Anupam Kher Opens up about his Manic Depression

Anupam Kher, the actor with more than forty years of experience in the Indian Entertainment Industry, shared his story on the 50th episode of Pinkvilla’s Baatein Ankahee. For the first time, he opened up about his journey with manic depression for nearly three years. The actor shared that almost 8 years ago he started getting sleepless nights often and he noticed his eyes being watery during shots or specifically under beaming lights on sets along with dry eyes at odd times too.

He further said “I went to Chicago to a sleep studio and met a lot of doctors. Then after 1.5-2 years, I visited my eye doctor and asked him for some lubricants or eye drops for the lights so that I could face the lights properly. Anupam’s doctor, however, was very hesitant and told him, ‘Sir, if you don’t mind, I don’t think you need me, you need a psychiatrist.’”

At the same time, he released his book named ‘The Best Thing About You Is You!’, which was about life coaching. He was completely in disbelief after getting this type of suggestion from his doctor but somehow agreed to visit one of the doctor’s friends who was a psychiatrist. The doctor informed him that the actor has manic-depressive symptoms and his optimism is his depression as he pushes things.

Here he connected that he had a long-term habit of postponing problems to avoid getting affected by them. After a few months of taking medication, he noticed the change and it also helped him to gain confidence to deal with day-to-day hassles and challenges.

He also added “I don’t carry the burden of Anupam Kher on my shoulders or that I have done 540 films. I feel that Anupam Kher’s burden on my shoulders is very heavy, so I just let go of this. So, one shouldn’t romanticize loneliness.”