ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sangu Delle - Entrepreneur
Sangu Delle is an entrepreneur and clean water activist. A TED Fellow who hails from Ghana, he sees incredible potential in the African economy.

Why you should listen

Born in Ghana, Sangu Delle's childhood home was a refuge for victims of torture and violence from neighboring Liberia and Sierra Leone. Delle graduated from Harvard College with highest honors in African Studies and Economics. He was awarded the Soros Fellowship and pursued a Juris Doctor of Law and MBA at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School, respectively.

At Harvard, enrolling in the Social Engagement Initiative program that bridged the academic study and practical service gap, Delle co-founded cleanacwa (formerly the African Development Initiative) in 2007, which today is currently working to bring clean water and sanitation to over 200,000 people in 160 villages in the Ayensuano, Suhum and Nandom districts in Ghana. Delle is also passionate about mental health and wellness, and was a founding member of Harvard University’s Mental Health Alumni Special Interest Group. 

Delle has previously worked at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Valiant Capital Partners. Convinced that the real needs of communities can best be met through entrepreneurship, in 2008 he founded an investment holding company, Golden Palm Investments(GPI) to fund promising start-ups that can have social impact and generate jobs. GPI has backed technology startups such as Andela, Flutterwave and mPharma.  GPI has also built a portfolio of greenfield companies in healthcare, agriculture and financial services. Delle serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GPI.

Delle has received several international accolades including being named a 2016 finalist for “Young CEO of the Year” by the Africa CEO Forum, Africa’s “Young Person of the Year” in 2014 by the Future Africa Awards, selected as a 2014 TEDGlobal Fellow, Forbes’ top 30 most promising entrepreneurs in Africa and Euromoney’s “Africa’s Rising Stars” award. Institut Choiseul and Forbes Afrique named Delle as one of the top “100 Economic Leaders in Africa” in 2015. Mic named Delle as one of 9 entrepreneurs in the millennial generation making a difference. 

Delle is a Trustee of the Peddie School in NJ and serves on the Advisory Board and chairs the Leadership Council of Harvard University’s Center for African Studies. He also serves on the inaugural West Africa Advisory Group of the Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University.

Delle loves the outdoors and trekked Mount Everest in 2013 and summited Kilimanjaro during the summer of 2015.

More profile about the speaker
Sangu Delle | Speaker | TED.com
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Sangu Delle: There's no shame in taking care of your mental health

संगू डेले: मानसिक आरोग्य सांभाळण्याची लाज बाळगू नका.

