No one could have known when Anmol Rodriguez was born in India that her life would one day affect thousands of people all across the world. But her narrative started with a lot of brutality.
When Anmol was just two months old, something terrible happened to her that almost killed her. Her father wanted to kill both her mother and her child, so he spilled hydrochloric acid on them while they were sleeping. It killed her mother. Baby Anmol lived, but her body was terribly scorched.
Doctors didn’t think she would live. Her lovely skin had melted away, and her face and torso were forever scarred. But she made it through everything. For the next five years, she was in the hospital, where physicians and nurses worked around the clock to save her.
Anmol was brought to an adoption shelter in Mumbai after she grew well. She had people who cared about her and a place to live for the first time. But the outer world wouldn’t be as nice because of the wounds she had.
She discovered shortly at school how nasty kids and even adults could be. People were often staring at her, whispering, and laughing at her. Some people completely ignored her, while others called her names that wounded her feelings, as if her wounds made her unfit of company.
She could have let what they said define her for a while. Anmol, on the other hand, chose not to trust what people said about her. She would have faith in herself.
That choice made everything different.
With social media, she could do a lot of new things. She started uploading pictures of herself, even the scars. She wasn’t sure how other people would feel at first. Would they make fun of her online like they did in class? Would they send her away again?
But what occurred next was incredible. People were friendly to her instead of rude. Thousands of other people spoke nice things instead of bad things. They told her she was brave. They informed her that she was really pretty. They said that her narrative gave them hope.
Anmol finally understood that her wounds didn’t make her weaker. They gave her more strength.
At 26, Anmol is more than just a survivor. She created the Acid Attack Survivor Sahas Foundation to support other people who have been through the same situation. She assists them, tells them what she knows, and reminds them that their wounds don’t define who they are.
Her message is simple yet powerful: “Acid doesn’t end our lives.” The soul will stay the same, even if the face is ruined. On the inside, we are the same. If we want to be happy, we need to accept who we are.
Anmol has become a voice for survivors all across the world because she is brave. She teaches people to look past what they see on the exterior and see the strength, dignity, and humanity in everyone.
Her journey used to make her unhappy, but now it offers her hope. As a little girl, she was intended to die, be harmed, and be forgotten. Instead, she lives without fear and inspires millions of people around the world to love themselves and not allow pain dictate their lives.