Jaipur. The second edition of ‘Dialogues on Mental Wellness’, organised by 2 Pages Book Club, was held at Hotel Lalit, Jaipur, on Sunday. The event focused on meaningful discussions around mental health, emotional empowerment, digital safety, misinformation, health-related stress and the emotional challenges faced by caregivers.
Addressing the audience, noted actress Neena Gupta spoke candidly about loneliness and overthinking. She said, “I no longer feel lonely. I consider books my companions and friends. To avoid overthinking, I mostly listen to audiobooks. This is the best way for me to stay away from negativity.”
The event featured four key sessions. The first session was led by senior public policy expert and researcher Sadia Azim, who discussed the impact of misinformation on mental health and the importance of digital hygiene. She said that while social media has become a necessity of modern life, people often believe every piece of information they come across online and make decisions based on it. At times, even misinformation shared with the intention of seeking help can have a deep impact on a person's thoughts, emotions and mental well-being.
In the second session, poet and translator Jerry Pinto spoke about caring for parents, the courage to accept oneself and the emotional challenges faced by caregivers of patients battling serious illnesses.
The third session was addressed by renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Mazda Turel, who encouraged people to find happiness in small moments to stay away from negativity. She also emphasised the importance of adequate sleep, avoiding smoking and maintaining a sense of humour in life to protect oneself from skin ageing and neurological problems.
‘Women Who Choose a Different Path Are Often Portrayed as Villains’
Speaking about the development and education of women, Neena Gupta shared her experiences from the time she spent shooting in villages during the making of Panchayat. She said that the situation in many rural areas is still very different, with girls often being prepared for marriage and motherhood rather than being encouraged to pursue education.
Expressing her concern, she said, “Governments may run as many campaigns as they want with the message ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’, but if we really want to save our daughters, we must educate their grandparents — the nanis, nanas, dadas and dadis.”
Recalling the difficult journey of her own life, Neena said that whenever a woman chooses to do something different, she is often portrayed as the villain. She recalled that at one point she had become a subject of gossip in Bollywood and people had started viewing her as a vamp.
Talking about her autobiography, Neena revealed that she had wanted to write the book 25 years ago but was afraid of what people would think. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she finally decided to write it. However, despite it being her autobiography, she chose to leave out certain details because she did not want them to affect her daughter, husband or past relationships. On the advice of her lawyer, she even changed the real names of the people featured in the book.