The Week India – July 21, 2019

38 THE WEEK • JULY 21, 2019

PLUS

Single Mother. Corporate

Head. Cancer Winner.

At first glance, you could easily mistake Ruchi

Dilbagi for one of the 20-somethings clocking in for

shift at the entrance to the Bengaluru call centre

where she works. She is, in fact, Manager - Direct

Marketing, for one of India’s biggest banks. Her

cheerful demeanour belies the fact that life has not

been all smooth sailing for her.

Ever the banker, 41-year-old Ruchi says the first thing

that crossed her mind when told about her cancer

diagnosis, was, “Will I lose my job? And, will I get

insurance coverage?”

In 2009, the bank she worked for in the United Arab

Emirates shut down, forcing her to return to India

without a job.

After a two-year hiatus, in July 2012, she joined a

leading Indian bank and was put in charge of vendor

management for South India. “In December that year,

I discovered a lump in my breast during a self exam.

But, I decided to ignore it at the time because I had

just started a new job. I visited my gynaecologist who

recommended we first try and treat the lump with

medication. When it persisted, she asked me to get a

biopsy done. I went for my tests the following month,

and in April 2013, it was confirmed as malignant.”

She was advised immediate surgery, followed by

chemotherapy.

Ruchi Dilbagi

“My recovery changed my perception that

cancer was the end. I have forced all women

in my family, even my extended family,

to get regular check-ups done.”