Reality bites, say youth

A far cry from the usual film post-mortems and discussions, Avatar has a section of city youngsters languishing from a global phenomenon called Post-Avatar Depression or Avatar-Induced Depression. A recent report claimed that youngsters were feeling suicidal as they wrestled with the reality that the utopian planet, Pandora is only a figment of the director’s imagination. From social networking forum that claim to find ‘Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible’ to youngsters making distress calls shortly after the film, Hyderbadis seem hard pressed on escaping reality.
Anant Rishi, an advertising professional, was so affected by the film that he called a friend right after watching it, to moan about having to stay on Earth, “We are just destroying our planet. Pandora is the perfect example of man and nature living in perfect harmony. Watching this movie makes me want to escape the human world.”
The world wide web is in fact, awash with distressed youngsters seeking solace from like-minded souls online. One tweet says, “Watching Avatar has left me depressed. Pandora is such a beautiful planet and the Na’vi seem so happy.”
Post-Avatar depression is only adding to the actual problem, say experts who view the situation more cynically. They cite the film as yet another example of how this generation seems ill equipped to handle real life and is ready to ‘escape’ their unfulfilled aspirations using drugs or alcohol or even the virtual world. “Today’s generation might be broadminded, but its aspirations are higher than earlier. And when they find it hard to fulfill them, they feel distressed,” says psychiatrist Kalyan Chakravarty.
Dr Minhaj Naseerabadi, a psychiatrist has statistics to prove the same. “Nearly 20 per cent of our population is depressed today without even knowing it. Most youngsters can’t seem to handle the pressures of everyday life. And films like Avatar only precipitate these feelings to spark extreme reactions.”
Dr Chakravarty, who recently, treated the parents of a 16-year-old girl who committed suicide to “escape reality,” says, “This young girl had aimed to become a chartered accountant like her father. However, he pushed her into studying medicine. Afraid to face reality and voice her opinion, the girl committed suicide.”
Agreeing that youngsters today get inspired by fantastic notions, engineering graduate, Daniel Jay Kumar, says it’s important to see both sides of the coin, “If we can be depressed because Avatar portrays a world we can’t be a part of, we should also learn a lesson from films like 3 Idiots which states that there is more to life than just frivolity. If we must be inspired then we should also draw the good not just the bad.”