Hyderabadi teens successfully run programme for mental health

The duo has been running a successful initiative ‘Vishwasa’ for the past two-years now under which they go to government schools in and around the city to teach life skills and offer mental health attention to underprivileged students.

Hyderabad: Hyderabad-based Rhea Thakkal and Ankitha Reddy Vontela are not your typical 16-year-olds.

The duo has been running a successful initiative ‘Vishwasa’ for the past two-years now under which they go to government schools in and around the city to teach life skills and offer mental health attention to underprivileged students.

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“Initially, we faced a lot of hurdles. Yet, we didn’t want to give up on our vision of helping these children gain access to mental health support, and we certainly didn’t want them to lose out on any opportunity,” Rhea says adding that the smile on students’ faces is what encourages them to keep going no matter how many other commitments they have.

And then the pandemic happened. But the duo didn’t want to halt their aid to children. They changed their project model. Now, this organisation is divided into two aspects: mental health video modules and media impact.

It partnered with Mano Jagrithi that has a team of psychologists and since then has been working closely with its founder Dr. Geetha Challa and its members.

“For each video, we primarily focus on one sub-topic that would be relatable to the children, for example, loneliness, pressure, social anxiety, etc. Keeping in mind that the videos are being shown to children, we make sure that the content is easy to comprehend and is creative,” Ankitha says.

They use art, stories, puppets and more to express the information. Many of the videos have a psychologist speaking and explaining, assuring that the information being given to them is promising.

Vishwasa has now grown to a team of more than 40 volunteers and is sending these video modules to about 250 children all over Hyderabad. They are currently connected with eight government schools across the city.

Also, Ankitha and Rhea were selected to present their project in the 5th 1M1B Activate Impact Summit held at the UN HQ, New York City. The team is working on changing the perception of the deep-rooted stigma that exists in the society regarding mental health.

“We have a social media team which is divided into people who work on the content and the design. We put out monthly content in the form of Instagram Posts, Reels and even conduct lives with professionals on topics such as OCD, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD and PMS,” Ankitha says.

The duo is making sure that their video modules reach every child who needs mental health guidance and aims to inspire them with the videos.

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