‘My Cinderella fairy tale ended and I was back to my real life full of pain, trauma and poverty’: In her own words, the Indian girl who shot to fame at the Oscars describes how reality returned after a cruelly brief taste of happiness

An Indian schoolgirl who shot to fame after starring in an Oscar-winning documentary has told how her ‘Cinderella fairy tale’ was over ‘in an instant’ and she was plunged back into a life ‘of pain, trauma and poverty’.

At the age of five, Pinki Sonkar won the hearts of the world when she starred in Smile Pinki, which told the story of the cruel abuse and taunts she endured for having a cleft lip before undergoing life-changing surgery.

She then walked the red carpet alongside Hollywood A-listers at the 81st Academy Awards when the critically acclaimed film won an Oscar in 2009, a time she describes as “the best moments of my life.”

Her newfound fame saw her invited to do the coin toss at the 2013 Wimbledon Men’s Singles Finals, kicking off what would become Andy Murray’s historic victory over Novak Djokovic.

But that brief taste of happiness was taken from her shortly afterwards, Pinki has now revealed, and she is back living in her childhood village, where her circumstances remain difficult.

She says that “nothing has changed” and laments that “her life is a story full of false promises, poverty, hardship and short-lived fame.”

Smile Pinki told the story of the cruel abuse and taunts the little girl received for having a cleft lip – before undergoing life-changing surgery

Pinki rose to fame after starring in the Oscar-winning documentary Smile Pinki (pictured at a press conference for the 2009 Oscars with the doctor who performed her surgery and her father)

Pinki’s newfound fame saw her invited to do the coin toss at the 2013 Wimbledon Men’s Singles Finals

Pinki (left), along with thirty other residents of her village, were told to leave their homes and received a demolition notice last year

While she returned with her prized gold statuette, Pinki says not much of the glitter of Hollywood remained in her life when she returned to India.

Now 21 years old, Pinki is in her last year of high school and spends most of her time studying or doing housework to help support her family.

They live in the Mirzapur district, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, one of the poorest areas in India.

Pinki has three sisters and two brothers, and the family continues to face financial problems despite her celebrity.

The family’s house has only two rooms and no running water, no bathroom and no front door. The Telegraph reports, and is regularly affected by power outages.

“The villagers have to walk almost half a kilometer to the well to fetch water for our daily use,” she said.

The sturdy young woman previously worked in the fields, but says her brothers and father now do that work while she performs household chores “like countless other Indian girls.”

She still watches the Oscars every year, she says, trying to recapture the fleeting joy she felt attending the star-studded event and spending time in Los Angeles.

She described her experience as “like a fairytale in real life,” talking about catching flights, wearing expensive clothes, staying in luxury hotels, hanging out with the glitterati and enjoying food she and her father ‘couldn’t even imagine’.

Pinki Sonkar flashes her famous smile at doctor Subodh Kumar Singh (right), who operated on her cleft palate, as her father Rajendera Sonker looks on (left)

“It was like the Cinderella story, the bedtime story for children,” Pinki said News18.

‘I make sure I watch the Oscars every year because it’s the only way I can relive the moments I’ve ever experienced.

‘But in no time the fairy tale was over and I returned to my real life, full of pain, trauma and poverty.’

Pinki’s struggle began at birth, as she was born with a cleft palate, a condition that left her “socially ostracized.”

‘I remember being treated like a pariah by my classmates. My relatives didn’t want me around and always considered me ‘unfavorable,'” she said.

Pinki Sonkar (pictured) with Andy Murray at the start of the 2013 Wimbledon final

Pinki Sonkar was just five years old when she starred in the 2008 US documentary ‘Smile Pinki’ (pictured here at Wimbledon in 2013)

Pinki’s life changed when she happened to be noticed by NGO Smile Train India.

They took her to a plastic surgeon in Varanasi, who performed her operation for free, and the student still credits the charity with ‘freeing’ her from the trauma she experienced as a young girl.

A cleft palate occurs when a baby’s lips or palate don’t come together, which can make it difficult to eat. The birth defect affects tens of thousands of children in India.

Pinki’s journey was documented by American filmmaker Megan Mylan, who came across the little girl and her father after discovering the enormity of the problem, with thousands of children being treated in just one hospital.

Pinki Sonkar is carried by her father during a photo with the wife of then Indian Prime Minister Gurcharan Singh Kaur

Smile Train regional director Mamta Carroll recalls that Pinki was a “shy, insecure, skinny girl” when she first met her, before her life was changed by the operation and the charity’s support.

Carroll, who Pinki credits with helping her stay in education, said the young woman is “full of beans today, a smart, confident young girl.”

The youngster was given incredible opportunities after Smile Pinki catapulted her to global fame, traveling to the US as a special guest of Mylan’s at the Oscars.

But while she returned with her prized gold statuette, Pinki says not much of the glitter of Hollywood was left in her life when she returned to India.

Pinki’s journey was documented by American filmmaker Megan Mylan, who encountered the little girl before she received treatment for her cleft lip.

‘After returning from America, life became the same again. “I have started selling seasonal fruits again to meet my family’s expenses,” she said.

But while she was able to continue her studies, financial constraints leave her with little hope of realizing her dream of higher education.

“I’m studying commerce, but as far as my future plans go, I don’t have any,” she told The Telegraph. ‘Life is busy with two brothers and three sisters.’

In addition to the family’s financial worries, they were also threatened with eviction last year as officials investigated whether the land on which their house stood belonged to them.

Pinki, along with thirty other people living in her village, received a demolition notice.

Pinki walked the red carpet alongside Hollywood A-listers at the 81st Academy Awards when the critically acclaimed film won an Oscar in 2009, a time she describes as ‘the best moments of my life’

The strong-willed twenty-something spoke out and asked, “Why was I given this house by the local government years ago when I returned from the US?” and called for “help and justice” for her and the other villagers.

Despite the hardships she continues to face, Pinki is determined to improve the lives of those around her, whom she describes as “accidents like (myself).”

She is currently setting up a library in her home with donated books and is committed to lifting herself and her village out of poverty.

After all she has been through, Pinki remains confident that a better future lies ahead as she told reporters with a smile, “The day will come when I will defeat poverty and emerge victorious. ‘