Meet superstar who left IIM dream for films, started as extra, battled depression at career's peak, is now...

This is a day and age when many young people are open about their mental health struggles. Celebrities, too, are normalising talking about mental health challenges. From depression to anxiety and other struggles, many Bollywood celebs have opened up about their personal battles in the recent past. Last year, actress Kajal Aggarwal also became candid about dealing with postpartum depression after the birth of her son in 2022.

When Kajal Aggarwal spoke about postpartum depression

In July 2023, Kajal did an AMA (ask me anything) session with her fans on Instagram, in which she was asked a variety of questions about her personal and professional life. After one fan asked her if she had been through postpartum depression, Kajal wrote, “Yes I did. It’s normal and the person going through it needs family support the most. Removing time for yourself helps a lot. Doing your favourite activity, a quick workout (under supervision), a quick catch up for coffee with your besties – is therapeutic!” Kajal gave birth to her son Neil in April 2022, 18 months after her marriage to businessman Gautam Kitchlu. Crediting her husband for helping her get through that phase, the actress added, “Thankfully I got over it soon enough, Courtesy, my very understanding family. Gave my husband a tough time when I was going through it though.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Kajal A Kitchlu (@kajalaggarwalofficial)

Kajal Aggarwal’s MBA dreams and acting career

Born in a Punjabi family in Mumbai, growing up, Kajal was not interested in becoming an actress at all. Instead, Kajal harboured dreams of doing an MBA, preferably from one of the IIMs. Kajal did her graduation in mass media with specialisation in marketing and advertising but could not pursue her MBA dreams after this. While still in college, Kajal made her film debut as an extra in the Aishwarya Rai and Vivek Oberoi-starrer Kyun Ho Gaya Na. However, she made her debut as a lead actress only after completing her graduation. Her first film as lead was the 2007 Telugu release Lakshmi Kalyanam. She later found success with hits like Chandamama, Magadheera, Darling, Singham, Businessman, and Thuppakki.

The actress was most recently seen in Bhagavath Kesari in 2023. In 2024, she will be part of the support cast of Kamal Haasan’s Indian 2.

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