How important is it to know when to seek medication for depression, and when to dig deep and work it out yourself? As Nandita Pillai from New Delhi wrote, there may be no easy answers ‘The dumps are real’.

•This refers to ‘Well-being in a bottle’ by Farah Baria. It trivialises depression by saying that it can be beneficial and can spark creativity as well.

Who doesn’t feel sad in this world? Life does have its ups and downs. But it is important to note that clinical depression is a serious medical condition. In a country where most people are not even aware that depression has a bio-chemical basis (scientifically proven, contrary to what the writer says) that can be treated with medication and are reluctant to approach psychiatrists, whom the writer refers to as shrinks, this article can do much damage.

Untreated depression, over time, can spiral into chronic psychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, which lead to thousands of suicides every year.

How we exult

•Your editorial, ‘Irrational exuberance’ , is timely but it is like whistling in the dark. Cricket craze growing with each passing day bodes ill for the nation. The welcome accorded to the players at the Feroze Shah Kotla stadium had the feel of a victory in the Battle of Britain or the Battle of Stalingrad.

It is time someone did some serious research on the sociological and economic downside of the craze. As cricket matches now are going to be played more or less round the year in one format or the other, neither the students nor office-goers will be able to fully concentrate on their jobs at hand. Cricketers, film stars and show business professionals earning mind-boggling sums of money tend to turn the real world of many people in our country into an illusory one. The loss to the national exchequer due to cricket obsession may not by any long shot be small.

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