Importing Cures, Exporting Minds
India is full of wisdom, energy, and unused potential. To rise as a mental health leader, we need more than helplines and pills—we need curiosity, we need understanding, we need answers.
Umair Ashraf
India, a land full of bright and capable minds, still finds itself in a strange kind of confusion. On one side, our top brains are leaving to other countries to do research and find cures for diseases including mental health ones. And on the other hand, we are buying back those same cures from outside, without trying enough to develop them here. This is kind of heartbreaking. We are not short of intelligence or creativity, what we lack is a proper system and push to allow our people to do big things here, at home. While other countries are building cures with our talent, we are still struggling to build labs. And this is not just about mental health—it applies to all kinds of innovation. The system in India makes even the most driven students settle for safe, systemic jobs.
Is India Ready to Treat Its Brain as National Infrastructure?
Every country needs roads, railways, airports—but what about mental infrastructure? That is, research in brain science and emotional health. Mental health issues are rising so fast in India, but we are not treating this like a national emergency. While the country is busy constructing physical infrastructure, we forget that a healthy brain is just as essential. If we want to become a superpower, then why are we ignoring the very organ that drives innovation, creativity, and even simple well-being—our brain? Mental health affects education, economy, relationships, and even national productivity. We must start treating brain health like we treat defense or technology—critical and urgent.
Is India Exporting Its Geniuses While Importing Cures?
We see our students and researchers going abroad every year. Why? Because they want to do something meaningful, but they don’t get the right chances here. Even those who get into top Indian institutions like IITs or NIMHANS feel stuck, because India often reduces their path to just a stable job. The hunger to innovate or do something new dies out in paperwork and lack of support. So while the world uses our minds to make progress, we keep buying their medicines, their techniques, and even their policies. And the cycle continues—brains go out, cures come in. Shouldn’t we be producing answers in our own land? Shouldn’t we reverse this loop?
Is India’s Mental Health System Just a Western Shadow?
Mental health models in India are mostly borrowed from Western countries. But we are not the same, our society is so different—family systems, stigma, belief systems, even our day-to-day stressors. So just copying Western psychiatry or psychology does not really fit always. These models don’t address things like caste dynamics, joint families, or spiritual beliefs which are very common here. The system must be made more Indian in its approach. We need models that reflect the lives we live, not the lives of people in some other part of the world. That is why India needs its own mental health frameworks rooted in its own soil.
Why Is India Failing to Invest in Neuroscience Research for Its Own People?
Neuroscience research around the world is growing fast. But in India, we have very limited spaces to do this kind of study. Yes, places like IISc Bangalore are doing great, but is that enough for a country with over a billion people? India must open more brain research labs in every major state—North, South, East, West. We cannot depend on only one or two cities to carry this whole load. Even students in states like Bihar, Gujarat, or Assam should have access to high-quality neuroscience labs and research opportunities. Also, it’s not just about neuroscience—many students in India want to work on bold ideas and tech projects, but they are pushed into system-driven job paths. This kills our creativity before it even starts. And a nation that suppresses curiosity cannot produce innovation.
Does India Need More Helplines or More Answers?
When someone is struggling mentally, they don’t only want a phone number or a prescription. They want answers—why do I feel like this? What’s going wrong in my head? The person wants cure, not just management. And right now, we offer more helplines than real understanding. We treat symptoms without understanding the disease itself. This is where neuroscience, especially molecular neuroscience, becomes important. It looks deep into the brain’s wiring, its chemicals, and its functions. The future of mental health is not just talking or tablets—it’s deep understanding, and for that, we need more researchers, not just more counselors. Answers bring relief, and India must invest in those answers.
The Limitations of Psychology and Psychiatry Alone
Psychology helps people understand their emotions and behaviors, and psychiatry tries to fix brain problems with medicine. But even together, they are sometimes not enough. Medicine can reduce symptoms, but it can’t always cure the brain. Many patients face relapse after stopping meds, and their original problems come back. It’s like patching a leak but not repairing the pipe. Neuroscience can help fill this gap. It can show us how brain cells work, how drugs act, and why some treatments fail. So the solution lies in blending all three—psychology, psychiatry, and neuroscience. Each has its role, but the real healing lies in their combination.
The Role of Molecular Neuroscience in Mental Health
Molecular neuroscience digs into the brain at a tiny level. It studies how neurons fire, how neurotransmitters behave, and how even one molecule change can affect your mood. This is the science that helps pharma companies make better drugs. These drugs are then used by psychiatrists, and their effects studied again by psychologists. So in a way, molecular neuroscience is the backbone that supports all fields of mental health. Without it, we are only guessing. With it, we are understanding. This field is where the actual answers hide, and India must put its attention here too. Ignoring it now will cost us later.
Kashmir: A Special Case, A Neglected Mind
Take Kashmir, for example—a place always in some kind of conflict, whether geographic or demographic. The people here have not been given the time or space to evolve into their full human potential. Decades of religious war, political manipulation, and public suffering have held back basic exposure to modern life. They didn’t get the same chance to experience normal development like people in other developed Indian states. Then, suddenly, India expanded development into Kashmir as soon as things appeared stable. Tourism rose, and so did interactions with people from other states. Alcohol shops once resisted by locals became acceptable under the name of modernization.
This exposure to modern India came very quickly, almost as if development landed from the sky—5G internet after months of internet blackouts, smart buses after years of walking long distances, 24/7 electricity replacing constant shutdowns, and road designs now mimicking Western standards. But the biology of many minds here hasn’t fully caught up. The brain is still trying to adapt to this rapid change, but a lot of it feels ungrounded. The accomplished minds designed this development, but the population receiving it is still emotionally and psychologically unacclimated. For some, it feels like a sudden threat to their habitat. Instead of gradual learning, they were rushed into a new world, and that leads to confusion, identity conflict, and suppressed potential. We must treat places like Kashmir with sensitivity—not just political or economic sensitivity, but deep psychological and developmental care.
Building Infrastructure for Research and Development
India needs more labs—not just in metros but across all states. Imagine a country where every student who dreams of discovering something new can actually do it, instead of being told to first “secure a job.” We must create spaces that promote curiosity, not only competition. Right now, research is treated like a luxury. It should be treated like a necessity. Only then will our youth stop running abroad. Only then will we stop depending on foreign countries for cures. And only then can India truly become a hub of solutions, not just problems. If we build minds, we build the future.
Conclusion
India is full of wisdom, energy, and unused potential. To rise as a mental health leader, we need more than helplines and pills—we need curiosity, we need understanding, we need answers. We must move beyond just managing mental health and start discovering its root causes. We must let our people ask questions, build labs, do trials, and innovate in their own ways. From Kashmir to Kerala, every brain must be treated as part of India’s future. Let’s invest in our minds—not just to heal them, but to unlock them.
(The author holds a Master’s in Psychology and is an independent scholar in molecular neuroscience, focusing on decoding brain biochemistry and its impact on behavior and society. He is also a passionate mental health advocate. He can be reached at Umairvani07@gmail.com.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article are of the author and not that of the Straight Talk Communications)
