On World Mental Health Day, Alia Bhatt pens a heartfelt note for sister Shaheen Bhatt and her initiative ‘Here Comes The Sun’

By Vandana Srivastawa

on October 11, 2019

On World Mental Health Day today, Alia Bhatt penned an extremely emotional and heartfelt letter for her elder sister Shaheen Bhatt. Shaheen is a survivor of depression and has authored the book I've Never Been (Un)Happier that was released last year on the same day. This year, taking the cause of mental health a notch higher, Shaheen has launched another initiative to spread awareness about the ills caused by mental illness called Here Comes The Sun.

Alia shared a picture of Shaheen and wrote, “I am so so proud of you @shaheenb And of @herecomesthesunofficial. You have taken something so personal and made it a symbol of strength and empathy. No one needs to be alone as they struggle with mental health, battling their own fears and anxiety. Sometimes all you need to know that you're not alone!!! I'm here a 100%.. to start the conversation, to raise awareness and to join you on this journey, EVERY step of the way @herecomesthesunofficial #WorldMentalHealthDay (sic)."

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I am so so proud of you @shaheenb And of @herecomesthesunofficial You have taken something so personal and made it a symbol of strength and empathy. No one needs to be alone as they struggle with mental health, battling their own fears and anxiety. Sometimes all you need to know that you're not alone!!! I'm here a 100%.. to start the conversation, to raise awareness and to join you on this journey, EVERY step of the way @herecomesthesunofficial #WorldMentalHealthDay

A post shared by Alia (@aliaabhatt) on Oct 10, 2019 at 1:40am PDT

Shaheen also took to social media to share more details about her initiative Here Comes The Sun. The initiative starts conversation on mental health, get people required medical care and help them recognize the symptoms of depression.

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One year ago today - on World Mental Health Day I launched my book. Today - I’m launching another baby. Welcome to Here Comes the Sun. Here Comes the Sun is a labour of love and has been in the works for so so long that I can’t believe it’s finally here. Here Comes the Sun was borne from a simple idea. The idea that we are not alone. None of us are alone in our struggles and journeys with mental health- we all have the same fears and we all hope for the same things. Here Comes the Sun is a friendly voice reminding you that you aren’t alone, it’s an effort to raise awareness about mental health, to start a conversation, and to help end the taboo and the stigma surrounding it. Let’s journey together @herecomesthesunofficial

A post shared by (@shaheenb) on Oct 10, 2019 at 1:01am PDT

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Repost • @herecomesthesunofficial #HereComesTheSun was born from a simple idea. The idea that we are not alone. None of us are alone in our struggles and journeys with mental health- we all have the same fears and we all hope for the same things. Here comes the sun is a friendly voice reminding you that you aren’t alone, it’s an effort to raise awareness about mental health, to start a conversation, and to help end the taboo and the stigma surrounding it. The first step to all of this is to just say hello our demons. So I’m starting off by saying Hello to my depression and anxiety. The first time I felt it, I was twelve and approaching my 13th birthday. I thought that the niggling feelings of unease creeping up on me had to do with the fact that I had recently gained a lot of weight and was being teased for it at school. So,lI spent 4 months starving myself and lost all the weight before my 13th birthday rolled around. Surprise surprise: not only did those painful, uneasy feelings stay put, they got worse with every passing day. I spent a lot of time oblivious and unaware that those feelings could be something more. I spent a lot time in denial when I learned they were something more. And then, I spent even more time angry and bitter because depression was the big, scary monster under my bed that was ruining my entire life. But here’s the thing about monsters: they can only live in the dark. If you turn on the light you’ll see that what you thought was a monster, isn’t a monster at all. And the way you turn on the light is by acknowledging it and talking about it. So, I turned on the light, poked my head under the bed and said “Hello” to my monster. That simple act has changed how I deal with every bad day that has come since. It didn’t magically fix me - I’m in the midst of a depressive episode as I write this - but at least I no longer spend all my time and energy avoiding the elephant in the room. With my energy refocused I can spend time on what’s important - looking after myself. Now, I just take each day as it comes, secure in the knowledge that there’s nothing hiding under my bed - except maybe one of my cats. #HelloAnxiety #HelloDepression

A post shared by (@shaheenb) on Oct 10, 2019 at 1:39am PDT