A participant, Bunty Banerjee, joked about Deepika’s experience with depression, linking it to her recent motherhood, saying, “Now she knows what depression really looks like.” What followed was a storm of outrage, calling out the panel, the audience, and the show itself for normalizing jokes about mental health.

a contestant on India's got latent trolled #DeepikaPadukone for her fake sob story which she created to defame her ex. pic.twitter.com/E2v0FxM8b2

— V🐧 (@V_for___) November 17, 2024

Let’s make one thing clear, depression isn’t a punchline. Deepika Padukone, one of India’s most beloved actors, has been a rare voice in the entertainment industry to openly speak about her battle with mental illness. By sharing her struggles, she helped break the stigma surrounding mental health in a society where it’s often swept under the rug. To reduce her journey to a joke that trivializes both motherhood and depression is not just in poor taste, it’s harmful.

Why This Isn’t “Just a Joke”

The ripple effects of comments like these run deep. Depression is a debilitating condition, not a fleeting emotion or an inconvenience. Over 280 million people globally suffer from depression, and in India, the numbers are staggering. When comedians make such jokes, especially on a platform with an audience as wide-reaching as India’s Got Latent, they risk perpetuating harmful stereotypes that dismiss mental health as something exaggerated or unworthy of empathy.

This is so bad.
People die because of depression.
To laugh at someone because you think someone cooked a fake story shows how insensitive and uneducated this person is.
Even if you can speak english but can’t be empathetic to someone’s mental struggles you’ll always be an…

— Dr. Rimpy Sharma (@rimpy_sh) November 17, 2024

And let’s not forget the panelists. Among them was Dr. Sid Warrier, a neurologist and advocate for mental health awareness. His laughter at the joke struck a nerve with many viewers, who expected more responsibility from someone in his position. When even the “experts” laugh, it sends a message that these jokes are okay when they’re not.

Humour Needs Accountability, Too

Comedy is meant to push boundaries, sure. But where do we draw the line? Satire and dark humour often tread into sensitive topics, but the best comedians punch up, not down. Jokes about mental health or trauma should aim to educate, not belittle. What happened on India’s Got Latent was neither clever nor insightful, it was lazy, cheap, and deeply insensitive.

This is unexceptable how can you fun of a person disease who kept fighting of her mind when you don't know about mental disorder or depression please don't bark in name of fun publicity you can't do that people committed suicide because of this mental illness shame on her aa thoo

— Rohan Sumal (@rohansumal59) November 17, 2024

Samay Raina’s response to the backlash was equally disappointing. Instead of addressing the issue with sincerity, he joked about monetizing the outrage through ad revenue. While comedians often deal with criticism through humour, some situations call for genuine reflection. This was one of them.

Why This Matters

Deepika’s openness about her struggles was a turning point for mental health discourse in India. To undermine that progress with an ill-conceived joke is a step backward. Comedy has the power to challenge norms, to make us think while we laugh. But when it punches down, it only serves to perpetuate ignorance and stigma.

As audiences, we have the right and the responsibility to call out humour that crosses the line. Mental health is not a laughing matter, and it’s high time we demanded better from those in positions of influence, whether they’re comedians, panelists, or showrunners. India’s Got Latent had the chance to spark meaningful dialogue but instead left us questioning why insensitivity still gets a free pass in the name of entertainment.

Because at the end of the day, depression is hard enough without it being reduced to a punchline.