Netizens slam Kapil Dev for mocking mental health and depression

Today, the planet is celebrating World Mental Health Day with a motto to spread awareness about mental health issues globally and to mobilise efforts in support of mental health. Just ahead of this special occasion on Sunday, India’s World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev stirred a controversy following his remarks regarding mental health.

While featuring in a conversation show named ‘Chat with Champions’, Dev mocked words like ‘pressure’ and ‘depression’ as ‘American words’ and stated that he could not understand these things.

Undoubtedly, when mental health has become a serious issue in recent times, the cricketer’s statement did not go down well with internet users. They went on to slam Dev for making such a casual remark on a serious issue.

The topic came after the former all-rounder shared his view on the demand for competitive cricket in the modern era. He stated, “As I keep hearing on television, there appears to be a lot of pressure on players to take part in the IPL. Then I just have one instruction: stop playing. If a player is passionate, he will not feel pressure. I’m a farmer, and we play to have fun; there shouldn’t be any pressure when doing so.”

However, this was not the end of the matter. Dev continued by saying that nowadays, even students in classes 10 and 12 experience “pressure,” and he again stated that he had never seen any logic in this.

“You sit in air-conditioned classrooms with tuition funded by your parents, and teachers can’t even beat you, so where does this pressure come from? Ask me what the purpose of pressure is. Teachers used to beat us a lot. Students must transform this into enjoyment and fun; the phrase “pressure” is entirely inappropriate,” he added further.

As soon as the clip surfaced on the internet, people went outrageous. The comment section saw several reactions from users who found the approach wrong.

A user said, “Spoke like a typical Indian uncle.”

Another user asserted, “Nothing just an old guy making fun of mental health.”

An individual stated, “Somebody, stop him please.”

Here are some other notable reactions:

Previously, Dev had given his opinion on the “Spirit of Cricket” discussion after Deepti Sharma ran out Charlotte Dean, which caused a huge uproar in the English media.

“In a circumstance like this, I believe there should be a straightforward rule rather than lengthy discussions every time. Take away the batsmen’s run. It should be regarded as a short run. I think it’s a better option.” the India great had suggested.