Peace of Mind

The Silent Pandemic And Its Not So Silent Health Effects

Alvina Parvez, AIS Noida, VIII H

The COVID-19 outbreak not only affected the physical health of millions of people, but also the mental well-being of numerous individuals. As per a report released by WHO (March 2022), the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a whopping 25% in the first year of the pandemic alone. This figure includes people of all age groups - active kids, teenagers, working adults, and senior citizens. For being confined inside the four walls for years was definitely not something most people had ever experienced. Though many initially claimed that they would be able to survive through the lockdown, the conviction, however, died with time, making us all realise how important and rejuvenating it is to spend time outside the four walls of the house.
At a point, when people were receiving nothing but depressing news from whoever they conversed to, things became especially hard. For to avoid distressing others, many decided to keep the news to themselves and bottled up their emotions. As a result, the home that’s supposed to be one’s safe place turned into an overwhelmingly upsetting one. This increased the communication gap between the family members and soon each one of them grew detached. Being lonesome in a time of crisis is the last thing anyone needs, yet this situation was prevalent amongst people, instigating poor mental health. Several reports as such suggested that numerous adults developed sleep disorders, unhealthy dietary habits, higher alcohol consumption or substance use, and aggravating chronic conditions owing to the same.
This isolation also severely harmed the development, social growth, and pre-existing mental health conditions (if any) of adolescents and kids. One such report found out that younger kids displayed more clinginess and fear of being infected than the older ones. Though irrespective of their ages, children everywhere were faced with disturbed sleep, nightmares, crankiness, agitation, and inattentive behavior. Their inability to attend school and meet their friends for such a long period of time brought them uncertainty and anxiety. This social disruption prompted boredom and lack of creativity as well. Inevitably thus, the pandemic-induced confinement and isolation had a significant psychological impact.
So, the only way this can be resolved is by strengthening the bonds of the household. For it is of paramount importance for people to have others to rely on. In this transitional phase thus, we need to give others a shoulder to cry on as well as have one for ourselves. The capability to express grief together aids considerably in overcoming hurdles in life. Furthermore, it deepens the trust in a relationship. For children especially, it is awfully important to be close to at least one person, be it a parent or a sibling. Besides, the atmosphere of the house itself should be blissful and joyous to encourage healthy and sound mental development for all. In matters of utmost grief, the right thing to do thus is to mourn together instead in isolation, to remain united throughout the crisis!

Transcending barriers

The Democratisation Of The World Of Art & Music

Shayori Dey
AIS Pushp Vihar, XII

As the promulgator of pluralism and cross-cultural consumption of artistic practices and products, globalisation predominantly embodies constant exchanges that establish interconnectivity on a global scale. However, until a few years ago, this exchange of art and music was a one-way street, by and large hegemonised by the Western behemoths, with Asians acting the part of consumers. The 90s happened to have subverted this order, enabling cultural flows in both directions. What retooled you ask? All things Asian scaled the walls!
From waltzing in the world with Seo Taiji and Boys in 1992, or bedazzling it with Psy’s Gangnam Style in 2012 (which, make no mistake, ruled the music charts of over 30 countries and was YouTube’s most viewed video for over five years), to reaching staggering heights of global domination with BTS that became the fastest band since The Beatles in 50 years to have four US numero uno albums, smashing every record that there is; K-pop made South Korea the world’s sixth largest music market worldwide. The upturn’s such that the budget for a single K-pop video today amounts to about 1 million USD, while that for western pop promos is plummeting even as we speak. Things have been mushrooming on the movie front, too, as Swiri (1999), The Man from Nowhere (2010), or the more recent Palme d’Or winner Parasite (2019) enthrall audiences worldwide. Thus, having gathered enough heft over the years, Hallyu or Korean wave has the world swooning (89 million fans and counting) and contributing 12.3 billion USD to the South Korean economy.
Fun fact - Korea has a Ministry of Culture, with a budget of over 5.5 billion USD, to boost its economy and establish itself as a ‘soft power’ through cultural export of K-pop, mass entertainment, fashion, etc., amongst other things.
Likewise, Japan’s manga (comic books), and anime (animation) that have been around since the first half of 20th century, have held up tremendously progressive models, with their popularity gaining a larger audience abroad year after year. Presently, with its intricate and stunning details, Japanese anime accounts for over 60% of the world’s animated shows and is said to generate an annual revenue of 100 billion USD. Astro Boy, Princess Mononoke, and the Oscar-winning animated feature film Spirited Away (also the highest-grossing anime film) are some of the most renowned and internationally acclaimed anime works ever. Japanese manga market, concomitantly, amounts to around four billion USD, with One Piece (1977-present) by Eiichiro Oda topping the charts as the best-selling manga series of all time, having sold 454 million copies worldwide thus far; a few million copies away from beating DC comics’ Batman, having already surpassed X-men and Spiderman awhile back.
Fun fact - Comiket (Comic Market), Tokyo’s biannual fair for manga and other Japanese artwork, is the world’s largest fan convention that sees over half a million people in attendance, leaving the San Diego Comic con far behind.
Lo and behold, as the world of art and music democratises.

