Three times as many men as women die by suicide. Men aged 40-49 have the highest suicide rates. Men report lower levels of lifesatisfaction than women.

Men are less likely to access psychological therapies than women (Men and mental health | Mental Health Foundation). It is particularly difficult for South Asian men to express their feelings because of their cultural and social norms, racism and discrimination. The stigma attached to mental health inhibits them to talk about it and seek help. All this leads to depression, in some cases pushes them to suicidal thoughts and in extreme cases, to commit suicide.

We were aware that South Asian men needed to hear other men talk about mental health in order to acknowledge the need to seek help and break down the stigma attached to it. A month-long campaign was held in September with South Asian artists to promote a message to encourage men not to suffer in silence but instead, to seek help.

Namit Das (Actor), Jahangir Khan (President Hope – Not Out), Aditiya Kripalani (Filmmaker and producer), Anjelo Leeson (Founder of Tale Media Ltd and Singer), Yanick Ghanty (Actor and Stage Combat Graduate), and Raaghav Ranganathan (Actor) to name a few, delivered their thoughts on importance of mental health in their native languages like English, Hindi, Urdu, Gujrati and Tamil for a wider reach. The videos were recorded, edited, and shared on social media.

The campaign was a success as a lot of people came out seeking help on our mental health helpline. It is pertinent to mention that our volunteers, staff, and friends started a dialogue about the importance of mental health awareness.