This story has been submitted by Sommya Jain.

“Om Gan Ganpataye Namah”

I fell, I fought, I conquered!

This is not just a story but the harsh reality of my life, which has witnessed struggle, hardships, failure, and finally success. I’m always told by my mother that when she first held me in her hands, it felt like god has sent a beautiful angel into her life.

As an infant, I was adorable and my features were fairly attractive. My tantrums, chirpiness, and my way of talking were enough to make people obsessed with me right from the first meeting. But destiny had decided something else for me.

I had turned 9 years (1997) of age and I was diagnosed with a huge haemangioma ( AV Malformation) on my right cheek. In medical terms, it is not a disease, it is called a manufacturing defect of the body. I suffered from that problem for continuous 14 years. 

From 1997 to 2011, there were 2000 times when I was confronted with death and life. In these 14 years, there have been many shocking, thrilling, inspiring, and magical moments that readers would be curious to know about and I have mentioned all of them in my autobiography book. 

By way of this book, I want to tell the world that if nobody is weak or neglected, if there is a will, then there is away. If he/she has the belief in himself, then no one can stop him from achieving his/her goals. 

Evidently, by not giving up on myself, I won a new life and a new face in 2011. It gave me all the more strength to live for the bigger and better. However, right after my major surgery, I was confronted with the mammoth task of getting up on my feet again. It was not easy.

I carried my resume around to more than 200 organizations. But, people showed no interest in giving me employment because of my looks. 

When I went for an interview with my friend Pallavi for the very first time, we submitted our resume to the same company together. My resume was far better than hers and it had all the skills required for the job. The employer read both our resumes and after seeing my face, he returned my resume and asked my friend to join the office the next day.

When I asked him why wasn’t I offered the job, he told me that this job was a front-office job that required the presence of a girl with a beautiful appearance. That day, I realized the bitter truth of society – a society that prioritizes beauty over your talent, skills, education, and qualifications.

Upon stepping out of their office, I became so helpless and heartbroken, to the extent that I started crying. My friend consoled me and told me that it’s okay, I will get another job. I wiped off my tears and told my friend that I want to prove to this world that it is not the person that is wrong, it is the mentality of our society that is wrong. I told her now is the time to prove my caliber to all the people who have been underestimating me, I will prove to them that if a person is talented and qualified, they can do anything, they can even move mountains. Lastly, I told my friend that one day I will surely do something bigger and that day I will not visit places as an employee, I will rather be an employer and would take interviews of the people under me. 

After 1 year of searching, I got a job in ICICI Pru (first source). I was getting paid only 7000 INR. I always had this thought that if God has brought me back to life so many times, I am here to serve a purpose. So, I left that job, and tried my hands in content writing. Due to the workload, I asked my best friend to join me.

The work kept on expanding and I created my team. Patience finally paid off. Finally, I started hiring employees to work under me. By God’s grace I connected with the people who were far more qualified than I was – doctors, engineers, lawyers, all of who started to work under my instructions. Today, I have more than 200 international and national clients. I have a support staff of 15 people who work for me. By god’s grace, I am pretty satisfied with my career and earning well enough to fulfil all my and my parents' dream.

After I successfully established my career, I started pursuing my hobby of dancing and acting during lockdown to bring about a change in the mentality of our society and to inspire people with my positivity. Within 3months, I became a renowned social media influencer. Recently, renowned actress Madhuri Dixit ma'am posted my video on her Twitter profile, that was the happiest day of my life. So now, I am a successful entrepreneur, Instagrammer, and YouTuber. 

MY DREAM

After I was treated, it was my priority to extend a helping hand towards other patients. Nobody would ever be able to understand the pain that I had been through in those 14 years. So, I realized that I should do something for other patients too. I want to start a charity for them. I have already raised funds for the operation of a serious patient. I am very grateful to God that he paved a way for her normal life using me as a medium. Today, she is leading a normal and healthy life. I hope I keep on doing this positive work to bring about a change in people’s lives. 

Changes that need to be done in our govt. system.

I want that each private company shall have a particular number of vacancies for the people who are either suffering from any major health issue or differently-abled. Because after suffering from a lot of challenges in life, we start looking forward to only one motive – to stand up on our feet. And not every company gives us a well deserved opportunity because of these defects. So, like any other country, India too should treat every individual equally in terms of growth, job, and opportunity.

I feel, that a normal human being can never reach the potential of a differently-abled person. 

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