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The Better India

Meet Renowned Odissi Dancer Shubhada Varadkar. She Fought Cancer with Dance And Won.

Shubhada Varadkar was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 40. A talented and passionate Odissi dancer, she fought the disease for the love of her art and her desire to keep dancing and creating something beautiful. This is her story.

Shubhada was in London for a performance in November 2006. While dancing on the stage, she started feeling uneasy and realised that she was bleeding.

Wrapping up that tour early, Shubhada returned to Mumbai and went for a check-up. The sonography revealed a 10-inch long tumour in her abdomen. It was too big to be removed by laser procedure and the doctors told her that she needed surgery. However, they had no way of finding out before the surgery if the tumour was malignant or not.
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Times Of India्

How This Odissi Dancer Battled With Cancer

From keeping her ovarian cancer a secret to performing for awareness, Odissi exponent Shubhada Varadkar lets us in on the eight most challenging years of her life During a performance in London in November 2006, Odissi dancer Shubhada Varadkar began to feel uneasy. "I was bleeding but assumed it was a regular menstrual problem since there was no pain," she recalls as she settles into a couch at her Bandra (E) home. She flew back to India the next day and underwent a sonography at a Bandra hospital. The test revealed a 10-inch tumour in her ovary but the doctors she consulted weren't able to confirm if it was malignant. Not wishing to delay treatment, they performed a hysterectomy and oophorectomy — surgical procedures to remove the uterus and ovaries. The tumours were sent to Parel's Tata Memorial Hospital for further investigation. "My doctors were surprised that I had danced with such a large tumour, not even complaining of pain," says Varadkar, 51.
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ScoopWhoop्

This 53-Year-Old Woman Danced Her Way Out Of Cancer & Is Now Inspiring Thousands With Her Talent

Recipient of the prestigious Mahari Award of Odisha in 2011, Shubhada Varadkar is an exponent of Odissi dance. At 53, this phenomenal woman has choreographed and performed at a number of illustrious dance festivals across the world. Winning several accolades for her exceptional dancing skills, Shubhada Varadkar's story is one that teaches us to not succumb to the challenges life throws at us. In 2006, when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, Shubhada Varadkar fought against the odds, and did not let her ill health come in the way of her passion.As her Guru and her doctors egged her on, Shubhada conceptualized the dance while in bed, and went up on stage in a few weeks time and performed the entire recital impeccably. Once chemotherapy began, she juggled her performances with radiation sessions, ensuring that her dance did not suffer. Instead of letting cancer come in the way of her passion, she used her illness as a motivation to keep going.
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Point Blank 7्

Shubhada Varadkar : An Achiever In Her Own Right

Shubhada Varadkar, an Odissi exponent from Mumbai, has survived quite a few tough battles in her 51 years to reach a juncture where she can proudly announce that she is more an achiever than a tragic icon. Besides being a professor of Economics at a Mumbai college, Shubhada also served as a news reader for Doordarshan before turning her focus to Odissi under the guidance of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra and choose to excel there too. All seemed to be on right track, but things suddenly took ugly turn in 2006. Diagnosed with Ovarian tumour during a performance in London almost shattered Shubhada’s dream, but the passion and mental strength set her apart from others.
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Testimonials

The Times of India

THE APPEAL OF ABHINAYA

Indian Express

ODISSI STEALS THE SHOW

The Afternoon Despatch and Courier

CREATIVE CONFLUENCE OF ODISSI DANCE & BHAJAN