Twenty three-year-old Jaipur girl, Rozlyn Khan, was a nobody before she uploaded her topless pictures online, and later followed it up with a video where she displayed six self-examination steps to help women diagnose the initial symptoms of breast cancer.

As soon as her pictures and the video went viral, Rozlyn was swamped with phone calls and messages asking her if this was a feat similar to what Poonam Pandey did during the World Cup. However, Rozlyn disagrees, “My sole aim is to spread awareness for breast cancer and I was motivated to take this big step because of a close friend who is suffering from breast cancer.”

So, this young girl is on a mission as she tells us, “Eight months back, my close friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and when her husband learnt about this, his attitude suddenly changed and he showed no interest in getting her treatment done,” adding, “My friend was in a trauma. Finally when she managed to arrange the finances and got her treatment done, there was a scar on her body. I feel that scar is nothing, but a reflection of how a woman loses her identity after having breast cancer and how her family doesn’t support her, both financially and emotionally.”

Did you not receive flak for this attempt? “Oh, yes! I did and for all those men who had a good laugh over it, I want to tell them to first go and check yourself and then laugh, because after the extensive research I did on the subject, I learnt that 2% of all the cancer patients are men.” Ask her about people comparing her to starlet Poonam Pandey and she says, “Yes, people thought that I’m doing this for publicity. Honestly, though I have seen her videos and pictures, I have never seen Poonam in real. I think she has never faced the camera.”

Talking about her four-minute long breast cancer awareness video, Rozlyn says that it has been aesthetically shot and can prove vital for early detection of the malady. “Had I been wearing a sari, nobody would have watched the video. Therefore, I decided to click topless pictures because we all know that early detection of breast cancer can save lives. However, many never bother to go for a check-up till their issues reach a stage where medical intervention becomes an absolute necessity,” Rozlyn points out, adding, “All I want is that breast cancer surgery should be made free in India so that unlike my friend, nobody suffers a trauma if denied financial help by their families.” Rozlyn says that she been contacted by several NGOs but the young girl wants support from hospitals to make these surgeries free of cost.

“A lot of people have watched the video abroad and since the video was shot in Hindi, I’ll do another video in English so that it can reach maximum people,” she tells us. Besides modelling, Rozlyn will soon be seen in a movie “Dhama Choukdi” directed by Arhan.

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Upasana Mantri, TNN