Cancer Survivors Day: Sonali Bendre reflects back on her journey, 'You create the life you choose'

Follow us on

Actor Sonali Bendre Behl and writer-filmmaker Tahira Kashyap on Sunday marked Cancer Survivors Day, saying their battle with the disease only helped them emerge stronger. Actress Sonali Bendre took to Instagram on Sunday to share a picture of herself during the time she was battling cancer. As the world celebrates Cancer Survivors Day on June 6, the actress said that she won't let the illness ever define her. Sonali was diagnosed with metastatic cancer in 2018 and was treated for it in New York. She battled the illness and emerged victorious eventually. The actress put up a picture of herself from days in hospital and merged it with her current, happy self.

She captioned the image as: "How time flies. today when I look back, I see strength, I see weakness but most importantly I see the will to not let the C word define how my life will be after it...You create the life you choose. The journey is what you make of it... so remember to take #OneDayAtATime and to #SwitchOnTheSunshine."

The actress has spoken earlier on how her positive approach during the struggle helped her overcome the illness.

Sharing an anecdote about her time in New York city with her friends when she was going through the treatment, Sonali recalled, "We decided, let's make the most of this. We spent some time in New York. We were there with kids. They were amazing. The girls (Sussanne and Gayatri) went, dropped the kids to school, and came back. Then it was just us and we really enjoyed the city. There was a little bit of chemo, surgery thrown in between but we had fun."

Tahira Kashyap, a writer and producer, was diagnosed with "stage 0" breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy procedure in 2018.

The 38-year-old shared an Instagram Story and said cancer scars symbolise strength. "Never be ashamed of a scar. It simply means you were stronger than whatever tried to hurt you. Everyone has scars, whether you see them or not. Wear yours with pride," her caption read.