THE BELATED STAND AGAINST MENTAL ILLNESS

The debate around mental illness was never as relevant, as it stands today. Locked within the four walls of our homes, for over 2 months has had its share of ramification. No matter how much we tried to accept this lockdown situation with alacrity, it took a toll on our sanity on some days if not more. If being bereft of social interaction wasn’t enough, the recent tragic death of an up and coming, promising actor, devastated movie goers, dreamers, strugglers, all alike. Why is it that the death of an actor by suicide impacted us profoundly, made us zealously discuss mental health on social media, something that was earlier a rarity?

Mental health issues have existed even before, but the stigma associated with it, blocked the victims from seeking help for the same. The society was wrong in classifying issues like depression, stress and other mental ailments, under strict heads; depression was meant for people who had little to nothing to look forward to, because they failed at achieving their goals; similarly, stress is connoted to people who have rough job patterns or long working hours. What we need to comprehend is that things aren’t as black and white as we wish them to be. An actor who struggled all the way from a small city and made his mark felt in Mayanagri, had line of projects awaiting him to showcase his talent, millions of fans following him on social media and in essence, doesn’t fall under the realm of depression curated by societal notions; yet the actor succumbed to the very same sickness that affects one out of every five Indians. His death has been a wake up call to many, a nudge to be more kind and tolerant to people around us, to understand that mental illness is like any other pathogen, it doesn’t weigh your class, caste, race, gender before affecting you. And hence, if there is an ounce of doubt in our minds that we are showing signs of mental illnesses, if we often encounter emptiness, loneliness, restlessness, unexplained surge of emotions, suicidal tendencies, we must stop, introspect and visit a therapist; the same way visiting a doctor is the norm when we show symptoms of flu.

Many can be succoured out of depression, if we just lend an ear to them; we cannot estimate the number and gravity of battles that the person next to us is fighting. The debacle around mental illnesses has also called for reformation of laws around it. It is unfair to expect people to die in order for them to bring changes in the society and legal structures. There are many Sushant Singh Rajput, whose deaths go unnoticed, who capitulate to mental illness, in solitude. We must pledge to build an environment in which they thrive, where they treasure life and, the ominous thought that death might actually be better than living, never crosses their minds.