This viral bridal photoshoot of a cancer survivor that is an inspirational must-see
Vashnavi Poovanedran is better known on Instagram as Navi Indran Pillai, and she took the photo-sharing platform by storm after her bridal photoshoot titled ‘The Bold Indian Bride’ went viral. In a series of posts, Poovanedran—who is a Malaysian of Indian descent—spoke of how cancer has robbed many women of looking their best on their wedding day, and that her photo shoot was aimed at helping survivors realise they are bold and beautiful.
“Cancer treatments have given us a lot of limitations, robbed us of beauty and taken away our confidence. As little girls, we have always dreamy of what our big day will be like and how we would look like as a bride,” Poovanedran, who is a breast cancer survivor, wrote in one of her posts.
Photos – Celes Gerard Photography.
“But having cancer has stripped some of us from fulfilling these dreams. A lot of cancer survivors have postponed or even cancelled their big day,” she wrote.
Poovanedran wrote that she had thought she was cancer-free, when it returned after five years, and spread to her liver and backbone. However, she wrote that after lots of chemotherapy, she beat cancer again in December 2018. Although the journey wasn’t an easy one, it didn’t dampen her spirit or her zeal.
“For me, as a cancer survivor, I dreamy the day I marry the love of my life. Dreamy, what it is like to look like a bride, to feel like a bride. Having gone through cancer treatments (chemotherapy, etc.), losing my hair was by far the hardest thing I ever had to go through,” Poovanedran, who is a motivational speaker and dancer, wrote in a post.
“I felt that I was not beautiful enough to be loved and was not beautiful enough to look or ever feel like a bride. Hair, it is our ‘crowning glory’ and having that taken away from you is devastating. But we choose to accept what we have, appreciate what we are and welcome what is coming,” she wrote.
Dressed in a bight tomato red saree with a white tulle veil, and with mehendi on her feet and hands, Poovanedran is a breathtakingly beautiful bride in the photos. The photographs—taken by photographer Celes Gerard—have struck a chord with thousands of women.
As the photos went viral, a makeup artist at Blush, Beauty and Beyond explained the challenges they faced, but how they were driven by Poovanedran’s vision. “The first challenge was to create & carve eyebrows on a canvas that have lost their own,” the makeup artist wrote, adding, “I had to draw individual hair strokes to mimic the appearance of real brow hair & to ensure it didn’t look too fake.”
And that wasn’t the only challenge. As she lost all her hair during chemotherapy, they had to come up with a plan to fix a traditional bridal headpiece. “The next challenge was to choose and fix a headpiece, without a single hairpin involved. This wasn’t easy but I’m so glad we figured it out,” the makeup artist wrote.
The viral photos have also given others hope online.
“How powerful, to burn and still come out stronger and more beautiful,” one user commented. “Stay stronger n see cancer is getting defeated every single day, with your smile and laughter” commented another user. “You’re so beautiful ♥️ thanks for being an inspiration to everyone ♥️ god bless you always,” wrote another online.