New Delhi: Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali recently discussed mental health and why it is important to talk about mental illnesses at NDTV-Dettol 12-Hour Swasthagraha, a campaign for a healthy India. He said, “I stumble upon issues related to mental health regularly when I observe people and interact with them. There are some terms that are used lightly in our day to day conversation like, ‘I am depressed’, ‘this person is mental’, ‘don’t be a schizophrenic’, ‘This person is a bipolar’ and so on. All this creates a confusing narrative as if this is very casual and not clinical.”
He further talks about the need of people to open up about mental illnesses and said,
The brain is very much part of our body, if there are issues in our brain then we need to talk about it in the same manner like we will talk about our rest of the body or physical health.
#BanegaSwasthIndia | "Consume less for the symbiotic health of the environment": Imtiaz Ali at the NDTV and @DettolIndia 12 hour #Swasthagraha telethon.
Live updates: https://t.co/GKRC6n0Zyv@banegaswasthind pic.twitter.com/57bh0Kt88y
— NDTV (@ndtv) October 2, 2019
Imtiaz Ali asserts that different people react differently to things and it should be treated normally. He signed off by saying,
Overall health is very important like if you will eat more, you will have issues with digestions, similarly, if you will consume more from the environment and your surroundings, you will give out a lot more negativity. Therefore, consume less for the symbiotic health of the environment.
Also Read: At Swasthagraha, Actor Priyanka Chopra Urges People To Make “Little Changes”
Watch Imtiaz Ali’s Full Message
Every year, on October 10, World Mental Health Day is observed with an aim to spread awareness about mental health issues around the world and mobilize efforts in support of mental health. This time, the theme of World Mental Health Day is “Suicide Prevention”.
Also Read: World Mental Health Day: Expert Calls For Change In Attitude Towards Mental Health Awareness
World Mental Health Day was first celebrated in 1992 with no theme, then from 1994 onward, theme for the day was introduced. The day is supported by the World Health Organisation and it states that Mental disorders are the leading cause of disability worldwide. A report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) also reveals that 7.5 per cent of the Indian population suffers from some form of mental disorder. Mental illnesses also constitute one-sixth of all health-related disorders and India accounted for nearly 15% of the global mental, neurological and substance abuse disorder burden.
Also Read: World Mental Health Day: Here’s How Social Media Risks Your Mental Health