Filmed:
2,271,856 views

जेव्हा उद्योजक संगू डेले यांना ताण असह्य झाला, तेव्हा त्यांना स्वतःच्याच मनात खोल रुजलेल्या एका समजुतीचा सामना करावा लागला. पुरुषांनी मानसिक आरोग्याची काळजी घ्यायची नसते, ही ती समजूत. भावनाप्रदर्शन सहन न करणाऱ्या समाजात आपण चिंताविकाराचा सामना करायला कसे शिकलो, ते डेले आपल्या या भाषणात सांगताहेत. ते म्हणतात, आपल्या भावना बोलून दाखवण्यामुळे आपलं दुबळेपण नव्हे, तर केवळ मनुष्यपण सिद्ध होतं.
- Entrepreneur
Sangu Delle is an entrepreneur and clean water activist. A TED Fellow who hails from Ghana, he sees incredible potential in the African economy. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Last year ...
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मागचं वर्ष
00:14
was hell.
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फारच वाईट गेलं.
00:16
(Laughter)
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(हशा)
00:20
It was my first time eating
Nigerian "jollof."
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मी पहिल्यांदाच
नायजेरियन जोलोफ भात खाल्ला.
00:24
(Laughter)
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(हशा)
00:26
Actually, in all seriousness,
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खरोखरीच सांगतो,
00:29
I was going through a lot
of personal turmoil.
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त्यावेळी मी अत्यंत कठीण
परिस्थितीतून जात होतो.
00:33
Faced with enormous stress,
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प्रचंड ताणाला तोंड देता देता
00:35
I suffered an anxiety attack.
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मला चिंताविकाराचा झटका आला.
00:38
On some days, I could do no work.
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काही दिवशी, मी कुठलंच काम करू शकत नसे.
00:42
On other days,
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आणि इतर दिवशी,
00:44
I just wanted to lay in my bed and cry.
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मला बिछान्यात पडून रडत राहावं
असं वाटत असे.
00:48
My doctor asked if I'd like to speak
with a mental health professional
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ताण आणि चिंताविकार याबद्दल
मनोविकार तज्ज्ञांशी बोलावं,
00:53
about my stress and anxiety.
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असं माझ्या डॉक्टरांनी सुचवलं.
00:56
Mental health?
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मनोविकार?
00:58
I clammed up and violently
shook my head in protest.
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माझी वाचाच बसली.
मी जोरजोरात मान हलवून विरोध दर्शवला.
01:05
I felt a profound sense of a shame.
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मला प्रचंड शरम वाटली.
01:10
I felt the weight of stigma.
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या लांच्छनास्पद जाणिवेचं ओझं
मला जाणवू लागलं.
01:15
I have a loving, supportive family
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माझं कुटुंब प्रेमळ आहे.
त्यांचा मला आधार वाटतो.
01:17
and incredibly loyal friends,
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जीवाला जीव देणारे मित्र आहेत.
01:19
yet I could not entertain
the idea of speaking to anyone
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तरीही या वेदनेबद्दल कुणाशी बोलावं,
01:24
about my feeling of pain.
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ही कल्पनाच मी सहन करू शकलो नाही.
01:28
I felt suffocated
by the rigid architecture
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आफ्रिकन मर्दानगीच्या कल्पनांच्या
भक्कम तटबंदीमध्ये
01:32
of our African masculinity.
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मी गुदमरून गेलो होतो.
01:35
"People have real problems, Sangu.
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"लोकांपुढे खरोखरीचे प्रश्न असतात, संगू.
01:37
Get over yourself!"
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तुझ्या नसत्या कल्पना आवर."
01:40
The first time I heard "mental health,"
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"मानसिक आरोग्य" हे शब्द प्रथम ऐकले,
01:43
I was a boarding school student
fresh off the boat from Ghana,
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तेव्हा मी नुकताच घानाहून बोटीने येऊन,
न्यू जर्सीतल्या पेडी स्कूलचा
01:47
at the Peddie School in New Jersey.
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निवासी विद्यार्थी झालो होतो.
01:51
I had just gone through
the brutal experience
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त्याच महिन्यात मी सात जीवलग गमावण्याचा
01:54
of losing seven loved ones
in the same month.
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विदारक अनुभव घेतला होता.
01:58
The school nurse,
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माझ्यावरच्या या आपत्तीमुळे
02:00
concerned about what I'd gone
through -- God bless her soul --
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शाळेच्या नर्सला माझी काळजी वाटली.
देव तिचं भलं करो.
02:04
she inquired about my mental health.
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तिने माझ्या मानसिक आरोग्याबद्दल विचारलं.
02:07
"Is she mental?" I thought.
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मला वाटलं, "ही मेंटल आहे का?"
02:10
Does she not know I'm an African man?
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मी एक आफ्रिकन पुरुष आहे,
हे तिला ठाऊक नाही का?
02:12
(Laughter)
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(हशा)
02:13
Like Okonkwo in "Things Fall Apart,"
