Inside Harps Kaur’s Survival Kit for Bad Days
There’s something comforting about discovering that even people who spend their lives sounding polished, confident and effortlessly together on air are basically coping with life the same way the rest of us are. Sometimes with prayer. Sometimes with family. Sometimes with a giant bag of salted crisps inhaled in silence while pretending everything is absolutely fine.
When we asked radio presenter Harps Kaur about mental health, balance and the things that pull her back towards herself on difficult days, her answers felt less like polished soundbites and more like the kind of truths your older cousin tells you at 1am in the kitchen after everyone else has gone to bed.
And honestly? We needed that.
HER INSTANT MOOD LIFTER?
Music. Obviously.
“One thing that instantly lifts me up on a difficult day is music, believe it or not,” she says. “I connect deeply with things I listen to, no matter what the mood, you can find a genre to match it.”
Which feels very main-character energy, honestly. Sad girl playlist? There’s a soundtrack. Feeling powerful? Another soundtrack. Need to dramatically stare out of a car window pretending you’re in a music video after one mildly inconvenient WhatsApp message? Covered.
“I believe in the power of music,” she says.
Same.
WHEN LIFE FEELS HEAVY…
She turns inward.
“When things feel heavy, I lean towards my spiritual side. I turn to the man above. I find comfort in prayer.”
There’s something really beautiful about the simplicity of that. No overcomplicated wellness jargon. No pretending she has life perfectly figured out. Just someone admitting that sometimes peace comes from pausing long enough to empty your mind and hand your worries somewhere else for a minute.
HER VERSION OF THERAPY?
Family time. Gym sessions. Reclaiming her own energy.
“A few things help me switch off and recharge. Firstly, quality time with my loved ones. It forces me to switch off from work mode.”
And honestly, there’s something deeply underrated about people who still prioritise feeling normal. Especially in industries where everybody is constantly chasing the next thing.
“The gym is another escape I need to keep me going,” she says. “It helps me release all the negative energy. Shake it off!”
Taylor Swift 🤝 Punjabi girls carrying emotional baggage and pretending squats will fix it.
HER COMFORT FOOD?
Pure emotional support snacks.
“A big bag of salted chips!!! Or a chocolate éclair lol!”
Honestly, if your coping mechanism hasn’t at some point involved aggressively eating crisps in bed while watching nonsense television, are you even mentally surviving properly?
“It will change my whole mood!”
Relatable queen.
THE QUOTE THAT GETS HER THROUGH HARD DAYS?
“An arrow has to be pulled back, to go forward.”
And actually, this one hit harder than expected.
“Glitches have to happen to move forward correctly.”
Which feels like such an important reminder in a world where everyone is obsessed with appearing successful in real time. Nobody posts the setbacks. The spirals. The moments where life feels like it’s dragging you backwards. But sometimes that pull-back is exactly what creates momentum.
WHAT WOULD SHE TELL HER YOUNGER SELF?
“You’re not behind. You’re working to YOUR time.”
I genuinely think every South Asian woman needs this stitched onto a cushion somewhere.
“I always felt I was falling behind compared to those around me, but everyone’s journey is different.”
There’s so much pressure in our communities to hit milestones by a certain age. Career. Marriage. Money. Success. Stability. As though life is some giant competitive group project nobody agreed to join.
“Focus on YOUR path.”
Simple. Necessary. True.
WHAT ACTUALLY MAKES HER HAPPY?
Not status. Not success. Not attention.
“Spending time with my family. My close circle. Feeling normal.”
That line really stayed with us because there’s something incredibly grounding about people who still value ordinary happiness in a world obsessed with performative lifestyles.
“And making people smile. I find more satisfaction out of making someone’s day than achieving another goal.”
Which probably explains why people gravitate towards her energy in the first place.
HER PEACEFUL PLACE?
Home. Candles. Incense. Lamps. Vibes.
“I feel most at peace when I’m in my own space.”
Honestly, there are two types of people in this world: people who own one candle, and people who accidentally create a spiritual retreat every evening after work because the overhead light feels emotionally aggressive.
“So I like to ensure my home has the same aura.”
Candles lit. Incense burning. Soft lighting. Nervous system recovering.
We understand completely.
SOMETHING PEOPLE REALLY NEED TO STOP SAYING ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH?
“Just calm down.”
“It’s not necessarily the answer,” she says. “If it was that easy to do so, they would.”
Exactly.
People struggling are rarely looking for somebody to magically fix them with one sentence. Sometimes they just need understanding instead of solutions.
“Finding that calmness can sometimes be the hardest part.”
AND FINALLY…
“It’s okay to feel like you’re struggling.”
No toxic positivity. No pretending life is always balanced and beautiful and healed.
“You wouldn’t know what success feels like if you didn’t ever fail. You wouldn’t know what winning feels like if you haven’t ever lost.”
And maybe that’s the thing we loved most about her answers. They weren’t trying to sound perfect. They sounded real.
A little spiritual.
A little emotional.
A little gym therapy.
A little salted crisps.
Basically all of us, really.
