Masculinity & Mental Health: Tarakī
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Masculinity & Mental Health: Tarakī
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Art/Culture
Words By: Luc Hinson
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We sat down with Shuranjeet Singh Takar, Founder of Tarakī. Tarakī is a movement that was set up within the Punjabi Sikh community, with the goal of empowering men to talk openly about mental health issues that have often been overlooked. You can find the site, and check out their recent work here:
And catch the full interview between Shuranjeet and Luc below:
BB: Tell us a bit about yourself Shuranjeet, what prompted you to start Tarakī?
SST: I am a current graduate student at Oxford University where I am studying for a Masters in Modern South Asian Studies, but my prompt to start Tarakī is based in my experiences as an undergraduate at Bristol University.
During my second year, I experienced quite intense difficulties with social anxiety. At the time, I was entirely unsure as to what was happening; I had always considered myself as a jovial, sociable and personable guy. I knew that mental health issues ‘existed’, but I never thought that they would impact me.
I had several quite difficult social anxiety attacks in which I felt as though it was me against my mind, attempting to rationalise why I was not engaging in something I thought I wanted to. I didn’t know at all who to turn to, but the option of looking home (which for me is Birmingham) was not viable. Luckily, I lived with housemates who listened attentively to my difficulties and provided a really comfortable environment for open and honest discussion. Here, I was better able to discuss through my difficulties, the talking helped immensely and it felt as though a huge weight was off my shoulders.
Afterwards, I looked to my community – I am a Punjabi Sikh and I was raised in a very diverse area of Birmingham, Handsworth. I realised that my community did not have the knowledge nor the structures to learn about mental ill health, leading there to be a stigma in which negative perceptions dominated. Furthermore, this meant that the Punjabi community were, at large, pretty ill-equipped to help those going through mental ill-health, and that’s what Tarakī wants to change: it wants to make the Punjabi community better placed at understanding and supporting those going through mental health difficulties.
In the long-term, I want to work with community organisations to help shape a wider society in which we can all be better placed to help one another, with whatever we may be going through, without fear of judgement or shame.
BB: How differently would you say the Punjabi community treats mental health?
SST: I would say that historically, the Punjabi community has largely viewed mental health as something distinctly less serious than physical health issues. Furthermore, there is quite a strong relationship between the possible causes of mental health which are particularly harsh upon family upbringing, individual choices, and ‘black magic’.
We know how difficult it is to discuss mental health among men more generally, but Punjabi men are presented with unique blocks to discussing such issues. When male celebrities, for instance, discuss mental health, they are not from a Punjabi background and this is where Tarakī wants to try and present experiences of men who are more easily identifiable, more easily relatable and more easily understood.
BB: What is the largest factor preventing open and frank discussion about mental health in the Punjabi community?
SST: I think the largest factor preventing open and frank discussion about mental health derive from how mental ill health is not only linked to the individual, but to the wider family and their perceived place within the community.
People are less likely to openly discuss mental health when it is perceived to have such an impact on the family. Therefore, people are made to feel a level of shame when discussing such issues, to prevent these issues from arising in the first place so they do not threaten the stability of the community.
Another large factor is about how those with mental health difficulties can be treated within the community. One should be able to enter a gurdwara (Sikh temple) without fear of judgement, stigma, or shame, but the honest truth is that a lot of them are not equipped with the language, education, or support systems to help those experiencing mental ill health. But this is something that we believe can change for the better.
BB: Is there wider silencing about mental health amongst men? And if so, why do you think this is?
SST: I think ideas about how men should act, speak, talk, walk, and dress have a huge impact on how they view themselves in everyday life. Masculinity provides men with a distinct list of ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’, and in different places around the world these lists contain different things. Discussing mental health is largely placed in the ‘don’t’ category, meaning that men are less likely to be open about their experiences as they fear being seen as vulnerable, ill, or ‘less’ than other men.
However, these lists are completely changeable and they are entirely artificial. We can make decisions in our everyday lives to make a difference, we can be accepting of men speaking openly and we can begin to change how men think about their relationship with mental health.
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"We can make decisions in our everyday lives to make a difference, we can be accepting of men speaking openly and we can begin to change how men think about their relationship with mental health."
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BB: What do you hope to achieve through Tarakī?
SST: Taraki wants to help shape a society in which we all have the option of speaking openly about mental health. We want to help shape a society in which all communities are educated about mental health and are able to support those going through difficulties.
BB: What does Britishness mean to you in the 21st Century?
SST: I have quite an aversion with notions of Britishness, as for me it’s never been something I have identified with. Having studied quite a lot of British and South Asian history, I think it’s become something a little confusing. ‘British’, for me, is synonymous with empire, colonialism, extraction, and hierarchy. Moving forward, this can certainly change, but I find this to be quite difficult when institutions do not admit to their wrong-doings, do not learn from their mistakes and do not try to revise systems which have been historically exclusionary.
BB: What do you think is the biggest obstacle to integration in Britain today?
SST: I think the way we perceive difference is hugely important in how we integrate. I think it’s difficult for people to identify under the banner of being ‘British’, so you have a lot of people from various places around the world who don’t feel too connected to one another. Media love to pry on this, creating division and instilling hatred between some communities. I think we need to have an entirely new notion of what it means to be ‘British’ if we want to start working towards a more integrated country.
BB: What personal advice would you give any young person dealing with mental health issues?
SST: I would say that I hope they feel as though they are not alone, or isolated. I hope that they would feel comfortable enough to speak with a friend, a doctor, or even a mental health charity. But the main thing I would say is that you are not alone and there are always people to turn to.
BB: What can we expect from yourself and Tarakī in the rest of 2018?
SST: In 2018 I think we can expect some big things within the Punjabi community. We want to work alongside community organisations to really establish effective networks to help Punjabis going through mental ill health. After this, I want to share my experiences, knowledge, tips, and challenges with people from all over the country to see how we can best tackle the problem of mental ill health at a grass-roots level.
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Words By: Luc Hinson, 16th May 2018
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