A letter can mean the difference between life and death as readers of Romeo and Juliet would know. But it can also be a way of pouring one’s heart out on paper when it is difficult to express oneself out loud, as Jane Austen has repeatedly demonstrated in her novels. It is this cathartic aspect of letter-writing that is at the core of a novel initiative started by the Fanindra Deb Institution in Jalpaiguri. The school has set up a letterbox — Mon Peon-er Bag — for young students to unburden themselves. Children have, since then, dropped into it several missives that reveal the troubles weighing them down. Some are distressed because they do not have enough time for sports in school; others complain that their fathers do not spend enough time at home; others still are worried about quarrelling parents vitiating the atmosphere at home. The school intends to take up these issues for discussion with children and their guardians.
This new way to a child’s mind in a bid to tackle mental health issues is a heartening step. UNICEF data show that one in every seven young people in India is depressed. The strategy has also unveiled the now-forgotten benefits letter-writing has for mental health. There exist studies — they go back to 1986 — to show that writing letters can be a way of unwinding sans fear of judgement. Research from Princeton University even revealed that letter-writing is a simplified, more flexible, approach to psychotherapy, transforming the chaotic, non-linear, inner monologues of a disturbed mind into a conversation, thereby enabling people to consider the nuances, logic and depth of their thoughts and emotions. What is of significance is that handwritten letters score slightly higher than electronic ones: putting pen to paper and forming the words require a mindfulness that clattering away on the keyboard does not. Little wonder then that pen pals were once all the rage. People, young and old, did not mind writing long letters to others halfway across the globe. The International Bipolar Foundation has even found that having a pen pal can actually reduce loneliness. The Fanindra Deb Institution has thus struck upon the right idea. Is there a case of expanding the scope of such an initiative, with various schools brought under the umbrella of a shared programme? This could give a larger number of students the opportunity to share their troubles unhindered.
But the Mon Peon-er Bag cannot be the solution to India’s burgeoning juvenile mental health issues. India must think of making greater investments in boosting the number of counsellors and psychiatrists for school children. In the absence of school counsellors, teachers will have to take up this additional responsibility. In fact, a 2024 survey by the National Institutes of Health showed that the paucity of counsellors in schools had led to an increased workload of teachers. Untrained teachers ill-equipped to help students can cause more harm than good. Furthermore, in a nation with a weak culture of privacy, students who express their vulnerabilities can be bullied if their letters were to fall into the wrong hands. These concerns notwithstanding, the Mon Peon is not to be dismissed in a country that pays little attention to children’s mental health.