I Absolutely Did Not Want Pity or Sympathy: Sonali Bendre

Sonali Bendre talks about the stigma of speaking about one’s “illness” in public.

Sonali Bendre opens up about her struggle with cancer.

(Photo Courtesy: Instagram)

On International Women’s Day (8 March), journalist and critic Rajeev Masand got Sonali Bendre about her battle with cancer since the past year. The actor has been extremely vocal about her struggle with it. She has used the social media platform to raise awareness and fight the stigma of speaking about one’s “illness” in public.

Rajeev spoke to Sonali Bendre about her strength and resilience in fighting her “high-grade cancer” and spreading positivity through the platform of social media.

“I absolutely did not want any pity or sympathy. They’re the worst, they bring you down. I hate those emotions. For me, social media was more like a coping mechanism. I just wanted to be in-charge of what was being said there. I didn’t want rumours, also because it affects my family”.

Sonali Bendre

Talking about how she never felt like it was a taboo subject, she said, “I never realised there was so much love out there. But with that love, what we got was so many people reaching out and saying things like who all were going through it, had gone through it and how they had never shared it. And someone said that ‘I’m going through it and I haven’t told my siblings or my parents’. It was so sad that there were so many people and they were dealing with it all alone. And I didn’t even realise there it was such a taboo. When I got that feedback, I got so much strength. I realised that I was not alone, and it wasn't just happening to me. So there was so self-pity. I just wanted to give back, and be honest”.

But Sonali describes days when she was extremely low. “There were days when I would be scared. But now I’m not scared of being scared. There was a time when I was scared of that feeling. I’m just feeling it and letting it go,” she tells Masand.

Sonali also gave advice to other women out there that it’s important to listen to one’s body and not ignore any early signs or detection. She also spoke about how strong her son, Ranveer was through it all and how he took the news well.

Talking about her body going through so many changes, Sonali admitted she’s still struggling to accept her imperfections.

“There are good days and bad days. I’m still getting used to the camera and the people. I take a little bit of time. But the policy now is to go ahead and do exactly the thing that you’re afraid of. I don’t want to gloss over it. You can’t be positive all the time, it’s not possible”.

Sonali Bendre

Watch the chat here: