The news of Mahima Chaudhry recovering from breast cancer made us realize how cruel and unpredictable life can be. But she did come back stronger just like filmmaker Anurag Basu.
Basu, who gave us films like ‘Barfi’, ‘Ludo’ among other blockbusters, was diagnosed with blood cancer back in 2004.
View this post on Instagram
Recently during an interaction, Basu went down the scariest phase of his life and shared how he attained victory over cancer despite the doctors saying that he only has two weeks of his life left.
Things went South went huge blisters started popping up inside his mouth. He was medically advised to get admitted and get his tests done. But the workaholic director decided to go back to the set of the movie he was shooting at that time.
“By evening Mukesh Bhatt asked me to pack up the shoot. You can never expect him to say that. It’s impossible. When I saw my parents’ faces in the hospital, I got a hint that something was wrong,” The Indian Express quoted him saying.
View this post on Instagram
He was then admitted to Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai.
“I felt fine except for some headache and weakness. I even sneaked out of my hospital room for a beer with Emraan Hashmi and others. But my condition started deteriorating rapidly as no medicine was helping. My internal organs were bleeding buckets. People kept coming to donate blood.”
His condition became so worse that his parents couldn’t bear watching him suffer and stopped meeting him. He recalled how Mahesh Bhatt reacted to seeing him in such a state.
“Bhatt sir came to meet me. He put his hand on my forehead and he was shaking. He’s otherwise a very calm person. Even Anupam Kher came to meet me. Seeing both of them, I realized something is not right.”
View this post on Instagram
Giving more details of his medical condition then, he said, “My face was bloated. I was unable to catch my breath. That feeling of suffocation made me get a reality check on my bad condition. Also, the way people were panicking around me as no line of treatment was working.”
But thankfully when he was shifted to Tata Memorial Hospital, the medicines started working their magic.
“As soon as I reached Tata Hospital, I was put on a ventilator. In fact, I wasn’t able to get a bed there. It was Sunil Dutt who got me one. I feel blessed to be a part of the film industry, that I immediately got a bed and treatment. A common man would have struggled.”
He further divulged, “Whoever knew me from television was doing everything they could, sending messages, asking for blood to save me. I don’t even know who all donated blood and platelets for me, whose blood is running in my veins today.”
View this post on Instagram
At that time, his wife Tani was seven months pregnant with their daughter Ishana. Everyone kept their mouths shut around her but she got to know about Anurag’s health through a news channel.
Soon after, Basu received chemotherapy. But he needed more money to get done with his treatment entirely. Hence, he went back to shooting TV shows wearing a mask. In fact, he started filming ‘Gangster’ while his chemotherapy was going on.
“That courage came from my family and my dad. It was more difficult for everyone else around me than me actually,” Basu concluded.
It is so comforting to see the jovial and always smiling filmmaker at the best of his health today. Sending him love and good vibes.