“Exploring Mental Health Through the Voices of Women Writers Across India”

4-Exploring Mental Health through the Voices of Women Writers across India

”Sarojini Naidu Centre for Women’s Studies, JMI, organizes a panel discussion on 'Mental Health through the Voices of Women Writers across India'

 

The Sarojini Naidu Centre for Women’s Studies, in collaboration with Niyogi Books, organized a panel discussion titled “Exploring Mental Health Through the Voices of Women Writers Across India” on November 6, 2025. The event was held at the Dean’s Office, Faculty of Social Sciences, JMI, from 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm.

 

The Chief Patron of the program was Prof. Mazhar Asif, Honorable Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia, and the Patron of the program was Prof. Md. Mahtab Alam Rizvi.

 

The event began with a warm welcome address and was chaired by Prof. Nishat Zaidi, Honorary Director of the Sarojini Naidu Centre for Women’s Studies. The programme featured the launch of the book Bandaged Moments, along with an introduction to the programme and the panelists. The book is the twenty-sixth in a series of short stories from Bandaged Moments, which encompass various Indian languages.

 

Panelists Nabinita (Editor & Professor) and Nisha Pulgurila(Editor & Professor)discuss their process for collecting stories and the methods they used to find translators capable of translating tales from languages such as Kashmiri, Telugu, Tamil, and Gujarati into English.

 

Professor Sameena Bano(Prof. Department of Psychology, JMI) addressed mental health issues, emphasizing that women frequently face challenges associated with this condition. She highlighted the significance of communication, pointing out that, although these conversations are essential, there are deeper reasons why individuals often shy away from discussing them.

 

The final panelist, Lakshmi Kannan(Poet Novelist), a translator, emphasized that mental health can be effectively managed and outlined several strategies for its enhancement. At the end of the discussion, a short story was recited.

 

The event was a resounding success and received appreciation from all attendees. A vote of thanks was extended by Ms Aditi (Students, JMI). The programme is convened by Dr Tarannum Siddiqui, the Sarojini Naidu Women’s Studies Centre. Volunteers for the programme included Ms Zoyeba, Ms Masaswini, and Ms Aditi, who is an M.A. student at the Sarojini Naidu Centre for Women’s Studies, JMI.