I made Cancer Katha to help people suffering from Cancer: Vasudha Joshi

Vasudha Joshi���s brush with Cancer is the subject of her national award winning film Cancer Katha. Read on to know what the journalist-cum-filmmaker has to say about her tryst with the disease and the award that was so unexpected. This is her second National Award. Vasudha Joshi, whose first National Award was for a film titled Voices from Baliapal (1989), bagged the Special Jury Award in the 60th National Film Awards 2013, for her documentary Cancer Katha.So, now you have two National Awards in you bag! How does it feel?Of course, it feels good. I am happy winning the award. But honestly speaking, making this documentary had nothing to do with winning an awardLet's talk about your decision to make this documentary.docuWhat kind of indecision? I was detected with cancer in the December of 2008. At that point of time, I knew no more about cancer than does a common man, who has never had to deal with it. I was a bit thrown. By the time I got checked, the cancer had reached stage 2. My doctor told me I had to get chemotherapy. But I was hell bent against it. You see. I am more into naturopathy. Chemo was not an option for me. But then, my doctor told me that I had no other choice.So how did you convince yourself to go through with it?Ultimately, I had to give in to the fact that chemo was my only option. That is when I started to dig up all the information I could get on Cancer and the treatment available. From books to internet, I looked through it all. In fact, since my hormone treatment is still on, I am continuing with my research.Does the film portray the agony you went through at this period?Not at all. Yes, I have used songs by Devdas baul that delineate the triviality of life, that talk of life and death. But they don���t talk of my agony in particular. I am not the kind of person who likes to discuss it a lot.Your film starts with a sequence where Devdas baul has been informed of someone named Vasudha���s death. Did that really happen?Yes, Devdas baul was actually told by someone that I had died. It was 2009 and I was shooting a film. One fine day, Ruchir (Joshi) called me up to tell me that the story doing the rounds is that I had succumbed to cancer. Turns out Debuda (Davdas) had been told so and from him it had reached Ruchir. I decided to incorporate the incident in my docu.So, what was your first reaction when you came to know about the award? Honestly, I didn���t believe it. I didn���t even know that the docu had been nominated! It was a friend of mine from TOI who called me up to give me the news. I called up PSBT immediately and they confirmed it. I asked them to double check. I mean, of course I was happy, but it took some time for the news to sink in.So, what next?Nothing concrete as of yet. I have approached PSBT with four more proposals. Lets see...