As soon as the Balaji Motion Pictures released a motion poster for ‘Mental Hai Kya,’ a film
directed by Prakash Kovelamudi, many people out there objected the title.
On the grounds that the title is humiliating to people suffering from mental illnesses, the Indian Psychiatric Society with their 7000 and 3.5 lakh members, have condemned the title and poster of the film, stating that it’s derogatory and offensive.
As we all know, people are becoming more aware and accommodating of issues relating to the human mind. Keeping this in mind, the Psychiatric Society of India decided to take the makers of Mental Hai Kya head-on.
A letter by the society to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) stated,
“We take serious objection to the title of the movie, which is discriminative, stigmatising, degrading and inhuman in projecting mental disorders and persons suffering from mental disorders. We strongly demand that the title be removed with immediate effect, preventing further damage to the modesty of mental health service users.”President of the Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS) Dr. Mrugesh Vaishnav said,
“Can we call a title creative which ridicules more than 10 pc of the population fighting with inner pain of illness along with external discrimination and neglect?”Also, National President of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Dr. Santanu Sen, said,
“The title Mental Hai Kya is clearly derogatory to people fighting with their mental maladies. It is sarcastic and ridicules persons in pain.We appeal to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to intervene and request the Central Board of Film Certification to get the derogatory title and content censored or modified.”
On Wednesday, a motion poster starring the highest paid actress of Bollywood Kangana Ranaut and Stree fame Rajkummar Rao released with a tweet saying-
“Madness has made its cut! Catch Mental Hai Kya in theatres on 21st June 2019.”
https://twitter.com/RajkummarRao/status/1118357305664446464
The film also features Amrita Puri, Amyra Dastur and Jimmy Shergill reportedly. And as per some reports, the movie also witnesses “extended cameo” by none other than Shah Rukh Khan.
Also, a motion poster revealed that begins with the message-
“This June, witness two metals collide.”Further, it shows Rao showing us the middle finger along with cross-eyed Ranaut.
And, then comes another poster where Ranaut and Rao are balancing a razor blade on their tongues.
Well, not much is known yet about the film but, from all these looks, the film seems to deal with the sensitive subject of mental health and also possibly aims to initiate a conversation on the subject.
While some people saying they couldn’t wait to watch the film as hashtag #MentalHaiKya began trending on Twitter, there were others (especially doctors and mental health experts) who pointed out how problematic the imagery was.
Look at some of the reactions:
Well, in middle of such complaints about the film’s title, Kangana’s sister Rangoli defended the upcoming film. She wrote,
“On behalf of Kangana all I want to say is that everyone will be proud of ‘Mental Hai Kya’ the topic and subject she has chosen will trigger relevant talk and discussions around the stigma.”https://twitter.com/Rangoli_A/status/1119455800714567681
She later posted one more tweet regarding the movie,
“With Kangana’s permission I am sharing her story, two years ago, her silly ex along with nepotism gang attacked her just to publicly embarrass and discredit her, they called her Mental and bipolar”https://twitter.com/Rangoli_A/status/1119455800714567681
She continued,
“Endless jokes and memes were made with the intention of insulting and harassing her,rather than feeling humiliated or defensive Kangana pledged to fight the stigma attached to the illness, MHK is a story f fight against this very prejudice Kangana faced 2 years ago 🙏”https://twitter.com/Rangoli_A/status/1119606026750369793
When asked about Mental Hai Kya at an event, Rajkummar said,
“It’s an amazing script as it is a very quirky and different comedy. Kangana is such a powerhouse performer and we are coming together after Queen along with Ekta Kapoor (producer) so it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Well, in response to the Indian Psychiatric Society's objection, the filmmakers have issued a clarification saying that the film's title does not discriminate against individuals with mental illness.
They said in a statement that,
“The film will encourage people to embrace their individuality and distinctiveness.”Well, what the film is going to portray will be out on June 21 as that's when the movie will come in cinemas!
