Arjun appointed new ambassador for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY)

As part of its 25th anniversary year, Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) is proud to announce the news that international singer and songwriter, Arjun, will be joining the charity as an official Ambassador., helping to raise awareness of key messages and fundraising initiatives across his huge fan base and millions of social media followers.

Arjun has a very personal and poignant reason for becoming involved with CRY. In September 2018, his wife Natasha died suddenly from a previously undiagnosed heart condition. Natasha was a young GP, and her sudden death came just 7 months after her marriage to Arjun. As a result of this tragedy, Arjun has already demonstrated huge commitment and dedication to raising awareness of CRY’s work and ongoing mission to help prevent young sudden cardiac death.

Earlier this year, he organised a huge fundraising concert at Hammersmith Apollo – #ForNatasha – in aid of CRY and more recently took part in the UK-wide ‘2.6 challenge’. The #ForNatasha charity concert which took place in February, which featured incredible live performances from international music stars such as Guru Randhawa, Mickey Singh,Vidya Vox and a heartfelt tribute on stage by Arjun, with proceeds raising over £32,000 for CRY.

Arjun says; “Natasha and I had been together for ten years, and she had been closely involved in every aspect of my life, both personal and musical. I was so thankful to my fellow artists for taking time out of their madly hectic lives to perform at our #ForNatasha concert in February, as we celebrated her life on what would have been our second wedding anniversary. Through events such as this, and my association with CRY, I know Natasha’s life and legacy will continue to be an inspiration to others.”

Arjun adds; “I am immensely proud to be taking on this role of Ambassador and working with CRY towards raising even more awareness and doing what I can to help prevent these devastating and so often preventable, tragedies.”

Every week in the UK, around 12 young people (that is, aged 35 and under) die suddenly from a previously undiagnosed heart condition. 80% of these deaths will occur with no prior symptoms – which is why CRY is so committed to the importance of specialist cardiac screening. Indeed, CRY’s pioneering screening programme aims to test around 30,000 young people (aged 14–35) across the UK every year.

Chief Executive of CRY, Dr Steven Cox, comments: “It is a real privilege to have Arjun support CRY. It will mean so much to so many people that Arjun has shared his experience of losing Natasha.

“This year – in tandem with a 12-month partnership with Sunrise Radio – will be the first time that CRY has reached out so specifically to the British Asian audience with our key messages and future plans and it’s wonderful to have Arjun on board in this official capacity. We are all looking forward to working with him now and in the future.

“Young sudden cardiac death is indiscriminate – it takes young people, at the prime of their lives from every community and ethnic background across the UK. It is our duty – more so than ever in our 25th year – to ensure we have a strong voice in the British Asian community and to spread our messages widely about the importance of cardiac screening, research and bereavement support.“