A Smile Worth Fighting For

Arpana and Sunil stood, anxious, as the anaesthesiologist screened their daughter, Chitrakshi. They knew it was a big day for their little girl. For themselves, too. Sunil tried hard to mask his fear and stand confident for Chitrakshi before her cleft surgery, but the doctors sensed the couple's hesitation. The hospital staff reassured them that the procedure was safe and patiently answered every question. The couple exhaled, confident she was in the right hands.

Everyone understood why they were so anxious.

Chitrakshi was Sunil and Arpana’s first child. The moment of her birth was the most highly anticipated of their lives, filled with hope, nerves, and joy. Then they saw her cleft. They were not prepared. They could not have been prepared — they had never seen a cleft or even heard about them before. The ultrasound completely missed it.

They felt overwhelmed with responsibility, yet still held their daughter close, determined to find a way forward.  

The early weeks were hard. Frightening as it was to watch Chitrakshi’s cleft make her choke on breast milk, the uncertainty of not knowing where to turn for help was even worse.  

Everything changed when Chitrakshi’s doctor mentioned that she could receive the cleft surgery she needed for free at Himalayan Hospital at Jooly Grant, Uttarakhand, because it was a Smile Train partner.  

A weight lifted off their shoulders. For the first time since Chitrakshi’s birth, the road ahead looked clear.

Back in that hospital corridor, they waited patiently while Chitrakshi was in the OR. When the surgery was done and they finally saw their daughter's face, they felt overwhelmed again, this time with joy.

Today, Chitrakshi eats, breathes, and speaks without difficulty. She is confident, makes friends easily, and sings and dances with an ease that fills her parents' hearts with pride. Watching her, it is hard to imagine the difficulties the family faced in those early weeks.

Chitrakshi understands, perhaps more than most children her age, what it means to receive kindness from strangers. She is deeply grateful to her hospital team, to Smile Train, and to our donors for her surgery, for the excellent care she received, and for the fact that something as important as her health was never made to feel like a burden her family had to carry alone.