Welcome to Member Spotlight, our latest blog series in which we invite a member of The Bandeen Center to share a glimpse into their everyday, some of the lessons they’ve learned from their Parkinson’s journeys, and how (or where) they find empowerment to keep living their fullest life.
For our inaugural Member Spotlight, we spoke with Shridhar Acharya, an unassuming athlete with a remarkable ability to transform any pursuit into a quiet art of mastery. Raised in Nagpur India, by hard-working parents who put a premium on his and his older sister’s education, Shri was a diligent student who still found time for soccer, cricket and chess. As an engineering major at the selective Indian Institute of Technology, he discovered the joys of bridge and basketball alongside a natural talent for computer science, which earned him a research assistantship at Stony Brook University in New York. In pursuit of a new adventure, Shri and his future wife, a doctor who specializes in pediatric hematology and oncology, set off for the US and never left. Three decades, two daughters and one very full life later, Shri retired from technology and software engineering and joined The Bandeen Center last April. In the gym, he’s earned a reputation for his steady ping pong game and powerful boxing skills. In life, friends and family adore Shri for his calming strength, his beaming smile and his fiercely positive disposition. Read on to learn about Shri’s penchant for the blues, his love of good food and his extensive travel bucket list.
1. You recently retired from your software engineering career. How do you spend your time now?
“My wife and I have always loved to travel, and we continue to prioritize that. Some of our favorite trips include a safari in Tanzania and a Nile cruise in Egypt; Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and the Galapagos are still on our bucket list. Closer to home in New York, I love catching a Broadway show or going on a hike upstate. When I was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s, I was hesitant to make weekend plans in case I wasn’t feeling well by the time Saturday arrived. But I realized how important it is to keep living my life and do my best to continue to spend time with my family on weekends, even if it’s just a local meal out to our favorite Persian restaurant.”
2. What symptoms were you experiencing that led to your Parkinson’s diagnosis?
“Three years ago, I was on vacation in Morocco and didn’t know what to make of my dragging leg. The dragging was replaced by shaking a few months later, so I saw my primary care provider who referred me to a neurologist. That’s when I was diagnosed with PD. It took me a while to understand that Parkinson’s symptoms are chameleon-like: a pain in my leg would move to my ankle, turn up somewhere else and then seemingly disappear. At one point, I started going to a physical therapist to treat an ankle injury I didn’t actually have.
The diagnosis brought clarity, but coordinating all the care I needed felt like an enormous task, even with a wife who has a medical background. I kept asking my neurologist if he knew of a comprehensive place for Parkinson’s support and couldn’t believe there wasn’t one in New York. When I saw him last spring, he told me about The Bandeen Center, and I went to take a class here the very next day. The center has made such a difference in my life. Having access to resources and a community of people to talk about all these different things with has been a huge benefit. I like all the classes they offer and have tried things I never would have done otherwise. I enjoyed tango much more than I expected to, and I love Dance for PD. I want support for my cognitive health as much as the physical side.”
3. What’s on your playlist?
“I listen to a lot of blues. B.B. King, Robert Johnson and Eric Clapton are some of my favorite artists. As a child in Nagpur, I listened to Indian classical music, and in college, I got into rock and roll, such as the Doors and Cream. I haven’t been to many concerts, but I did see Clapton once, and there were a few all-night Indian classical concerts on the West Side that I loved. If I could go to one show, it would be the Crossroads Festival.”
4. Do you have a secret talent or hobby?
“I love mathematics, number theory, especially. I love reading math and physics articles and checking out YouTube channels to learn about academic topics I never got to cover in school. It’s been a lifelong interest.”
5. What advice would you give someone just starting their Parkinson’s journey?
“One thing that’s helped me a lot comes from the Indian philosophy of Leela: what you’re experiencing is just an experience. If something is good or bad, it isn’t happening to you—it is divine play or cosmic absolute. I’ve also learned to separate what is and isn’t in my control. When I feel a symptom, I remind myself that it’s temporary; it’s going to pass, and the medication can help. That realization that I have some control even over something that feels uncontrollable has made a real difference.”
Thank you, Shri, for sharing your story with us.
