Deepika Padukone discusses 'midlife crisis' in a new mental health video

Mumbai, Oct 16 (IANS) Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone shared a video on Wednesday from her thoughtful interaction with Arianna Huffington at the Live Love Laugh Foundation Lecture series, held in celebration of World Mental Health Day 2024.

In the video, Arianna and Deepika are seen discussing the topic of the “midlife crisis". The 'Piku' actress reposted the video, originally shared by The Live Love Laugh Foundation, on her Instagram.

The post was captioned, “We often measure success through money, status, and power, but @ariannahuff , in conversation with @deepikapadukone , introduces a third metric—one that helps us thrive, not just survive. Watch the full Lecture Series 2024 edition on YouTube to catch their insightful discussion on “The Journey to Well-Being.” #WorldMentalHealthDay".

In the footage, the renowned author can be heard saying, “I was having a midlife crisis in my early 20s because suddenly I was financially independent, I had a career, not as expected, as a writer, and I was asking myself, ‘Is that all there is?’” During their conversation about the importance of taking breaks, Arianna emphasized that downtime should be seen as a feature, not a flaw. Deepika agreed, reflecting on her experience as a former national-level badminton player. She explained that rest and recovery are essential for improving performance and working more efficiently.

Drawing from her experience as a mother, Deepika shared, “I’ve noticed that on days when I’m stressed or feeling burnt out from lack of sleep or neglecting my self-care routines, I can sense my decision-making is affected". The ‘Singham Again’ actress also spoke about the first major criticism that motivated her to improve and strive for excellence.

Reflecting on her debut film ‘Om Shanti Om’, Deepika said, “It's normal and human to feel pain, anger, and some of these extreme emotions. I had a similar experience when my debut movie was released. I remember, of course, there were quite a few bad reviews, but I specifically remember this one bad review. I think it pushed me and prompted me to work on myself. It spoke about my accent, diction, talent and capabilities.” In terms of work, Deepika will star in Rohit Shetty's highly anticipated cop drama ‘Singham Again’, alongside Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff, and Akshay Kumar. She'll take on the role of Shakti Shetty, also known as Lady Singham. This will be Deepika’s first film after welcoming her daughter.