Two persons who have battled physical and mental odds and emerged triumphant looked back at their journeys on Friday.
Kamal Shah and Minu Budhia took part in a session titled "Against All Odds" on Day IV of the Tata Steel Kolkata Literary Meet, in association with the Victoria Memorial Hall and The Telegraph.
Shah is the co-founder of NephroPlus, a dialysis chain with presence across the country. Struck by kidney failure in 1997, Shah used lessons learnt dealing with the disease to start NephroPlus along with Vikram Vuppala, a healthcare strategy consultant. Shah has a widely-read blog about his travails with kidney disease.
Budhia’s struggles to ensure that her younger daughter, a special child, led an active and happy life led her to start Caring Minds, a mental-health institute. She has since started another institute for special needs and a cafe where the crew is made up of people with cognitive challenges.
"There is a misconception in the general public's mind that once you get on to dialysis, you can't lead a normal life. But nothing can be farther from the truth. I am a living testament to that... I started writing about how patients could take responsibility in their own hands and get their lives back," said Shah.
The blog became popular and connected Vuppala with Shah. Eventually, the two launched NephroPlus.
Government estimates suggest India needs more than 3 crore dialysis every year.
"What would you attribute the success of NephroPlus to? What have you done differently," Shruti Mohta, organ-donation campaigner and the moderator, asked Shah.
"We call our patients guests and not patients because we believe there is a negative connotation to the word patient. When somebody hears the word patient, the image that comes to the mind is probably that of a sick, bedridden individual who cannot do things for themselves," he said.
"But here I am. I have been on dialysis for the last 26 years. But I lead a completely normal life. I came alone to Calcutta. I work full time. I swim every morning. I go for movies. I do things that all of you do," he said.
In 2022, Budhia wrote a memoir titled Death of a Caterpillar. It is an account of her journey as a special needs mom and her battle with depression.
The moderator asked her about the title's resonance in her own life.
Budhia spoke of the stigma surrounding mental health.
"When I was setting up Caring Minds, there was a huge amount of stigma. I was doing the interiors one day. Some people in the neighbourhood came with a stay order. They did not want us to open the clinic there because they thought lunatics (pagal log) would come there every day for treatment. It was stalled.
“I started alone, at a time mental health was an alien concept. I started Caring Minds from the first floor of my house,” she said.
Budhia said that before she started working in the mental-health space, she would find it extremely difficult to socialise.
"The more I worked with like-minded people, the more I healed people, the more healed I got from inside. Finally, I am happy to meet the real Minu. This is finally me," she said, as the audience responded with a loud applause.