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"थिंग्ज फाॅल अपार्ट" मधल्या
02:15
we African men neither process
nor express our emotions.
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ओकोन्कोवोप्रमाणे, आम्ही आफ्रिकन पुरुष
भावना व्यक्त न करता, प्रक्रिया न करता
02:20
We deal with our problems.
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समस्या दडपून टाकतो.
02:22
(Applause)
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(टाळ्या)
02:25
We deal with our problems.
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आम्ही समस्या दडपून टाकतो.
02:27
I called my brother and laughed
about "Oyibo" people -- white people --
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मी माझ्या भावाला फोन केला आणि
आम्ही हसलो - ओईबो (गोऱ्या) लोकांना,
02:31
and their strange diseases --
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आणि त्यांच्या विचित्र आजारांना.
02:33
depression, ADD and those "weird things."
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नैराश्य, ए डी डी यासारख्या
चमत्कारिक गोष्टींना.
02:38
Growing up in West Africa,
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लहानपणी, पश्चिम आफ्रिकेत असताना
02:40
when people used the term "mental,"
what came to mind was a madman
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कोणी "मेंटल" शब्द वापरला,
की एक वेडा आठवे.
02:44
with dirty, dread-locked hair,
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मलिन केसांच्या जटा घेऊन
02:47
bumbling around half-naked on the streets.
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अर्धनग्न अवस्थेत रस्तोरस्ती भटकणारा.
02:51
We all know this man.
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आम्हां सगळ्यांना तो ठाऊक होता.
02:52
Our parents warned us about him.
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पालक आम्हांला
त्याच्यापासून सावध राहायला सांगत.
02:55
"Mommy, mommy, why is he mad?"
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"आई, आई, तो वेडा कसा झाला?"
02:57
"Drugs!
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"ड्रग्ज !"
02:58
If you even look at drugs,
you end up like him."
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"ड्रग्ज कडे नुसतं पाहिलंस ना,
तरी असा वेडा होशील."
03:01
(Laughter)
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(हशा)
03:02
Come down with pneumonia,
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न्यूमोनिया झाला असता,
03:05
and your mother will rush you
to the nearest hospital
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तर आई लगेच सर्वात जवळच्या
हॉस्पिटलमध्ये घेऊन गेली असती.
03:07
for medical treatment.
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वैद्यकीय उपचारासाठी.
03:10
But dare to declare depression,
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पण नैराश्य आलं आहे असं सांगण्याचं
धाडस केलं असतं,
03:13
and your local pastor
will be driving out demons
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तर पाद्री भूतपिशाच्च उतरवायला
आला असता, आणि चेटक्यांवर
03:16
and blaming witches in your village.
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त्याचं खापर फोडलं असतं.
03:19
According to the World
Health Organization,
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जागतिक आरोग्य संस्थेनुसार,
मानसिक आरोग्य म्हणजे
03:22
mental health is about being able to cope
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आयुष्यात माफक ताण निर्माण करणाऱ्या
03:25
with the normal stressors of life;
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घटकांना तोंड देता येणे,
03:27
to work productively and fruitfully;
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काही उपयुक्त काम करता येणे
03:31
and to be able to make
a contribution to your community.
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आणि आपल्या समाजात हातभार लावता येणे.
03:35
Mental health includes our emotional,
psychological and social well-being.
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मानसिक आरोग्य याचा अर्थ आपले भावनिक,
मानसशास्त्रीय आणि सामाजिक आरोग्य.
03:42
Globally, 75 percent
of all mental illness cases
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जगातील मानसिक आजारांपैकी ७५ टक्के केसेस
03:47
can be found in low-income countries.
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गरीब देशांत आढळतात.
03:50
Yet most African governments
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असं असूनही,
आफ्रिकेतील अनेक राज्यकर्ते
03:52
invest less than one percent
of their health care budget
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त्यांच्या एकूण आरोग्यविषयक अंदाजपत्रकाच्या
एक टक्क्याहूनही कमी रक्कम
03:56
in mental health.
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मानसिक आरोग्यात गुंतवतात.
03:58
Even worse,
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त्याहूनही वाईट म्हणजे,
03:59
we have a severe shortage
of psychiatrists in Africa.
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आफ्रिकेत मानसोपचार तज्ज्ञांची संख्या
अतिशय कमी आहे.
04:04
Nigeria, for example,
is estimated to have 200 --
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उदाहरणार्थ, नायजेरियात केवळ २०० आहेत,
04:09
in a country of almost 200 million.
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आणि देशाची लोकसंख्या आहे २०० दशलक्ष.
04:14
In all of Africa,
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संपूर्ण आफ्रिकेत,
04:15
90 percent of our people
