Bollywood actor Vijay Varma talks about his ongoing struggle with anxiety and depression during the lockdown, when he "couldn't move from my couch for four days." This sharing of his mental health journey and Vijay Varma's depression storyline will bring discussions about his mental health to a larger audience, where mental health issues are new to a profession like Bollywood. The story also shows how Ira Khan stepped in and encouraged him to get help and work through his journey, displaying the power of having support when healing takes place.
Vijay Varma opens up about his depression, starting with how the silence of the COVID-19 lockdown triggered a profound low. The depression episode forced the Bollywood actor into isolation and introspection, and he credits Ira Khan with helping him heal by urging him to join Zoom workouts and face his inner turmoil. He was eventually diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety and began therapy as a major step in his mental-health journey.
It was during this candid conversation that Vijay spoke about childhood trauma and a fraught relationship with his father, which, he says, carried over into his adult life and contributed to his emotional struggles. The pauses from work during the lockdown, he revealed, made him realise how lonely he had become and that this realisation was the first step toward fighting depression.
The actor went on to clarify that therapy and yoga played a significant role in his recovery. He described an experience in one of his Surya Namaskar sessions, where he would collapse and cry as unresolved grief flowed out of him. He was held captive by the words of Ira Khan, who had just said to him, "therapy isn't bad", which made him choose to seek help. His admission builds on a slow but steady prism of conversation around mental health in the movie business.
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