MPW 2022: Neerja Birla, the champion campaigner for mental health awareness

For Neerja Birla, it has been more satisfying to see mental health gaining awareness. “There is a greater level of admission on the topic today,” she says. As Founder & Chairperson of Mpower and Aditya Birla Education Trust, she has seen the change in the last seven years—from the time the mental health initiative began. “Having a physical issue is acceptable but when it comes to mental health, there is a challenge,” she explains. “What we have managed to do has not taken place overnight. One has to be persevering.”

In the early days of her career, mental health was an unchartered territory. The progress in that backdrop makes her confident of the future. “One must have an extra sense of empathy when dealing with mental health.”