lack access to treatment.
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९०% लोकांना मानसोपचार सहज उपलब्ध नाहीत.
04:20
As a result,
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त्यामुळे, आम्ही एकाकी अवस्थेत
04:22
we suffer in solitude,
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केवळ सहन करीत राहतो.
04:25
silenced by stigma.
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या कलंकामुळे मुके होतो.
04:29
We as Africans often respond
to mental health with distance,
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आम्ही आफ्रिकन लोक मानसिक समस्यांवर
साधारणपणे हे उपाय वापरतो: दूर पळणे,
04:34
ignorance,
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अज्ञान,
04:36
guilt,
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अपराधीपणा,
04:38
fear
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भीती
04:39
and anger.
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आणि संताप.
04:42
In a study conducted by Arboleda-Flórez,
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अरबोलेडा फ्लोरेज यांनी आपल्या संशोधनात
थेट प्रश्न विचारला,
04:47
directly asking, "What is the cause
of mental illness?"
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"मानसिक आजाराचं कारण काय?"
04:51
34 percent of Nigerian respondents
cited drug misuse;
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३४ टक्के नायजेरियन प्रतिसादक म्हणाले,
"ड्रग्जचा गैरवापर".
04:58
19 percent said divine wrath
and the will of God --
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१९ टक्के म्हणाले, "दैवी प्रकोप"
आणि "परमेश्वराची इच्छा"
05:03
(Laughter)
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(हशा)
05:05
12 percent,
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१२ टक्के म्हणाले,
05:08
witchcraft and spiritual possession.
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"चेटूक आणि भूतबाधा"
05:11
But few cited other known
causes of mental illness,
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पण काहींनी माहितीतल्या
इतर कारणांचे दाखले दिले.
05:16
like genetics,
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जसे, "अनुवंशिकता",
05:18
socioeconomic status,
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"आर्थिक आणि सामाजिक स्तर",
05:20
war,
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"युद्ध",
05:21
conflict
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"प्रतिकूल परिस्थिती",
05:23
or the loss of a loved one.
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"आप्ताचा मृत्यु".
05:26
The stigmatization against mental illness
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मानसिक आजार लांच्छनास्पद मानले गेल्यामुळे
05:28
often results in the ostracizing
and demonizing of sufferers.
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मनोरुग्ण बहिष्कृत होतात,
वाईट ठरवले जातात.
05:34
Photojournalist Robin Hammond
has documented some of these abuses ...
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पत्रकार रॉबिन हॅमंड यांनी अशा
प्रकारच्या छळाच्या नोंदी केल्या आहेत.
05:38
in Uganda,
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युगांडात,
05:40
in Somalia,
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सोमालियात
05:43
and here in Nigeria.
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आणि इथे नायजेरियात
05:47
For me,
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मला स्वतःला
05:50
the stigma is personal.
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या लांच्छनाचा अनुभव आला आहे.
05:54
In 2009,
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२००९ मध्ये
05:56
I received a frantic call
in the middle of the night.
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एका मध्यरात्री मला अत्यंत भयाकूल स्वरात
एक फोन आला.
06:01
My best friend in the world --
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माझ्या अत्यंत जिवलग मित्राला
06:03
a brilliant, philosophical,
charming, hip young man --
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- एका बुद्धिमान, तत्वज्ञानी, आकर्षक,
सुस्वरूप तरुण मुलाला -
06:08
was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
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2151
स्किझोफ्रेनिया झाला होता.
06:12
I witnessed some of the friends
we'd grown up with recoil.
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हे ऐकून लहानपणापासूनचे आमचे काही मित्र
मागे सरलेले मी पाहिले.
06:19
I heard the snickers.
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त्यांना आडून हसताना पाहिलं.
06:21
I heard the whispers.
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त्यांची कुजबुज ऐकली.
06:24
"Did you hear he has gone mad?"
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"त्याला वेड लागलंय.
तुम्हाला ठाऊक आहे का?"
06:27
"He start torch o!"
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"तो वेडा आहे!"
06:29
Derogatory, demeaning commentary
about his condition --
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त्याच्या अवस्थेबद्दल
अपमानास्पद टीका टिप्पणी.
06:34
words we would never say
about someone with cancer
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कॅन्सर किंवा मलेरियाच्या रुग्णाबद्दल
06:38
or someone with malaria.
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असे शब्द आपण कधीही बोलणार नाही.
06:40
Somehow, when it comes to mental illness,
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का कोण जाणे, मानसिक आरोग्याचा संबंध आला,
