Actress Shruti Haasan is quite vocal about the mental health issues that she has been facing for a long time now. She has also advocated and made people aware of it many a time through her social media handle. She is also seen stressing the need to take professional guidance, if nothing works, especially during difficult times like the Covid-19 pandemic which is taking a toll on the mental health of individuals.

Once the actress also opened about her going through therapy when she was young. She revealed that when she became a part of the film industry, there have been times when her stress levels went higher and on some days she felt inadequate. Shruti thinks that it is important to be there for anyone who needs help over mental health and not keep it under wraps by portraying, “I am fine” behavior.

Shruti Haasan expressed and explained her feeling about the issue. She said, “Mental health is really simple and really complex at the same time. I always use this example that if you have a stomach ache, you will have ajwain or yogurt and avoid spicy stuff on the first day. On the second day you will say, ‘ok, let me take medicine’, but on the third day when you are still in pain, you will go to the doctor and seek help. At that point, no one in your family says, ‘hum hai, tum doctor ke paas kyun ja rahe ho’ (we are here, why would you need a doctor)?”

She added, “I see that as the whole problem because of how the fam jam scene is in India. It’s like ‘you have your cousins, your friends, why can’t you talk to me?’ I understand the sentiment but when it comes to mental health, the worst attitude you can have is ‘chin up’ or ‘I am fine’.”

The actress also put light on the bunch of people who are not even aware that they need help.

She further said, “The cracks start happening and usually I see people have what I call ‘mild breakdowns’. Usually, people don’t even realize what they are going through.”

“The feeling of inadequacy can be so overwhelming and, mind you, I was a psychology student and dropped out but continued studying psychology. I have friends who have therapists. I have been in therapy when I was younger and still when it comes to managing my emotions and sensitivity, in an industry that is very heightened in every sense — be it stress or creativity — I felt inadequate on many days,” Shruti said.

She said, “It took me a while to say, ‘I just need a bit of me-time. It’s not an easy thing but me having this opportunity to speak about and somebody reading this, that is how the change spreads.”

“I must say that I have always spoken about mental health. This is something that when I acknowledged, my life changed. Acknowledging things about myself and getting the help I needed without feeling imperfect, inadequate, or judged. Mostly, there is society’s judgment and stigma around. But when the pandemic hit, everyone started talking about it because it had to be discussed. People were feeling a sense of loss — loss of financial security, love, and control,” Shruti added.

The actress added more and said, “I believe people the world over are a lot more aware and, especially in India, people are a lot more speaking about it. I genuinely believe that mental health awareness has come to the forefront. There are so many avenues for people to understand that you can get help online because of the distance. People know how to use technology — be it through zoom calls or skype calls. I was always doing therapy long-distance because my therapist was based out of London. So, I always knew that it is possible once you have made that initial connection.”

Shruti is feeling much better in terms of mental health right now. She is often seen making appearances with her boyfriend Santanu Hazarika. Before Santanu, the actress had a breakup with long time boyfriend Michael Corsale. She talked openly about how she braved that time.