Before he became known for directing some of the most layered and poetic stories in Bollywood, Anurag Basu had to live through one of the darkest plots life could throw at him. In 2004, while shooting for Murder and Saaya, the filmmaker was diagnosed with Acute Promyelocytic Leukaemia (APL), a rare and aggressive form of blood cancer. What followed wasn’t just a health crisis—it was a life-altering journey of pain and resilience.
In a podcast 'Unfiltered by Samdish', Anurag Basu revealed that at that time, he was already juggling back-to-back film shoots. But when painful blisters appeared in his mouth, he ignored them. By the time he was admitted to the hospital, doctors gave him only two weeks to live. He was young, with a seven-months-pregnant wife, Tani, and a career on the rise.
As the disease progressed, his internal organs began to bleed, his face swelled, and he struggled to breathe. He was soon shifted to the Tata Memorial Hospital with the help of veteran actor Sunil Dutt. There, under ventilator support and with round-the-clock chemotherapy, Anurag fought through excruciating weakness and emotional trauma.
According to a cancer specialist, Dr. Santosh Kumar, who later spoke about the case on YouTube, shared that APL is one of the rare blood cancers with a high cure rate, if caught and treated aggressively in the early stages. Anurag’s case was exactly that: a race against time.
Despite undergoing treatment, he returned to television work between chemo cycles. He credits this work—not just as a financial necessity, but as a therapeutic routine—which helped ease his suffering and push him through. His daughter’s upcoming birth became the anchor that held him together. All he wanted, he has said, was to survive long enough to see her face.
Anurag Basu's hits
The ordeal left Anurag forever changed. Post-recovery, he delivered a string of acclaimed films including Gangster, Life in a... Metro, Barfi!, Ludo, and most recently, Metro... In Dino, a spiritual sequel to his 2007 ensemble drama. The latest film features a powerhouse cast including Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta, Konkona Sen Sharma, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapur, Sara Ali Khan, and Fatima Sana Shaikh.
In a podcast 'Unfiltered by Samdish', Anurag Basu revealed that at that time, he was already juggling back-to-back film shoots. But when painful blisters appeared in his mouth, he ignored them. By the time he was admitted to the hospital, doctors gave him only two weeks to live. He was young, with a seven-months-pregnant wife, Tani, and a career on the rise.
As the disease progressed, his internal organs began to bleed, his face swelled, and he struggled to breathe. He was soon shifted to the Tata Memorial Hospital with the help of veteran actor Sunil Dutt. There, under ventilator support and with round-the-clock chemotherapy, Anurag fought through excruciating weakness and emotional trauma.
According to a cancer specialist, Dr. Santosh Kumar, who later spoke about the case on YouTube, shared that APL is one of the rare blood cancers with a high cure rate, if caught and treated aggressively in the early stages. Anurag’s case was exactly that: a race against time.
Despite undergoing treatment, he returned to television work between chemo cycles. He credits this work—not just as a financial necessity, but as a therapeutic routine—which helped ease his suffering and push him through. His daughter’s upcoming birth became the anchor that held him together. All he wanted, he has said, was to survive long enough to see her face.
Anurag Basu's hits
The ordeal left Anurag forever changed. Post-recovery, he delivered a string of acclaimed films including Gangster, Life in a... Metro, Barfi!, Ludo, and most recently, Metro... In Dino, a spiritual sequel to his 2007 ensemble drama. The latest film features a powerhouse cast including Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta, Konkona Sen Sharma, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapur, Sara Ali Khan, and Fatima Sana Shaikh.
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