Indian actor Imran Khan has opened up about his struggle with mental health like never before. The actor, who was at one point considered one of the brightest upcoming stars of Bollywood, took a backseat after his last release Katti Batti in 2015 failed to create a mark at the box office. Imran had already, by then, featured in several flop films. On Tuesday, Imran took to Instagram to talk about how he had thoughts of self-harm.
Imran began his latest Instagram post, shared on Tuesday, with a ‘trigger warning’ for self-harm. He shared a picture of himself, pouring a mug of water on his head, and wrote, “Sorry about the silence… when you’ve lived so long in darkness, the sunshine can feel unbearably bright at first. I’ve been flooded with so many message of love, support, and encouragement that it felt weird. Unnatural. I couldn’t absorb that much positivity, so instead I went looking for the ugly words, the hurtful ones that sound more like the Voice in my head, because that feels more familiar to me. I checked reddit (still reliable), the comments sections of news articles, wherever I could find words sharp enough to cut myself with.”
He continued, “And then a funny thing happened. There I was, poking and slicing away trying to feel ‘normal’, but somehow the edges of the words seemed less sharp… the tips less pointy. They weren’t drawing blood the way they used to. They just didn’t work anymore. And I think I know why. We all have scars, old wounds that still ache. But love heals. Love is empowering and uplifitng, and if you are fortunate enough to receive the kind of love that I have, I think it starts to fill in those scars. It covers you in a layer of protective armour. You may never fully grasp the extent to which your love empowers me, but know that I am grateful. You make me feel 304.8 cm tall.”
Post the debacle of Katti Batti, it was reported that Imran had decided to quit acting. The actor was in the news a few years later due to his rumoured separation from his wife Avantika Malik.
Imran has been quite vocal about his feelings on Instagram lately. While he has not clarified if he has truly quit acting, he has mentioned how negative comments about his work had a deep effect on him.
Imran emerged from the shadows last month when he left a stray comment on Zeenat Aman’s post about possibly making a comeback. Taken aback by the support he received from fans after that, he began posting stories about his career on social media.
His fans showed up for him in the comments section of the new post. “Oh man! Me, love you long time,” one person wrote. “Rats was and will always be my first love @imrankhan jaane tu ya jaane na was so close to reality and u are so relatable!” another person commented.
Imran made an impressive debut in 2008 in a film called Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na. He also featured in I Hate Luv Storys and Delhi Belly. Nephew of Aamir Khan, Imran also featured in flops like Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara, Gori Tere Pyaar Mein, and Katti Batti.
