5 Bollywood Celebs Who Battled Life Threatening Diseases and Survived

There aren't many celebrities who would be comfortable speaking about their health condition publicly. Sonali Bendre chose to break her silence and bravely shared an Instagram post about being diagnosed with "a high grade cancer". She is currently in New York for her treatment, and we wish her a speedy recovery.

During the shoot of the movie 'Bang Bang', Hrithik struck his head against a rock while performing a stunt. There were no immediate symptoms but the actor realised something was wrong with his hand and leg coordination. In an interview given to a leading tabloid, Hrithik mentioned how the left side of his skull was full of blood and his doctor recommended an immediate surgery. He was back in business, stronger than ever.

In 2004, director Anurag Basu suffered from acute promyelocytic leukemia, a type of blood cancer. The doctors had given him just two months to live. Anurag recalls how producer Mahesh Bhatt broke down when he came to know about Anurag's condition. The filmmaker fought the disease and won. After much thought, the director has written a script about his journey in hopes of creating awareness of the condition.

In 2012, Manisha Koirala was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The actor underwent a surgery and has been cancer-free since then. She said, “I like to call myself a cancer crusader. It's basically an attitude." The actor recently made an impressive comeback with 'Sanju' and Netflix's 'Lust Stories'.

In the year 2009, Canadian-Indian actress, Lisa Ray was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. She didn’t just fight the disease, but also chose to spread awareness about it using her celebrity influence. Lisa is now cancer-free, and she likes to call herself a 'cancer graduate'. More power to her!