| Summary: | Background: The sexual minority status of the gay and bisexual community puts them into a unique vulnerability state for mental health problems. One of the factors associated with this stress is remaining in “closet” leading to a higher prevalence of depression. Aims: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of depression in Indian men who have sex with men (MSM) and to assess the association of depression with disclosure, if any, in this community. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional observational study of Indian men recruited through an advertisement on a dating website exclusive for gay men. Depression was assessed on self-reported scale of the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale-Revised (CESD-R). Results: Most of the men who took part in the study belonged to the age group of 25–35 years with mean age of the study sample being 30.31 years (standard deviation [SD] ±8.58). A majority of them were salaried, had higher education, and belonged to the Hindu religion. Most of the participants were either exclusively or predominantly homosexual (72%) followed by men with bisexual orientation (18%). On measures of disclosure/“outness,” out of 277 respondents, 171 (61.73%) were not open about their sexuality, 92 (33.21%) were sometimes open, while only 14 (5.05%) were always open about their sexual orientation in front of others. The average age of coming out of closet (n = 232) was 19.71 years (SD ± 6.67). The mean score on CESD-R scale was 25.65 (SD ± 16.38). Depression was present in 163 participants (58.84%) of the entire sample. The depression scores negatively correlated with age, with scores being higher in younger age group. Depression was not associated with the type of sexual orientation. Although the depression scores were higher in those who were in the closet, it was not statistically significant. Those who had negative experience of coming out of closet had significantly higher scores on CESD-R compared to those who had positive reaction on coming out. Conclusion: Depression is highly prevalent in Indian MSM.
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