When she was 15 years old, businesswoman and humanitarian Sita Sugrim fell ill. However, she was misdiagnosed and treated for the wrong illnesses. It was not until she was 30 years old and critically ill that she was finally correctly diagnosed. She had Stage 5 Hansen’s disease. While in treatment and recovery, she decided to start her own design and printing business, Kriti.
Hansen’s Disease or leprosy is a curable disease and is mildly infectious. Around 95 per cent of the world’s population is immune to it.
“My health led me to start my own business. From high school until 15 years later my illness was undiagnosed. It is something I don’t speak about because it is a disease that is taboo. I just left it to whoever thought it was lupus. Am I okay to talk about it now? I am. Looking at me now, you wouldn’t believe what I went through. If there is hope for someone else from my experience, of course I’ll talk about it,” Sugrim, now 46 years old, told Stabroek Weekend during an interview at her Turkeyen office. This writer had sought this interview over a year ago.
