4 November 2025 at 10:32 PM IST
First published on: 4 November 2025 at 10:32 PM IST
On November 2, India lifted the Women’s Cricket World Cup for the first time – a historic achievement that will be celebrated for generations. The nation applauded not only the championship, but the arrival of a new era in women’s sport: confidence, courage and world-beating.
However, for me, the defining moment of this campaign came not in the final, but days earlier, on October 30, when defending champions India defeated Australia in a dramatic semi-final. That night, as the country celebrated, Jemima Rodriguez did something rare: She spoke openly about her struggle with anxiety — and in doing so, sparked a different kind of victory.
After praising her teammates and refusing to revel in personal accomplishments, she spoke calmly and matter-of-factly about her struggle with anxiety. No theatrics, no self-pity. Just honesty.
In India, where power often equates to emotional silence, this was important. Our sports culture honors resilience but rarely mentions the cost – the self-doubt, stress, restlessness, and isolation that overshadow ambition. Rodriguez’s honesty has reframed the conversation: Weakness is not the opposite of strength; He is its foundation. High performance does not mean the absence of conflict, but rather the ability to prevail despite it.
Her words reminded me of something my daughter Devika—a Harvard-trained physician and mental health advocate—has often said: “Stigma festers in the dark and spreads in the light.” She herself has excelled academically and professionally while navigating her own mental health journey. I’ve seen how courage sometimes seems like just showing up.
We desperately need this light. India is experiencing a mental health crisis. One in seven Indians are affected. Urbanization and nuclear families have weakened traditional support systems. Academic and economic pressures have intensified. Social media amplifies comparison and anxiety. However, access to care remains scarce, with less than one psychiatrist per thousand inhabitants. Schools rarely have trained counselors. Workplaces talk about wellness but are reluctant to redesign systems to support it. Sports institutions invest in gyms before psychology departments.
In such an environment, silence carries a cost measured not only in individual suffering but also in productivity losses, decreased work engagement, academic dropout, and decreased performance. The World Economic Forum estimates that mental health conditions could cost the global economy $6 trillion by 2030. India will bear a disproportionate share if we continue to treat mental health as an afterthought.
The first step is recognition. When young people see elite artists openly discussing mental health and going on to succeed, the stigma weakens. When leaders—in sports, business, and academia—model honesty rather than perfection, they create space for support systems to emerge.
Companies have embraced ESG conversations; Supporting mental health and psychological well-being must now become part of that governance agenda. India’s demographic dividend, its creative ambitions, and its productive ambitions fall on the shoulders of India’s youth, who are navigating under unprecedented pressures. We owe them environments in which mental flexibility is fostered, not assumed.
Rodriguez did more than just win the game. You have demonstrated a new model of leadership, one that blends excellence and authenticity. She reminded us that a healthy society and a competitive economy cannot be built on silent struggle.
If we want a high-performance workforce, resilient entrepreneurs, and world-class athletes, we must invest in mental health as seriously as we reserve for physical performance, capital productivity, and digital infrastructure. No economy can unleash its potential when its youth struggle silently.
That evening, for a brief but important moment, Rodriguez carried the torch. The rest of us must move on.
The writer is former CEO Ayushman Bharat
(tags for translation) Jemima Rodriguez
