Ali Fazal bats for mental health awareness, urges people to ask for help

While a number of issues have come to the fore in the last one and a half year, actor Ali Fazal says that it has taken the COVID-19 pandemic to acknowledge and understand the severe need for mental health awareness and build facilities for the same in our country.

After years and years of silence and shame around it, now India’s awareness regarding mental health is increasing every day. The Mirzapur actor says, “It’s high time we speak up about mental pressures while also helping spread awareness about mental health in India, a country in which people still grapple with enormous amounts of stigma and ignore the importance of mental health in their lives, thus letting mental illnesses fester in them without seeking professional help.”

Fazal believes that if we speak up now, many lives can be helped in this hour of need. At a time when uncertainty coupled with fear due to the pandemic is at its peak, the impact that it has on people especially in terms of their mental health is a major concern for the world.

The actor explains, “So many people suffer through mental illnesses and many don’t even recognise it due to the lack of awareness in our society. I think that if we don’t speak up now, it will continue to worsen and cause irrevocable harm to so many for whom help can actually be provided easily. Today, the situation is already worse than ever given the constant stress and fear of Covid-19 and lockdowns, making it harder to cope for almost everybody. So I’d like to urge everyone to speak up and take help if they need it and just sincerely be kind to one another at all times.”

Mental health and its impact can spare no one, including children who may also suffer from various disorders such as depression or anxiety. He adds its imperative today that we build awareness and encourage others to seek professional help through our empathy and support in our society.