She weighed 143kg and couldn’t afford surgery in NZ - so she went to India
Thursday, 28 August 2025
Faren Ormond weighed 143kg at the age of 33 and had weight loss surgery in India after being ineligible in New Zealand.
Ormond lost 73kg after a gastric sleeve surgery in India, which cost $7500.
Her journey was documented alongside Rotorua journalist Roihana Nuri for a television show called Pukunati: Lose Weight or Die, which debuts on Māori+ and Whakaata Māori on September 1.
Faren Ormond says she has battled with her weight for most of her life.
At the age of 33, Ormond (Rongomaiwahine, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Tutemohuta) weighed 143kg.
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“My feet were constantly sore, my lower back, as well as my knees. I was just consumed with food, always thinking about food, always eating,” Ormond told Stuff.
In 2018, Ormond inquired about bariatric (weight loss) surgery but was told by a surgeon that she was ineligible.
“We went through the process, had a few Interviews and then he deemed that I was young and fit enough to lose the weight on my own. But I had tried. I’d lose weight and then gain weight… I tried gym, fasting, keto - none of it worked.”
New Zealand is now the third most obese country in the world. Among Māori, extreme obesity rates are nearly three times as high in adults and more than twice as high in children as they are in non-Māori.
A limited number of people aged between 18 and 60 are eligible for publicly funded weight loss surgery. With private surgery costs ranging from $19,000 to $29,000 for a gastric sleeve or bypass in New Zealand, many are turning to India, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey for operations costing less than half that.
Ormond, who was working as a primary school teacher at the time, said she couldn't afford the surgery in New Zealand. She asked her aunt, medical tourism agent Annette Brons, about her options.
“She told me about a documentary opportunity whereby the only prerequisite was to share my journey in te reo Māori. So I met with the director, and we just hit it off, and she agreed I could be one of the talents.”
Pukunati: Lose Weight or Die debuts on Māori+ and Whakaata Māori on September 1. The eight-episode series tracks the life-changing journey of Ormond and Rotorua journalist Roihana Nuri as they travel to India for bariatric surgery.
“I just wanted to set a healthy example for my children. I didn't want them to see me constantly binge eating. I didn't want them to see me lethargic and struggling with sleep and not being able to be active with them,” Ormond said.
Since the surgery in November 2023, Ormond has lost about 73kg. She said her talent fee covered the gastric sleeve which cost about $7500, as well as the $3500 in return flights.
The procedure took two-and-a-half hours and was done at a hospital in India’s southwestern coastal state of Kerala.
Now weighing 74kg, the 34 year-old said she feels herself getting stronger every day.
“I'm more mindful about the food I'm eating, and now that I'm lighter, I’m able to move my body more. I have four children, and I'm the healthiest I've ever been.
“Without the opportunity I had, I would have borrowed money from my parents or made an early withdrawal of my KiwiSaver to go overseas because I definitely couldn’t afford to get it done in New Zealand.”
Pukunati: Lose Weight or Die producer and director Ngahuia Wade said: “Indigenous health inequity is a kaupapa we couldn’t ignore. Māori are getting sicker while stuck on hospital waiting lists, so we had to tell this story, our way, in our language, because our lives are on the line.”
Rotorua-based medical tourism agent Annette Brons said over the past eight years, she has taken more than 200 Kiwis, predominantly Māori, to India for medical operations ranging from hips and knees surgeries to weight loss procedures.
“They’ve been in New Zealand on waiting lists for years, some can’t even access healthcare or they're given virtual doctors,” Brons said.
“I would like these operations to be done at a rate affordable for Māori, but until then, they will continue to travel elsewhere. It's countries like India and Turkey and Mexico that have allowed the affordability for our Māori people to travel these distances to improve their health.”
Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, national chief medical officer for Health New Zealand, said while some people may opt to travel to access specialist surgery they might not be able to receive at home, it is not generally recommended.
“For example, long-haul travel before and after surgery is categorised as high-risk within four to six weeks of major surgery and there is also a higher risk of infection and complications in countries where healthcare is not regulated in the same way as in New Zealand,” Stokes-Lampard said.
“Health New Zealand is committed to improving access to all elective surgeries, including bariatric, for patients wherever they live in New Zealand.”