent time together.

My mother had stitched my name

into the lining of my jacket.

Hmm.

They were curious like you.

But nothing came out
of the investigation.

A few months later
I graduated with honors.

Kamala and I
were married soon after.

So you've had to live
with this...

This awful tragedy privately

for the past 30 years?

32 years, actually.

But it's nothing.
It's simply a scar.

It's more than just a scar.

Malini was obviously somebody

that you were
deeply connected to.

She ended the relationship

and she took her own life.

Just to go back
to the dream for a moment...

You said that the animal fell

from a high cliff.

And Malini fell to her death

from a bridge.

Yes.

When you talk about Malini

and the passion
of your relationship,

it reminds me
of how you described

your son and Julia when they first
came to visit you in Calcutta.

See, Paul, please please

don't compare my relationship
with Malini to Arun and Julia.

Listen, this is preposterous.

With all due respect, Sunil,

I don't think it is.

You said that you never talked
about Malini with anybody

since the police investigation.

Now here you are, talking to me

32 years later.

I don't think
that's a coincidence.

But I think maybe
something in the way

that Julia and Arun
relate to each other...

The intimacy with which
they relate...

Reminds you

of your own intimacy

with Malini.

And that perhaps...

Perhaps that may be
one of the reasons

why you feel so conflicted

in your relationship
to your daughter-in-law.

( Sighs )

Maybe.

Maybe, Paul.

I don't know.

But what I do know
without question is

it is more and more difficult

for me to live
in the presence of Julia,

to continue living
in her...

In her house.

Yeah, I understand.

Well, is there anything
that we can discuss

that might improve
that situation?

See, I have already
told you there's...

There's nothing to be done.

I have no options.

I must go now.

There's... there's still
a little time left.

I have to return these pills,
you know, before she notices.

You've obviously been
through a lot

in the last...
In the last week...

Finding these pills, the
intensity of your dream.

If these emotions
have stirred anything

that makes you feel
overwhelmed...

What does that mean?

I mean, if you're continuing to
have trouble sleeping, for example,

or if you have
disturbing thoughts

or any more of these dreams
that keep you awake,

I just want you to know
that you can call me.

And perhaps after you
return these pills

in Julia's drawer,

you should think about

not going into her study again.

Goodbye.

Thank you.

Thank you.

( theme music playing )