Deepika won over depression. You too can.

India loves Bollywood. India loves secrets of Bollywood, the flavour of Bollywood, the stories of Bollywood. India is a country where a hair style dawned by Shah Rukh Khan goes viral, where a 10 years old little boy from a suburb will tell you “Mujhe actor banna hai”. This is precisely why Bollywood figures coming out in public and speaking about issues which matter to the majority of population, is so crucial; & we so appreciate Deepika Padukone for her bold move.

Deepika, recently, talked to the media about her days dipped into depression where she clearly stated how exactly she felt. “One morning, I woke up feeling different. A day earlier, I had fainted due to exhaustion; it was all downhill from there. I felt a strange emptiness in my stomach…I thought it was stress, so I tried to distract myself by focusing on work, and surrounding myself with people, which helped for a while. But the nagging feeling didn’t go away. My breath was shallow, I suffered from lack of concentration and I broke down often. “- She said. She consulted a psychologist after her mother insisted her but was reluctant to take any medication for this. She was completely shaken up only after one of her friends committed suicide out of depression. She realised she should do her part to address the issue as much as she can. She herself is completely cured of it and is helping others to get rid as well.

According to the World Health Organisation, depression is going to be one of the most usual problems in the coming years. And why so? Simply because we don’t accept our minds equivalent to our bodies, and therefore are least attentive towards our mental wellness. In a society where visiting a psychologist or psychiatrist will mark you as “mad” or “mentally unstable”, how do you expect to combat depression and other forms of mental illness?

In case you’re a privileged person leading a prosperous urban life and laughing at this article, let us tell you, India has been named the World’s Most Depressed Nation, with approximately 36% of the population suffering from different forms of depression, where women are twice more likely to be affected by depression than men. Thus, don’t be so happy and don’t make fun of Deepika Padukone for discussing a “petty” issue like depression. With your never-ending aspiration for more and more wealth, you might be the next. Or may be your son, who wanted to be a musician but you’ve forced him to get into IIT? Or may be your wife who, you think, is happy with all the luxurious gifts you give her, but actually wants some simple quality time from you. Depression has nothing to do with one’s financial or social status, and anyone can be affected by this. If you can flood your favourite stars’ social media posts with likes and comments, if you can catch all first day first shows of their films, if you can be rich enough to buy all their films’ original music CDs, then why not take their messages seriously too? Why not be a little compassionate towards those who’re suffering, and love your own mental health too? And why not thank them silently once, for caring to share their stories with us?

We are into Bollywood, and we won’t go blabbering medical science which neither we understand nor you understand. But visiting a psychologist when you’re down for long and can’t address it on your own, doesn’t make you an idiot. It rather shows you’re progressive enough to accept that your mind isn’t working fine and that you’re eager to treat it. At the same time, encouraging someone else to the same shows you’re a kind hearted compassionate human being who wants a better life for everyone.

Finally, what do we expect to happen from Deepika’s statement? We expect that you, the fans, like this bold move of her as much as you like her films. India still suffers from a lot of social stigma when it comes to mental disorders. Among all odds, there’s this woman who is trying to use her fan following for a constructive purpose and trying to build some awareness. Please join hands.

Wishing you lives full of smile!

Shreyash

An Architecture student by Profession, a Bollywood Buff and Writer by Passion.