At 25, I faced a reality I never saw coming—my heart was failing. Until that moment, I had no idea that I had hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM), a genetic heart disease that had silently been with me my whole life. It took just one morning, one moment, and one sharp ear to change everything.
My father, a doctor, heard a murmur in my heart and knew something was wrong. Without hesitation, he took me straight to the hospital. Within six days, I was on an operating table, undergoing open-heart surgery. Had I not received the right care at the right time, I wouldn’t be here today to tell this story.
“Rashmi was very lucky that her father detected the murmur, her condition was very severe and the disease is as such that one doesn’t know until something catastrophic happens with them. It was sheer luck that her father detected the murmur and brought her to the hospital right away” - Dr. S Venkatesh, Lead Consultant - Interventional Cardiology, ASTER HOSPITAL
Looking back, the signs were there all along. As a child, I experienced dizziness when I ran during basketball games. No matter how much I ate, I struggled to gain weight. I was taken to many pediatricians, but none of them detected the murmur that could have led to an earlier diagnosis. It wasn’t until my heart was on the verge of failure that my condition was finally caught.
Recovery from the surgery took two months, but the emotional scars lasted much longer. The six days between my diagnosis and my operation were the most terrifying of my life. Open-heart surgery is not just physically invasive—it marks you, inside and out. The experience left me with a deep understanding of how fragile life is, but it also gave me a purpose.
I survived for a reason. I came out alive so I could go out and save others. No child should have to go through what I did. No family should have to face the fear of nearly losing their loved one to an undiagnosed heart condition.
The Rising Epidemic of Heart Disease in India
India is facing a silent but deadly crisis—heart disease is on the rise, and it’s affecting children more than ever before. Every year, nearly 200,000 babies are born with congenital heart disease (CHD), making it one of the most common birth defects in the country. That means that out of every 1,000 births, at least 10 children have a heart condition.
For many of these children, early detection could mean the difference between life and death. Unfortunately, thousands of children in rural areas go undiagnosed simply because they don’t have access to proper healthcare. Many parents don’t even know their child has a heart condition until it’s too late.
While CHDs are present from birth, other heart diseases develop later in life due to poor lifestyle habits, malnutrition, pollution, and lack of awareness. In India, childhood obesity, high blood pressure, and early onset diabetes are rising at alarming rates, all of which increase the risk of heart disease later in life. If we don’t act now, we are setting the next generation up for a lifetime of health struggles.
Prevention is Better Than Cure
Cardiac surgeries are life-saving, but they are also expensive, physically demanding, and emotionally draining. Why should we wait for a heart condition to become catastrophic when we can prevent it in the first place?
Prevention starts with awareness, screening, and early diagnosis. By catching heart diseases early, we can provide timely treatment and improve the quality of life for thousands of children. Every child deserves the chance to live a full, healthy life—free from the fear of heart disease.
Catching Hearts Foundation: A Lifesaving Mission
This is why I founded Catching Hearts Foundation—a mission driven by my own story and fueled by the belief that every child deserves to know they have a healthy heart. Our foundation is dedicated to screening and identifying heart diseases in rural children, ensuring early detection and timely intervention. With the guidance of world-renowned cardiologists and cardiac surgeons, we work to make heart health accessible to those who need it the most.
We partner with hospitals, schools, and rural health centers to provide free or affordable screenings, ensuring that no child is left behind. Through community outreach, educational programs, and medical camps, we are taking heart health directly to those who need it.
Every Heartbeat Matters
Heart conditions can be silent killers, but they don’t have to be. With awareness, early diagnosis, and the right medical attention, lives can be saved. My journey has shown me that catching heart disease in time can mean the difference between life and death.
Through Catching Hearts Foundation, I am committed to making sure no child’s condition goes unnoticed. This foundation isn’t just an initiative—it’s my life’s purpose. And with every child we screen, with every heart we help save, that purpose grows stronger.
Because every child deserves a healthy heart, and every heartbeat matters.
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