June 6, 2025
Born in a middle-class family in Nagpur, Maharashtra, I was raised by strong parents—my mom, a cancer survivor who fought her battle when I was born, and my dad, a self-made man who built a business from scratch. At age
I landed in Sydney in 2014 with a suitcase full of dreams and a body still healing from cancer. After surviving thyroid cancer the year before, I knew this move wasn’t just about changing countries — it was about choosing life again.
Back home, I had over 12 years of experience in media and PR, but in Australia, none of that was valid. I had no savings and shared a garage room with ten strangers. I remember thinking, ‘I’ve been by myself since I was 17, fought cancer…I can survive this too.’ But it wasn’t easy.
I applied for over 900 jobs across media, PR, and even unpaid internships. I emailed editors, sent my portfolio everywhere, but heard nothing back. The job market was tough, especially without the right network. Eventually, I took a call centre job at a leading telecom company, which felt stable. But just before I signed the lease on my first apartment, I was made redundant. One week’s notice and I was back to square one.
I kept going — casual shifts, part-time work, day jobs, night jobs, from market research to teaching English. Then suddenly, I developed excruciating leg pain & was bedridden. I was put on several medications with serious side effects, until one day I just said, ‘No more’ I dumped them all.
Then one night, while binge-watching Netflix, I saw an ethnic Aussie actor. That lit something up in me. I decided to enrol in film school, and fell in love with Acting.
Initially, I was shy, insecure, in pain, but I kept showing up. Soon, I got acting & modelling gigs.
My first photoshoot? Art Nude, with an award-winning photographer. I didn’t even recognise myself. That confidence unlocked something deep inside me.
And through fortunate events in life, I enrolled in Miss India Australia & became a finalist, winning the Goodwill Ambassador title for my community work. Since then, I’ve worked on international modelling & screen projects.
Alongside, I founded the Saroni Roy Foundation, leading D.E.I. initiatives.
This country gave me freedom & space. I learned to laugh again. I stopped caring how people perceive me. I started living.
Australia didn’t just help me heal — it unleashed my ‘limitless mindset’.
Born in a middle-class family in Nagpur, Maharashtra, I was raised by strong parents—my mom, a cancer survivor who fought her battle when I was born, and my dad, a self-made man who built a business from scratch. At age
I come from a small town in Punjab called Rajpura, and my journey to Australia has been nothing short of an adventure. I started my Bachelor’s in computing at Manipal University in India, before transferring to the Australian National University
I grew up in Sydney with a single mother and spent most of my early years immersed in wrestling and boxing. School, on the other hand, was never my thing. I struggled with dyslexia, couldn’t focus in class, and changed
Why I decided to design my life: Like many people, I grew up with lots of messages that told me what to believe and how to live. It felt easy for me to default to following the crowd and the
