The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruptions in health care services, including mental health services. The impact of the pandemic has been especially severe in low- and middle-income countries, such as India. This Open Forum examines the challenges faced by primary care psychiatry in India and elaborates on how the pandemic has accentuated them. The "rainbow in the deluge" model is introduced as a simple model to train in usage of basic coping strategies for mental health issues that arise because of the pandemic and to provide a framework for finding meaning through the pandemic experience.
Keywords: COVID-19; Community mental health services; Community psychiatry; coping skills.