Aftab Shivdasani: There is stigma attached to being Covid positive

Stay positive, stay inspired and stay focused on your health. That’s most important,” says Aftab Shivdasani, who announced he had tested positive for Covid-19 on September 11. Now, that he is Covid free, he is exhilarated. “I have got my freedom back as not feeling free was the worst feeling in the world,” he admits.

Days before the actor was supposed to travel he felt feverish, had weakness and headaches. So he got himself tested and “unfortunately”, it was positive. “When it happens to others, you read or hear about it but when you test positive, your mind travels in all directions. It was a shock and surprise and some time to process. All my plans were on hold. I took hold of myself and changed travel plans etc. Thankfully, I was alone as my wife and daughter are in London, so being at home in isolation was easier,” says Shivdasani.

He credits his wife, Nin Dusanj, who is “a strong woman” and gave me “mental support”. “She told me to stop worrying about things. She is an optimistic person. That innate worry is tough to escape and luckily in my case, my symptoms were mild, and I am all better now,” he shares.

The actor agrees that there is stigma attached to being Covid positive and adds that it shouldn’t stop you from getting tested. “You would rather know than not. It is not so bad and is just like a flu. It gets bad when you start panicking or worry too much which affects your health, invariably. Follow the doctors advise as their guidance helped. The other half of the battle is to hang in there and to be strong mentally. There is so much information out there and sometimes too much information too can have an adverse effect,” he says.