Mahira Khan opens up on facing mental health struggles after 'Raees' backlash

Actor Mahira Khan has opened up about her battle with depression.

In a recent interview with FWhy Podcast, the actor revealed that she faced mental health struggles due the ban on Pakistani artistes in India after the 2016 Uri attack. The ban affected 'Raees', her film with Shah Rukh Khan.

She said, "I had finished the film (Raees) and everything was going fine and then suddenly this attack (Uri attack) happens. Politically everything gets messed. With India, it is always political. But the fact that it could get this messy! I was not scared, but I was threatened. Constant tweets, in fact, I would get calls, and very scary ones. The only thing I wanted was that 'Okay fine I can't go to India to promote it (Raees), but I hope it releases in my country because I knew people would rush to watch it as he (Shah Rukh Khan) is loved here (in Pakistan)."

The period also coincided with the 2017 incident where pictures of her smoking with Ranbir Kapoor went viral.

"That (backlash) brought out the anxiety and depression hidden inside me. That was a hard time for me. I felt attacked. The constant backlash… you are getting mean tweets, comments on their channels (Indian channels),' Mahira said.

She added "That was a time my faith broke and I developed severe anxiety to the point that one day I had a panic attack and fainted. That’s the first time I went for therapy. But that didn’t work out, as I went to several therapists... that year was rough... I couldn’t sleep, my hands used to shake."