All about love

One of the most satisfying aspects of my birthday is that I get to share personal stories, of inspiration and introspection both, with dear Amitians. This year’s celebrations were no different. When I was asked how I have managed to maintain a work-life balance, given that Amity has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception to become a global institution, the answer came easily to me. I have always believed that it is only the feeling of love that has helped me achieve all my goals. I have lived every moment in a way that, despite any hardship or challenge that life has thrown at me, the love for my family or my work has never diminished one bit. At the same time, I have been fortunate that this love has been returned to me in equal measure. It is this bond - with my family, my surroundings, and my Amitians - that has proved to be my biggest strength and has helped me realise the dream of nurturing responsible global citizens imbued with good human values. This love has also been the foundation for my trying to bring about transformation in the lives of children of Amitasha and Atulasha.
This is, perhaps, the time to share an inspiring story that not only validates my belief in the power of love but also strengthens it. Our first president Dr Rajendra Prasad was a well-read intellectual who also had a spiritual bent of mind. During an interaction with a spiritual leader, he enquired why people fail in achieving their life goals despite having all the qualities needed for success, like patience, perseverance and hard work. The priest is said to have replied that perhaps it was love which was missing in their effort. Love, according to this spiritual master, was the greatest virtue of all. We must all surrender to love as it can teach us humility in success and wisdom in failure. So, love yourself and everyone and everything around you, for love has no substitute. It is the very basis of a happy and successful life.

In vacation mode

When we selected the prompt for this week’s edition which asked students to share their happiest summer vacation memory, I took a trip down the memory lane as well. In my childhood, every summer vacation meant a mandatory visit to our ancestral village. I remember how, as a small kid, I would resist this trip as our village had harsh summers and most of the day had to be spent without electricity. There were no other luxuries such as television or cinema either. As I grew older, I began to look at village life with a better understanding. I soaked in all the new experiences these visits would offer me, like climbing mango trees, playing by the river, and listening to the Ramayana path every evening. Now, when I reminisce about those days, I realise how integral these have been in shaping my personality. It is the heat and dust of my village that taught me how to survive in difficult times, and the knowledge of the Ramayana that helped me grow into a better person.
I have by now travelled across the world, meeting new people and collecting great memories, but the life lessons I have learnt during my summer vacations in the village are still deeply embedded in my mind. This is exactly why this issue’s prompt box is so special for me as I got to read so many similar responses. Some have written about the foreign destinations that enchanted them while some have wondered at the marvels of India. For those who have said that they haven’t taken a vacation in a while, I urge them to do so this summer. Vacations are a time for rest and renewal, for they give us moments and memories that make us who we are.

GT M@il

Dear Editor,
This is in reference to the article ‘The cursed beauty’ published on page 5 of the GT edition dated May 2, 2022. This article has been presented in a very captivating way, wherein the diamond ‘Koh-i-Noor’ speaks about its story all by itself. The story of its not-so-happy journey makes the article absorbing and fascinating. Koh-i-Noor’s bloodshed history, as a beautiful thing that met a fate as gruesome as it gets, somewhere portrays the sad truth of the world. However, even if the diamond resides in the crown of the Queen of England now, the anticipated day may not be far when it returns to its homeland, India. Thank you Global Times for helping us remember what is ours, no matter where it resides.
Mishel Agrawal
AIS Vasundhara 6, IX A