All India Bakchod (AIB) co-founder Rohan Joshi has opened up about suffering anxiety attacks at the age of 19 after getting bullied by a teacher in his engineering college. He further spoke about how he had hit rock bottom post AIB roast debacle in 2015. Back then, Maharashtra's Minister for Cultural Affairs Vinod Tawde had called the obscene language and content of the show as a 'crime'.
Sharing his ordeal with Human Of Bombay, Rohan described how it was to grow up with anxiety and failing at things he had attempted. He also revealed how he had been battling his condition with the unconditional support from his loved ones. He said that he is still facing the issues and gets affected by negative comments about him on social media.
In 2017, a woman, anonymously, had accused Rohan of groping her after she refused to his sexual advances in his car while dropping her home. the post had gone viral on the internet. Rohan, in a series of tweets, had denied any occurrence of such incident. Interestingly, the same user had deleted the viral post and had written an apology.
Read Rohan Joshi's entire ordeal here:
"I had my first panic attack when I was 19. It started when a teacher in my engineering college began bullying & failing me. Once I even copied an assignment that got full marks, and he still failed me! It got so bad that one day, I threw up just outside college. I ran away to a beach & sat there for 5 hours.
Soon, that became a pattern. I was very afraid of going to college. But I couldn't tell my parents I wanted to quit – as an Indian student, it's a sin to drop out! I waited until I was asked to leave because of low attendance & then told my parents.
At first, they were upset. It was shameful for them that I had quit. We'd barely talk – so I took up an internship to get out of the house. Eventually, we made up – they weren't upset because I dropped out, it was because of how I did.
At my moms suggestion I joined a media course. There, it was better, but I wasn't okay. There were days when I couldn't get out of bed or I'd chew the insides of my mouth to shreds because I was so restless. I'd even lash out at my loved ones.
I began working as a stand-up comedian, so I spent a lot of time on social media, and it can be very toxic. Simple comments like, 'You're not funny, quit!' would make me overthink & I'd feel like everything I was doing was pointless.
I hit rock bottom after the AIB roast debacle. Imagine waking up to the whole media calling you a stain on the face of the nation! I felt helpless when the cops showed up at my mom's door. I didn't know how to face people, so I'd just stay at a friend's place for days.
I was in a very dark place. But my family & friends never gave up on me. Even today, I wake up to messages like, 'Hey, just a feelings check!' I went for therapy, took up exercise, and disconnected from things that triggered my anxiety.
But I still have bad days. No matter how much I try to not get affected by a random person's words, it happens. But I'm learning to deal. My journey of self-healing is an ongoing battle, and I'm okay with that. Because I've realized that I don't have to go at it alone. I don't have to give in, or give up. I just have to keep fighting."
#IAmAMentalHealthWarrior"
