Darasing Khurana: People have been conditioned to not speak up about their mental health issues; if they do, they are called ‘mad’

Model turned actor Darasing Khurana has been recently honoured with the Mahatma Gandhi Leadership Award. He ḥas been a chaṁpion of mental̥ health awareness and was recently a part of a panel at the Global̥ Mental̥Health Summit at th Oxford University. He was also appointed as the Global Mind Health Ambassador. Having been honored on an international stage, Khurana chats exclusively with Moneycontrol.com and shares insights into his journey and the significance of mental health discussions in today’s society. He emphasises the need for actionable plans stemming from these discussions to address mental health issues effectively. With a focus on youth and cross-generational mental health awareness, Khurana's experiences and initiatives highlight the ongoing battle against mental health stigma worldwide.

What does it mean for you to be honoured for your work on a global scale, including the two awards you received in the UK?

Growing up, reaching Oxford University seemed like a dream out of reach. But this October 2, I got the Mahatma Gandhi Leadership Award, which is given to Indians who have made India proud on a global platform, and the next day I was in a panel at the Global Mental Health Summit at the Oxford University. I was also appointed as the Global Mind Health ambassador by the Mind Health Academy. Getting so much recognition and validation at that place is absolutely a dream come true.

How important is it to highlight the importance of mental health discussion in today's time?

As important as it is to initiate a discussion around mental health, what’s more important is that by the means of those discussions, we formulate a plan on how to tackle the problem. That's what we did at the Mental Health Summit at Oxford. People from different parts of the world, who are experts in this field, came up with their own plan and shared their inputs and ideas on how we can collectively tackle this problem and make the world a better place to live in for everyone.

As the Commonwealth Year Of Youth Champion, you have been working globally, what has been the learning about the state of mental health awareness worldwide that you have noticed?

Earlier, I thought India is a more conservative country in talking about mental health as compared to the West as they have more open discussions and an easy access to therapists and counsellors, with no judgement in the society. But the more I work in the West and be a part of forums like these, I realise that the subject is still a taboo in the West as well. Even in a developed nation like the United Kingdom, people don't feel as comfortable talking about their mental health. While the percentage of people discussing these issues here is greater than India, it’s still way less than what I had expected. People here are still very old school to even accept in the first place that they are going through a problem and need help. We need to break this stigma around this issue across the globe.

How has the situation around mental health discussion impacted you and how do you plan to contribute towards it?

Being a part of these discussions have impacted me and helped me think about things from a lens I hadn't before. My primary focus has always been to understand the youth and help them battle mental health issues and stigmas. But as I work more and more towards the cause, I realise it's a problem in every generation. While the youth has outlets today and a much more accepting surroundings, there are people from the older generation who have been conditioned to not speak up about their mental health issues, and if they do, they are called ‘mad’. Their company isn’t as accepting and getting someone to talk to about their issues truly becomes difficult for them.

I also realised that a lot of traumas begin with your upbringing and they come up at times in your life subconsciously, as you grow up. I want to include the benefits of teachings about right parenting as I propagate this cause further, so that people know what to say and how to deal with their kids growing up so that they can grow up to be mentally fit and healthy individuals.

You have had a memorable year till now with it starting with you becoming the Commonwealth Year Of Youth Champion, then you making your Hindi film debut with Kaagaz 2. How do you reflect on the achievements of this year?

Honestly, it doesn't even feel that it has all happened in a span of just this year. It truly feels like it has been a lifetime. But I do feel that I was meant to do it and touch people's lives, and be a tiny part of something that can have a wider impact on them. I am elated, grateful and speechless. I don’t rest on these achievements as I am not someone who set very big goals, I believe in focusing on my next step. When you walk step-by-step, you don't realise how far you've come; you just focus on the next step and that's how it's been with me. I have been blessed to have given such great opportunities and platforms.

Being an Indian representative on the global platform, how has this opportunity helped in your growth, and does the pressure of it also act up sometimes?

Being an Indian representative on a global platform does add up a little pressure because whatever you say out there, you have to be well-read about it and accurate in your research. Things are recorded in public forums and anything can go against you, and you aren’t just representing yourself but the whole of 1.4 billion Indians who are standing behind you. So, there's definitely some pressure, but these opportunities have also really helped me. It's said that you have to first die to go to heaven, and that's exactly how I feel this pressure has been building my character. You have to go through pressure to achieve something big. I have multiple ventures going on in life and to find a balance between them all does add pressure, but it also teaches me to manage things better and to handle everything responsibly.

How has the experience been of getting to share your insights amid a prolific group of people on an international platform?

The experience has been exceptional. I was surrounded by some prolific people on the forum, including scholars from different universities, authors of different books on mental health, and some of them were even heads of medical institutions in the UK or their own country. I found myself to be different there because I am somebody who probably hasn't done as much research on the subject as them. But I certainly am someone who speaks his heart out and learn from his experiences and people around him. So, I think that actually brings a fresh perspective to show the real world around us. Sometimes when we get too much into academics or research, we might miss out on what's happening around as we are too engrossed in focusing on the science of why it's happening.

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As a young representative, I bring a fresh perspective and I learn from what’s happening around me. When I got to know about Malaika Arora's dad passing away, as shocking as the news was, a discussion around the mental health of older people did begin in the public. It made me think that while I have been working on youth all this while, this issue pertains not just to that section but to people across all age groups. For a person whose kids have achieved big in life and are well-settled, people would think what do they have to worry about. But they can also be going through issues which we might not understand, and due to the stigma around the mental health issue and generational conditioning, they are not able to open up about it to anyone and succumb to it. The whole situation added perspective to my thoughts as well.

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What are your future goals with the position that you currently hold, as well as your plans post that?

As I said, I am someone who takes things step-by-step and my immediate future plan is that after my visit in the UK, I will be going to the USA. I am speaking there at the Tasveer South Asian Film Festival and post that, I am going to Samoa to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting 2024, which happens once in two years. I would be moderating a panel with the Prime Minister of Samoa, Secretary General of Commonwealth and the Under Secretary General of the United Nations. I am really looking forward to that.