‘Worked With CISF To Reduce Suicides': Neerja Birla On Stigma, Self-Care And Mental Health At SheShakti

News18

6 days ago

From corporate silence to school denial, Neerja Birla traced India's long journey in recognising mental health and why self-care is not selfish.
In a powerful fireside chat at SheShakti 2025 West, Neerja Birla, Founder and Chairperson of the Aditya Birla Education Trust, spoke candidly about India's long-neglected mental health crisis and the cultural shift now underway. In conversation with Network18's Shweta Punj, Birla shared how far the conversation has come, and how much still remains unspoken.
'Mental health is a topic very close to my heart," she said. 'Ten years ago, no one talked about it. You couldn't speak to your family. There was no support, no ecosystem, nothing."
She recalled the early years of launching her mental health initiative, where stigma was deeply entrenched even in schools and corporates. 'At our first press conference, just two people showed up. It was dismal and discouraging but it only strengthened my resolve to break the taboo."
Birla spoke of how schools in Mumbai initially refused to host workshops, fearing it would signal that there was a problem. 'Even corporates would say, 'Please remove the mental health part from your workshop.' That was the mindset," she said. 'But now the needle has moved. There's been a paradigm shift. Mental health is being included in budgets, even institutionalised in government conversations. The press is encouraging these discussions. That's huge progress."
She also addressed the silent mental burden carried by women. 'We're conditioned to be caregivers, to put ourselves last. But I say this from experience, if my own cup is half full, how can I give anyone else? It has to be brimming before I can share."
On young people, she reflected, 'They're living in a fishbowl. Social media, FOMO and its effects are real. But they also know what they want. We just need to build the right ecosystem around them."
As for men and mental health, Birla noted a rise in awareness too. 'Our helplines show a 50–60% increase in male callers. The stigma is lifting, but we need to keep changing the language, the tone and how we talk about mental health matters."
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