की आपलं अज्ञान,
06:44
our ignorance eviscerates all empathy.
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आपली अनुकंपा नष्ट करून टाकतं.
06:48
I stood by his side
as his community isolated him,
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समाजाने त्याला एकटं टाकलं,
तेव्हा मी त्याच्या पाठीशी उभा राहिलो.
06:54
but our love never wavered.
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आमची मैत्री कधीच कमी झाली नाही.
06:57
Tacitly, I became passionate
about mental health.
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नकळत मला मानसिक आरोग्याबद्दल
प्रचंड ओढ निर्माण झाली.
07:01
Inspired by his plight,
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माझ्या मित्राच्या अवस्थेकडून
प्रेरणा घेऊन,
07:04
I helped found the mental health
special interest alumni group
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मी मानसिक आरोग्याला वाहिलेला
माजी विद्यार्थीगट
07:07
at my college.
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कॉलेजमध्ये सुरु केला.
07:09
And during my tenure as a resident
tutor in graduate school,
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आणि पदव्युत्तर कॉलेजचा
निवासी शिक्षक असण्याच्या काळात
07:12
I supported many undergraduates
with their mental health challenges.
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अनेक विद्यार्थ्यांना मानसिक आरोग्य
सावरण्यासाठी आधार दिला.
07:17
I saw African students struggle
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आफ्रिकन विद्यार्थी मानसिक आजारांशी
झगडताना मी पाहिले.
07:19
and unable to speak to anyone.
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ते कोणाला काही सांगू शकत नव्हते.
07:22
Even with this knowledge
and with their stories in tow,
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हे ठाऊक असताना, आणि त्या
विद्यार्थ्यांच्या कहाण्या ठाऊक असतानाही,
07:26
I, in turn, struggled,
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माझी वेळ आली, तेव्हा मीही तसाच झगडलो.
07:28
and could not speak to anyone
when I faced my own anxiety,
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माझ्या चिंताविकाराविषयी
कोणालाच काही सांगू शकलो नाही.
07:33
so deep is our fear of being the madman.
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वेडा ठरण्याची भीती
ही इतकी खोल रुजलेली असते.
07:39
All of us --
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आपल्याला सर्वांनाच -
07:41
but we Africans especially --
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आणि खासकरून आम्हां आफ्रिकन लोकांना -
07:44
need to realize that our mental struggles
do not detract from our virility,
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समजायला हवं, की मानसिक आजारांशी
झगडण्यामुळे पौरुष कमी होत नाही.
07:50
nor does our trauma taint our strength.
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किंवा वेदनेच्या आघातामुळे
सामर्थ्याला कलंक लागत नाही.
07:54
We need to see mental health
as important as physical health.
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मानसिक आजाराला, शारीरिक आजाराइतकंच
महत्त्व द्यायला हवं.
08:00
We need to stop suffering in silence.
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मूकपणे त्रास सहन करणं थांबवायला हवं.
08:06
We must stop stigmatizing disease
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मानसिक आजाराला कलंक समजणं
थांबवलंच पाहिजे,
08:09
and traumatizing the afflicted.
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आणि मनोरुग्णाचा छळ करणंही.
08:13
Talk to your friends.
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आपल्या मित्रांशी बोला.
08:16
Talk to your loved ones.
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आप्तांशी बोला.
08:18
Talk to health professionals.
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आरोग्यसेवा देणाऱ्या व्यक्तींशी बोला.
08:21
Be vulnerable.
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आधार घ्यायला लाजू नका.
08:23
Do so with the confidence
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आपण एकटे नाही,
08:26
that you are not alone.
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असा विश्वास बाळगा.
08:30
Speak up if you're struggling.
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मानसिक आजाराशी झगडत असाल,
तर कोणाशी तरी बोला.
08:34
Being honest about how we feel
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आपल्या भावना बोलून दाखवण्यामुळे
08:38
does not make us weak;
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आपलं दुबळेपण नव्हे,
08:40
it makes us human.
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तर केवळ मनुष्यपण सिद्ध होतं.
08:43
It is time to end the stigma
associated with mental illness.
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मानसिक आजारांना लागलेला कलंक
धुवून टाकण्याची वेळ आता येऊन ठेपली आहे.
08:49
So the next time your hear "mental,"
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यापुढे जेव्हा "मेंटल" शब्द ऐकाल,
08:53
do not just think of the madman.
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तेव्हा कोण्या वेड्याची नव्हे,
08:56
Think of me.
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तर माझी आठवण काढा.
08:57
(Applause)
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(टाळ्या)
08:59
Thank you.
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धन्यवाद.
09:01
(Applause)
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(टाळ्या)
Translated by Smita Kantak
Reviewed by Abhinav Garule

