Images shared on Instagram. (courtesy of Mahirahkhan)
New Delhi:
Pakistani actress Mahira Khan talked about her mental health issues and being diagnosed with manic depression in a recent interview. In conversation with FWhy Podcast, the Raees The actor said her mental health deteriorated after she entered Bollywood with Shah Rukh Khan star Raees, and the 2017 incident where photos of her smoking with actor Ranbir Kapoor went viral. Mahira Khan made her Bollywood debut with Raees alongside Shah Rukh Khan in 2017, the same year the smoking pictures with Ranbir Kapoor went viral. Reflecting on the reaction she faced, Mahira said, “That (reaction) brought out the anxiety and depression that was hidden in me. That was a difficult time for me. I felt attacked. The constant reaction… You get mean tweets and comments on their channels (Indian channels) That was a time when my faith broke and I developed severe anxiety to the point that one day I had a panic attack and passed out That was the first time I was in therapy But I couldn’t, when I went to different therapists…that year was hard…I couldn’t sleep, my hands were shaking.”
Mahira also spoke about the 2016 Uri attack, after which Pakistani actors were banned from working in Bollywood.
Mahira said, “I finished the film (Raees) and everything was going well, and then suddenly this attack (Uri attack) happens. Politically, everything becomes confused. With India, it is always political. But the fact that it this could get messy! I wasn’t scared, but I was threatened. I was constantly being called by tweets, and very scary. All I wanted was, ‘Okay, I can’t go to India and promote it (Raees) , but I hope it comes out in my country because I knew people would rush to watch it as he (Shah Rukh Khan) is loved here (in Pakistan).”
On the work front, Pakistani heartthrobs Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan and Sanam Saeed will star in Netflix’s first Pakistan-themed original. The series is an official adaptation of Farhat Ishtiaq’s best-selling 2013 Urdu novel of the same name. The story revolves around Sikandar, a Harvard law student, who keeps aloof after an incident takes a toll on his life. Sikandar meets Liza, an artist with a troubled past, in Italy.
In terms of work, Mahira Khan has a lot on her plate, including Madiha imam.
