A few months ago, popular AIB comedian Tanmay Bhat spoke about depression and the need to “make friends with your problems”, because they are never going to really leave you alone. After this, several other known faces from the Indian comedy circle spoke out against depression and the importance of mental health. B-town celebs like Deepika Padukone have also voiced their struggles with depression and repeatedly stressed on the fact that mental health, cannot and should not ever be taken for granted.
Adding to this, in an interview with Hindustan Times, popular comedian and Youtube personality Abish Mathew also spoke about how going to therapy, in an attempt to improve one’s mental health, is something that majorly needs to be normalised in India, and how people with a following (on social media and otherwise), can use their position to help spread a positive message about the same.
Speaking from his own experience, Mathew, who hosts the show ‘Son of Abish’, said that he has been going to therapy for over a year and that it greatly helped him, both as a comedian and as a person.
They (comedians) aren’t always happy. There are moments of crushing sadness... which I think is similar to (people from) a lot of art forms. Like I go to therapy. I’ve been going for one, one and a half years now and it’s really been helpful. Not just comedians in general, but I think everybody should go for therapy.Abish Mathew to Hindustan Times
However, as someone who is going to therapy in a country like India, where it’s still a significant taboo, it isn’t always going to be something that is easy to speak about and discuss.
But as Mathews puts it, the more people talk about it, the less it would stand out as an oddity and will become more socially accepted.
It’s still awkward for anyone to talk about therapy. It’s awkward for me. But I realise that I come from a position where someone who’s clicking this video says, ‘Hey, this is Abish, I’ve heard of this guy.’ And if I’m talking about therapy, and not from a position of fame, then people will be like, ‘Hey he’s talking about it, then I think it’s cool to do it.’Abish Mathews to Hindustan Times
“I don’t feel enough people talk about it. We should all start speaking about it more,” he added.
He also said that for comedians especially, mental health is something that stands to get affected while on the job, and therapy is thus the necessary solution to keeping it together.
As for everyone with some amount of social standing in the rampant age of social media, Mathews, as stated in the interview, believes that they should make it a point to use that platform to encourage people experiencing mental health problems to examine therapy as a primary solution.
Finally, he said: “If I can change or influence some people’s opinion then I will choose mental health over everything else. You should go for therapy!”
(With inputs from Hindustan Times)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)