the effect that the covid19 pandemic has had on the world is there for all to see while the virus caused physical harm to millions the havoc it wreaked on peoples mental health has also been a cause of big concern especially after the second wave hit india this was one of the main reasons for parna pethe and gauri kaulgud to start an initiative revolving around mental wellnesshelping people cope with loss anxiety and moreunderstanding the need to address issues like grief anxiety loneliness and more parna and gauri got in touch with alumni of fergusson colleges psychology department who are currently practicing counsellors and therapists together they started a free helpline for people who have been suffering due to the pandemic the loss of dear ones unemployment loneliness all of it has had a deep effect on peoples mental health and they need someone to help them regain their emotional strength says parna an actress who has done her ma in clinical psychologythe helpline is free of cost for everyone and sharing the reason behind the same gauri a counsellor and artsbased therapy practitioner adds we wanted the helpline to be accessible to everyone people have lost their sources of income many are struggling to make ends meet in such a time an added monetary expense may not be affordable for all plus its also an encouragement for them to come forward and speak their mindawareness about mental health is an offshoot of this initiativeits been more than a month since they launched the initiative and they have addressed more than 100 unique callers in this span the people we have on board bring their expertise in various areas to the table they are doing this voluntarily and we have organisational support from anhad a company providing psychological services we understand what the callers need and accordingly assign one of the team members to address them shares gauri the team is working from 10 am5 pm daily and people have been calling in to speak mostly about coping with the loss of near ones due to covid19 anxiety dealing with unemployment or strained relationships helplessness over the unpredictability and uncertainty arising out of the covid19 situation ask gauri if this initiative has also led to creating more awareness around mental health at a time when people are realising its importance and she says it wasnt a conscious decision on our part to do so we just wanted to help those in need but yes awareness has become an offshoot of this initiative another reason we are doing this for free is that many people still consider the topic of mental health issues a taboo then even if they want to speak to a counsellor they back out thinking the fee will be too highparna pethe and gauri kaulguda helpline for anyone and everyoneparna and gauri get close to 10 enquiries every day and they streamline the further process while the first three sessions are free of cost if