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sangu Delle - Entrepreneur
Sangu Delle is an entrepreneur and clean water activist. A TED Fellow who hails from Ghana, he sees incredible potential in the African economy.

Why you should listen

Born in Ghana, Sangu Delle's childhood home was a refuge for victims of torture and violence from neighboring Liberia and Sierra Leone. Delle graduated from Harvard College with highest honors in African Studies and Economics. He was awarded the Soros Fellowship and pursued a Juris Doctor of Law and MBA at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School, respectively.

At Harvard, enrolling in the Social Engagement Initiative program that bridged the academic study and practical service gap, Delle co-founded cleanacwa (formerly the African Development Initiative) in 2007, which today is currently working to bring clean water and sanitation to over 200,000 people in 160 villages in the Ayensuano, Suhum and Nandom districts in Ghana. Delle is also passionate about mental health and wellness, and was a founding member of Harvard University’s Mental Health Alumni Special Interest Group. 

Delle has previously worked at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Valiant Capital Partners. Convinced that the real needs of communities can best be met through entrepreneurship, in 2008 he founded an investment holding company, Golden Palm Investments(GPI) to fund promising start-ups that can have social impact and generate jobs. GPI has backed technology startups such as Andela, Flutterwave and mPharma.  GPI has also built a portfolio of greenfield companies in healthcare, agriculture and financial services. Delle serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GPI.

Delle has received several international accolades including being named a 2016 finalist for “Young CEO of the Year” by the Africa CEO Forum, Africa’s “Young Person of the Year” in 2014 by the Future Africa Awards, selected as a 2014 TEDGlobal Fellow, Forbes’ top 30 most promising entrepreneurs in Africa and Euromoney’s “Africa’s Rising Stars” award. Institut Choiseul and Forbes Afrique named Delle as one of the top “100 Economic Leaders in Africa” in 2015. Mic named Delle as one of 9 entrepreneurs in the millennial generation making a difference. 

Delle is a Trustee of the Peddie School in NJ and serves on the Advisory Board and chairs the Leadership Council of Harvard University’s Center for African Studies. He also serves on the inaugural West Africa Advisory Group of the Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University.

Delle loves the outdoors and trekked Mount Everest in 2013 and summited Kilimanjaro during the summer of 2015.

More profile about the speaker
Sangu Delle | Speaker | TED.com