Shaunak Sen, Director Of 'All That Breathes' Reveals Cancer Diagnosis: 'Kidney Tumour Is Out Of Me'

New Delhi: Oscar-nominated documentary 'All That Breathes' director Shaunak Sen on Sunday shared with fans an update about his health. The filmmaker was diagnosed with a malignant tumour in his kidney which has now been successfully removed and he is now on the road to recovery. He is 37.

He posted about his health condition on Instagram, writing: "Bit of an absurd update. October end, during a checkup for an autoimmune thing I got a shock diagnosis: a routine scan revealed a small malignant tumor in the kidney. Utter bolt from the blue. No kidney-related symptoms, no hereditary history, no big history of drinking/smoking. Urgent surgery was advised. On the 26th December I had a partial nephrectomy, i.e. a part of my kidney was removed. (it was converted from robotic to an open surgery midway, so there's a dramatic Cronenbergian gash in the belly.) It was successful, the cancer is out of me. The accidental discovery was a blessing in disguise, it was caught very early at a low-grade stage. Recovering since and regaining strength. (Never had a better excuse for all acquaintances complaining about my going awol in recent months - my pujo, diwali, christmas, new years were all in a hospital room. And here's some blurry bad photos of friends who made it all tolerable, alongside the excellent surgeons.) (P.s - the masked men in picture 1 are the protagonists of All That Breathes. )"

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Shaunak Sen (@shaunak_sen)

Shaunak revealed that he underwent surgery in December, which was successful. Filmmaker Mira Nair and actress Tillotama Shome among others also visited Shaunak at the hospital.

The 2022 release 'All That Breathes' was directed by Shaunak Sen. It is produced by Sen, Aman Mann and Teddy Leifer under the banner of Rise Films. The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival where it won Grand Jury Prize in World Cinema Documentary Competition.

It also had a screening at the Cannes Film Festival in the special screening section, where it won the Golden Eye. It was later nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film. 

The film then went on to win a Peabody Award at the 84th ceremony for 'its graceful portrait of empathy and interconnectivity between nature and man.'

We wish him a speedy recovery.