Indian-Canadian actor Lisa Ray (47) has said that her book, Close to the Bone , was not a cancer memoir or a sneak-peak into the celeb life, but a true humane account of a life well lived.
Ms. Ray was speaking at the 10th edition of Tata literature festival in the city on Sunday. She started her career as a model in the 1990s and is now a well-known personality in films, theatre and television.
She has marked her debut as an author with Close to the Bone , which was published in May by Harper Collins India.
Ms. Ray, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable form of blood cancer in 2009, said in India it is difficult to talk about cancer openly. “I do not know why, but people are not upfront when it comes to talking about cancer, they feel like it is something they need to hide,” she said.
On her battle with cancer, Ms. Ray said, “There came a point when I had zero blood in my body. There were nurses all around me, all the time. They used to talk to me, about their worship and faith in Buddhism. I didn’t care for their religion, but it was a Buddhist chant that helped me keep up the fight, mentally.”
She added, “It has been 10 years since I was diagnosed with cancer. And today I am known as a cancer survivor. But I am not just a cancer survivor. I am so much more than that. I don’t like people putting such labels upon others.”
Ms. Ray said she has been writing all her life. “Writing helped me dive deeper into myself. There were a lot of inner conflicts and identity issues. Writing this book in a way has helped me answer all those questions. It has been an immersive journey,” she said.
The early years
Ms. Ray also spoke about the early years of her career, when she had started modelling for make-up and clothing brands. She called the 1990s a wonderful decade where models were not bent on entering Bollywood. “Unlike today, in those times we were never excited about getting into Bollywood. Yes, we loved the movies and the songs, but never actually thought of performing in front of the screen,” she said.
In the book, Ms. Ray has written about being called a sex symbol in the later years of her career. “It was chaos back then. As a woman, I was still trying find my place in the world. But today, at 47, if you call me a sex symbol, I am more than happy about it.”
Ms. Ray has worked in several Hindi and Tamil films and is most popular for her role in Deepa Mehta’s movie Water, which was nominated for the Academy Awards in 2007.
