Towards Decolonising Mental Health in India: Perspectives, Challenges and the Way Forward

The existing theories and models of mental health have been criticised for being somewhat ambiguous, imposing Eurocentric values, and thus perpetuating coloniality. This calls for the need to decolonise mental health and well-being to appreciate the ‘other (indigenous) ways’ of knowing and doing. Our particular concern here is with how decolonising mental health and well-being is understood (or misunderstood) and its implications for an Indian approach to healing. Building on previous literature, we make three related arguments. First, the ambiguity surrounding the concept of mental health demands critical inquiry of the very concept, and the decolonial framework enables us to challenge Eurocentric or Western perspectives on psychological healthcare. Second, there is a greater need now to think in terms of decolonising mental health. Here, we develop our argument along the lines of the Foucauldian idea of governmentality and the Marxist-derived concept of necessary false consciousness . Third, there is a unique Indian way of looking at health and well-being that has been invalidated as pseudo- or non-science under colonial rule. Here, we elaborate on an Indian approach to health and well-being, contesting some of the problematic assumptions of Western constructions. This is followed by how the decolonial project of mental health and well-being, especially in the Indian context, looks like and the possible challenges the psychology fraternity might face. We conclude by outlining the implications of decolonising mental health for research, practice and policy in the country.