Obsessions that keep our favourite stars awake!

Nusrat Jahan

My mother says I suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder. If I am at home, I spend the whole day cleaning, organising and reorganising it. My habit of cleaning is so compulsive that if I go to my friends’ places, and it’s not spick and span, I will even start sweeping the floors with a broom. There are times when I return home at midnight and rearrange my wardrobe if I don’t find it just right. I know, these are all unwarranted thoughts but however much I try, I am not able to get rid of them.

Abir Chatterjee

I have persistent illogical fear of losing my ID cards. I am perpetually scared that I will not be able to produce it to the airport securing zat the time of checking in. From tickets to documents, I check everything repeatedly, when I am travelling. I make sure my ID card is in my travel bag, every time I am leaving for the airport. But invariably, I will keep checking my bag every 10 minutes till I reach the airport. That apart, when I am travelling by car, I have a particular habit of organising the car and I keep instructing Nandini, my wife, where to keep the bottle and the bags again and again, much to her irritation.

Prosenjit Chatterjee

My anxiety starts every time Mishuk, my son, is about to leave for his hostel. It is an unsaid rule at our place that Arpita will go to the airport to receive him when he is coming home and I am the one who goes to see him off. And I, myself, pack his bag for the hostel. I am a perfectionist and that is where the problem lies. I keep packing and unpacking his bags all day and night, because, in the middle of the night, I will feel as if I haven’t packed all his books or everything that he will need! It keeps me awake at night. Last time Mishuk was to leave for hostel, I unpacked his bags at least five times to ensure I had packed everything.

Parno Mittra

I have lost 12-15 phones and now I am obsessed with my phone as I am always scared of losing it again. If I keep my phone in my bag, I check it every two seconds. And if I hold on to it, I fear that I will keep it somewhere and just forget, losing it again. So, it is kind of a double-edged sword. There are times when I keep my phone in a very safe place and then forget about it completely. Of course, then I make the entire family search for it, bringing down the house. My mother says, phone niye batikgrosto!

Tonushree Chakraborty

I am paranoid about contamination. The slightest of dirt and dust gets me hyperventilating because I am scared I will contract some disease. Given an option, I can happily spend the entire day just cleaning around, such is my obsession. Before entering my room, I make my mom check it every time, so she can assure me I won’t fall sick once I enter. My mom gets irritated of course, and says that I have OCD. That apart, compulsive checking is also a problem area. I keep checking if the door is locked or an appliance is turned off if ma is not home.

Saswata Chatterjee

Amar ektu gochano batik ache. Whereas Mohua (wife) is just the opposite. Her logic is that if the home is spotless and absolutely perfect, it becomes a hotel and not a home. But I don't buy that. If things are not in their right place, my skin crawls. I can’t sit still till I have put them in their place. My wife and daughter are on alert mode if I am home, as I keep putting things in order the whole time. This is an obsession I can’t help, though I know it irritates my family.