Rising Like a Phoenix

TAHIRA KASHYAP KHURRANA IS A BRAVEHEART WITH MUCH WISDOM TO SHARE. IN CONVERSATION WITH COSMO ED NANDINI BHALLA, OUR DIGITAL COVERGIRL GETS CANDID ABOUT HER BATTLE WITH CANCER, HER ENDLESS SUPPLY OF INNER STRENGTH, AND WHY ACCEPTING YOUR FLAWS IS THE TRUE ROUTE TO SELF-LOVE.

- NANDINI BHALLA

In many ways, speaking your truth in an authentic way is the most courageous act of all. Ask Tahira Kashyap Khurrana, who has mastered the art of using her life experiences to inspire others. Her directorial debut in 2018, Toffee, was a sensitive exploration of the concept of child marriage, based on a real-life incident from her own childhood. That same year, she underwent a mastectomy and reconstruction procedure (and took to Instagram to lay bare the details, even throwing in a little quip where she called herself the “half Indian Angelina Jolie”). A few months later, Tahira put on a stylish front, sans any hair, after chemotherapy. She walked a runway, gave passionate interviews to highlight the stigma around breast cancer, and went on to record a seven-episode audio series called My Ex Breast, which chronicled how the writer and filmmaker came to terms with the emotional ramifications of her surgery.

Last month, Tahira also released her fourth book, 12 Commandments Of Being A Woman, a tongue-in-cheek, upfront take on being a ‘celebrity wife’, her battles with depression, insecurities, and cancer, and her learnings from all of them.