“I never imagined that cancer—the battle that nearly took my life—would also be the reason I found love. But life connects us in ways we never expect.
At 23, in 2013, I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. After 12 rounds of chemotherapy, I emerged victorious in 2014. Determined to spread awareness, I embarked on the Ride of Hope in 2016, traveling across India on my bike to show that cancer could be conquered.
By 2017, I had settled into a corporate job at Deloitte as a corporate lawyer in Hyderabad. Life moved steadily until COVID changed everything. Like many, I moved back home to Rewa, Madhya Pradesh, working remotely. In 2021, I left my job, searching for the better opportunity.
Around that time, I received a message from Dr. Samrakshini, a doctor from Hyderabad who had been diagnosed with Stage 1 Breast Cancer. She had found me through a cancer survivor group, reaching out for support from someone who understood.
At first, we spoke about treatments, recovery, and the importance of early detection. But soon, our conversations went beyond cancer—about life, our goals, and the need to make a difference. She wasn’t just fighting her own battle; she was determined to help others through hers. Dr. Samrakshini, an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist specializing in reproductive medicine, has always been committed to helping others with her medical expertise. In many ways, she became my strength, just as I became hers.
A month later, she went into remission. By November 2021, I was in Hyderabad for a follow-up, and we met for the first time. There was no grand moment, just a quiet understanding that this connection was something real. She was recovering, stepping into a new job, and for the first time in a long while, I felt a sense of purpose beyond my own journey.
By early 2022, we knew this was more than friendship. I visited Hyderabad again to meet her family, and they welcomed me wholeheartedly. My own family had already accepted her as one of us.
By October 2022, I secured a position with Victoria’s Secret in Bengaluru. We decided—whoever found a job in the other’s city first, we’d move there. She secured a better work opportunity in Bengaluru as an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, specializing in reproductive medicine. That settled it. We built our life here, together.
On April 6, 2024, in a small gathering in Rewa, we got engaged. Now, with our wedding just days away on February 15, 2025, in Hyderabad, I look back at how our paths aligned in ways we never foresaw.
Cancer tested us, but it also brought us together. It taught us the value of support, strength, and a shared purpose. More importantly, we hope our journey reminds others that early detection saves lives, and no one has to face it alone.”