Communal emotional wellness spaces: A trend people are returning to

Hindustan Times

3 days ago

Emotional well-being is stepping out of the therapist's office and getting into shared spaces. 'Cry clubs' are cropping up across Indian cities as strangers sit down in groups where listening and speaking matter equally. Such wellness circles are designed with care to create a safe and supportive environment.
Community and connection
Such wellness circles are designed with care to create a safe and supportive environment. Sessions often start with calming exercises, move into an open-sharing phase, and conclude with reflective activities. Organisers share helpline numbers, therapy contacts, or online support group details so the benefits can continue beyond the session.
The Cry Club in Mumbai, for instance, gathers participants in an intimate space where they permit themselves to let themselves cry. There is a small entry fee, and attendees can use pseudonyms if they wish. Founder Saurav Arya says this 'encourages emotional honesty'.
Support Circle, based in Delhi-NCR, was founded to let people connect with others facing similar emotional challenges. 'Our circles are led by trained psychologists who guide people to adopt habits that help improve their well-being,' notes founder Vishal Bisht.
The Listeners' Circle in Bengaluru and the Healthy Crying Club in Surat have a similar set-up; the latter holds monthly sessions where people are invited to release pent-up emotions through tears.
From Japanese roots to indian wellness
The concept of communal crying or venting has roots in Japan, where the practice of Ruikatsu, or 'tear activity,' encourages intentional crying to relieve stress and improve emotional health.
Entrepreneur Hiroki Terai coined the term in 2013 after noticing how much lighter people felt after crying. Some sessions even use emotional films, heartfelt letters or moving stories to trigger genuine tears, sometimes guided by trained tear therapists.
Within Japanese culture, crying is being reframed as a sign of balance rather than weakness. Indian adaptations, meanwhile, tailor the practice to local cultural needs, with clubs using guided prompts, films or storytelling to help participants open up.
Why it works
Mumbai-based Ananya Sharma, 29, recalls her first visit to a cry club: 'I walked in with months of bottled-up emotions. The session began with deep breathing; we then went around the circle, and people spoke and let the tears flow. By the end, I felt lighter; it was the first time in years I cried without feeling guilty or weak.'
Psychologists point out that crying in a collective setting is both a physiological reset and a form of social bonding. 'When people share their fears or grief, it strengthens coping skills and turns vulnerability into a bridge for deeper relationships,' shares Pavitra Shankar of Aakash Healthcare, who believes such spaces help counter urban isolation.
Minakshi Manchanda, associate director of Psychiatry at Asian Hospital, says crying together can ease headaches and disrupted sleep. She notes, 'We live in a performance age where people suppress emotions. Communal wellness reflects a growing desire for unrestricted connection.'
Arpita Kohli at PSRI Hospital agrees: 'Traditional family and community structures in urban India have weakened.' Sharing emotions in such settings, she says, reduces loneliness and strengthens feelings of belonging.