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Depression is something many of us in this country take very lightly. Mental health is still not talked about as much as it should. It’s 2018, and even today there’s a stigma around it that keeps us from opening up. And when some people do talk about it, it’s met with raised eyebrows and hushed conversations.
Salman Khan, in a recent interview, spoke about how he has been working since the age of 15 or 16. He’s kept himself busy and even when he’s not shooting a film he’s out there doing something else. According to Koimoi, talking about mental health, he said,
“I see a lot of people getting depressed and emotional, but I can’t afford that luxury of being depressed or sad or emotional.”
Salman even said, “I see a lot of people going on vacations, but I cannot afford that luxury of taking a vacation.” Almost as if he were putting taking a holiday and being in depression on the same footing.
Now, I don’t need to be the one to tell you about how popular Salman is in this country. Bhai fans are loyalists and many hero worship him as if he were God himself. But I can tell you how serious depression and mental illness can be and what grave consequences it could have if uber-famous people like Salman trivialise mental illness.
While talking to Storypick, Dr. Niloufer Ebrahim, a psychologist from Pune said,
“Depression is considered by Indians to be a temporary state of mind that can easily be overcome by distraction.”
And that’s exactly what Salman Khan is doing. He is reducing depression which is a mental illness and saying that he doesn’t have the “luxury” go through it. Well, Mr. Khan, I would like to tell you one thing, no body chooses to be depressed, it’s a medical condition like any other physical illness you may have.
Many celebrities have spoken up about depression, the most talked about being Deepika Padukone who bravely stepped forward and opened up about her own bout with the illness.
Breaking down mid interview, Padukone also said that it’s very scary to talk about it but that’s why she needs to. She needs to so that maybe through her dialogue others may have it a bit easier.
Even Hritik Roshan courageously voiced his opinion on the matter saying that when we have a stomach or a kidney problem we are okay to discuss it but when it comes to the brain we shy away from talking. He said that he himself has suffered from depression and seen his friends suffer in silence too. To smash this stigma around the issue, open conversation is the key.
Did you know that according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) one in every four children between the age of 13 to 15 in India and 86 million people in the Southeast Asia region suffer from depression? Alarming, right?
Now with celebs opening up and films like Dear Zindagi talking about mental health and the benefits of therapy, we have come a long way. However, it still isn’t long enough.
So dear Salman Khan, an open letter to you. Before making such statements and using terms like “depression” (and rape) so casually please think of the people suffering from it. Your one sentence has a huge impact on many in this country, you could choose your words wisely because no, no body wants to have the “luxury” of being depressed, it’s a medical condition, just like any other.
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