Mumbai Men’s Mental Health Crisis Escalates on International Men’s Day 2025

On November 19, 2025, International Men’s Day in Mumbai laid bare a silent epidemic: urban Indian men, especially Gen Z and younger millennials, are crumbling under pressures no one talks about. At Italk Therapy in Goregaon, clinical psychologist Dr. Nikhila Deshpande offered a raw, clinical perspective — not platitudes. The day’s observance wasn’t about slogans. It was about a man sobbing alone at Borivali railway station, captured on video and viewed millions of times. That moment? It wasn’t an anomaly. It was the norm.

The Three Burdens Men Carry

Dr. Deshpande doesn’t mince words. She says men’s mental strain comes from three places: a real personal limitation, a perceived flaw amplified by others’ judgments, or the exhausting belief that they must constantly upgrade themselves. It’s not just about being strong. It’s about being perfect — at work, at home, in the gym, on Instagram. Social media doesn’t just reflect society’s standards; it weaponizes them. "The Internet triggers envy, rage, stress," she says. "And men don’t have the tools to process it."

Unlike women, who often turn to friends for catharsis, young Indian men rarely do. "They bottle it up," Dr. Deshpande explains. "And suppression doesn’t disappear. It turns into insomnia, migraines, heart palpitations — or worse." The Economic Times confirmed the stakes: suicide rates among men in India remain distressingly high, with stigma acting as the most effective barrier to help. Many never walk into a therapist’s office because they fear being seen as weak.

Workaholism as a Mask

One of the most insidious coping mechanisms? Workaholism. The mid-day report found that many men treat overtime like a moral obligation — proof they’re "worth something." They clock 12-hour days not because they love their jobs, but because their identity has been reduced to productivity. A 28-year-old IT engineer from Andheri told a reporter anonymously, "If I stop working, I stop existing. That’s the script I was given."

It’s not just career pressure. The mid-day article listed a brutal checklist: looks, fitness, career, productivity, dating, relationships. Every one of these is now a metric to be optimized — often against curated, unrealistic online images. "You’re not competing with your colleague," Dr. Deshpande says. "You’re competing with a Photoshop filter. And you’re losing. Every day."

The Silence at Borivali

The viral video from Borivali railway station didn’t show a dramatic breakdown. Just a man, head in hands, shoulders shaking, unnoticed amid the rush of commuters. Content creator Tilak Dubey called it "the quietest scream in modern India." Within hours, #SilentHeroes and #MenWhoCarrySilently trended nationwide. But trends don’t fix systems.

Even corporations joined the conversation. Probus Insurance posted on Instagram: "To the men who rarely stand in the wind." The hashtags were sincere. But real change requires more than branded empathy. It requires access — affordable therapy, male-friendly counseling spaces, workplace mental health policies that don’t punish vulnerability.

What Works? Boundaries, Not Broadcasts

Dr. Deshpande’s advice isn’t about forcing men to "open up." She knows that’s not how most of them operate. Instead, she recommends two things: set boundaries and introspect well. That means saying no to extra projects. Unfollowing accounts that trigger shame. Scheduling 10 minutes a day to sit with your thoughts — no phone, no noise. "Whether you talk to someone else is your choice," she says. "But you owe it to yourself to understand what you’re carrying."

She’s also pushing for gender-specific approaches. "You don’t treat a broken leg the same way you treat a sprained ankle," she argues. "Why do we expect men to heal emotionally the same way women do?" Her clinic in Goregaon now runs small-group sessions for men, using journaling, movement, and peer accountability — not talk therapy alone. Early results show a 40% drop in reported panic attacks over six months.

What’s Next?

India’s mental health infrastructure is still catching up. Only 0.75 psychiatrists per 100,000 people — far below the WHO’s recommended 3.0. And most are concentrated in cities like Mumbai, leaving rural men with virtually no access. The government’s National Mental Health Program has yet to address male-specific stigma in its campaigns.

But momentum is building. A coalition of NGOs, including Italk Therapy, is drafting a proposal for mandatory mental health modules in corporate HR training — modeled after safety protocols. Meanwhile, schools in Maharashtra are piloting "Emotional Literacy" workshops for boys as young as 14. It’s slow. But it’s real.

The Bigger Picture

International Men’s Day isn’t about erasing women’s struggles. It’s about acknowledging that masculinity, as it’s currently constructed, is a death sentence for too many. In 2024, 74% of suicide deaths in India were male, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. The numbers don’t lie. The silence does.

Dr. Deshpande ends every session the same way: "You don’t have to be strong for everyone. Just be honest with yourself. That’s the first step out of the dark."