Tannishtha Chatterjee completes film 'Full Plate' while battling stage 4 cancer, says ‘it really helped me heal’

Actor-turned-filmmaker Tannishtha Chatterjee has revealed the extraordinary challenges she faced while completing her film ‘Full Plate’, including a personal battle with stage 4 oligo-metastatic cancer.

“The film was anyway very difficult to make,” Chatterjee told The Hollywood Reporter India. “Our initial financier ran into problems, and it was tough to finish. My co-producers came on board, and I finally completed the edit. I was so relieved—and then, just as I was about to go into music and sound, all this happened. I had to rush into treatment.”

Chatterjee explained the intensity of her treatment: “The first 10 days are really bad. You feel like you won’t live. But the next 11 days, everything looks positive. By my third cycle, I told my producers—book the studios, speak to the music director, let’s finish the film.”

She credits her creativity for helping her endure the illness. “We are creative people—we live for this,” she said. “Every time I came to the studio, I listened to the music. It reminded me of the shoot, the memories—it made me feel good. It really helped me heal.”

Reflecting on one particularly challenging day, she recalled: “I patted myself and said, look at this—tomorrow I have chemo, and today I’m here fixing the sound.” For Chatterjee, the act of creating became a source of strength. “We are creators—actors, writers, directors, musicians. We create from our experiences. And when the universe gives me an experience, there must be a reason. Through that creation, I am bound to do something more.”

‘Full Plate’ now premieres at the Busan International Film Festival, a testament to Chatterjee’s resilience and the power of art as both an anchor and a source of healing.