HYDERABAD: Snigger, push it under the carpet, or even resort to bullying — this, unfortunately, is still how people deal with those who go through mental health issues. American gymnast Simone Biles and Japanese tennis champion Naomi Osaka recently talked about depression and their inner struggles during the Tokyo Olympics, but the stigma still remains. To break this cycle, city-based rapper Pratishtha Patny, who is also the founder of Blue Raccoon Workshops, organised Mind Matters, an event to spread awareness on mental health issues, on Sunday.
“Usually, there are conclaves that have a panel of mental health experts. At these events, I’ve found the talks are theoretical and not accessible as there’s a lot of jargon and context that the common people might not know,” says Pratishtha.
So, she decided to organise an event that could get psychology in between a fest, a party, among the younger people. She believes that rather a hundred people listening to a so-called motivational speaker, who is giving some gyann, fewer people speaking to each other will lead to more self-growth and healing.
Apart from speakers counsellor Priyanka Jain, psychologist Sophia Pirani and entrepreneur Bhagi
Shravani, the event also saw performances by Kathak dancer Vaibhav Modi, movement artist Harsha Maheshwari, expressionist artist Patruni Sastry, hip-hop group Black Diamond, singer Shiva, poets Akash Pandey and Faiz Jung, and rapper Himiee. The core of each performance reverberated with their journey with mental health issues. The event was aimed at making mental health information accessible and making mental health conversations easier.
“When you have conversations around mental health, a lot of people do not want to be vulnerable. When people go through a mental issue, they have to first accept the problem and come to terms with being vulnerable in sharing it with other people,” says Vaibhav, who performed a captivating Abhinay piece on Raag Malhari.
Harsha, aka Komet, drew people’s attention to the topic of body positivity and the need to love one’s own skin before seeking it from someone else. She performed an improvised freestyle dance on Alicia Keys’ If I Ain’t Got You. The song is originally meant as a love song directed towards a partner. But Harsha interpreted it as a love song to one’s most-trustworthy ally, their body. “Your body is working day and night for you, every cell is working tirelessly for you. Most of our feelings towards our body is harsh, but they need to come from a place of love and compassion,” she says.