SP Kalantri

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MGIMS Sevagram

The Anatomy Professor

This morning in Kolkata, I finally checked off the first—and most cherished—stop on my list: a visit to Dr. S.K. Ghosh. For nearly two decades in Sevagram, he wasn’t just my next-door neighbor. He was a dear friend, a quiet philosopher, a family confidant, and a guide who brought warmth and wisdom into everyday life. …

MGIMS Sevagram

A Monsoon Morning in Kolkatta

Yesterday, I was in Kolkata for just a few hours. I called her on the phone and told her I was in Alipore. “Alipore, sir?” she said, “I’ll come right over.” She hadn’t even finished rounding on her patients, but she made time to meet me—for a single cup of tea. I hadn’t realised how …

MGIMS Sevagram

The Man Behind the Lens

It was 1970. A restless, curious man walked into the MGIMS campus, a camera bouncing on his chest and his eyes already chasing the light. The college was still young, still growing. But Surendra Gurjar, newly hired and unsure, already saw stories. Stories in light, in shadows, in faces. He didn’t pose people. He didn’t …

MGIMS Sevagram

A Lumbar Pucture and a Standing Ovation

Bombay, 1975. The air was salty, the streets bustling, and a young doctor stood quietly outside the gates of St. George’s Hospital. Fresh out of internship at MGIMS, Sevagram, he had no roadmap for his future. Sevagram did not offer postgraduate training—its founder Dr. Sushila Nayar wanted her students to serve in villages. But government …

MGIMS Sevagram

87 and still going strong

87 and still going strong. I saw 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗹𝗷𝗶 yesterday in the hospital—he had come for his routine check-up. After the consultation, we sat down for a long chat. The moment MGIMS is mentioned, his eyes light up. Tea. 𝘈𝘭𝘰𝘰 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘢. His hot, cardamom-flavoured tea and crisp, spicy aloo bondas were more than just snacks. And …

MGIMS Sevagram

The First Building Blocks of MGIMS ( Part 5)

In 1969, Dr. P.L. Vaishwanar—Project Officer and Head of Physiology at GMC Nagpur—arrived in Sevagram to help build India’s first rural medical college. He wasn’t focused only on bricks and mortar. He wanted to build people. Before the college could welcome students, it needed a team—not just doctors and professors, but technicians and attendants who …

MGIMS Sevagram

MGIMS: Admission Stories from the 1970s

Dr. Shyam Babhulkar (Batch of 1969) It was the summer of 1969. I had just cleared B.Sc. Part I from J.B. Science College, Wardha, when I spotted an ad in Tarun Bharat, a Marathi daily. A new medical college was starting in Sevagram. I applied on impulse. Soon came the interview call. Now, I was …

MGIMS Sevagram

A Train Ride that Changed Everything

𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗚𝗜𝗠𝗦: (𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝟰) In my last post, I shared how Dr. Sushila Nayar secured approvals from the central and state governments to start MGIMS in 1969—and how, against all odds, she managed to get an unexpected ₹2 crore grant from USAID. For a moment, it felt like the hardest part was over. But …

MGIMS Sevagram

Even a Policeman’s Son can become a Doctor

How did students get into MGIMS five decades ago? I asked a senior professor of pharmacology—an alumnus of the MGIMS Class of 1970—and he shared his story. It’s a charming throwback to simpler times, full of serendipity, sincerity, and a touch of destiny. 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙖 𝙋𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙣’𝙨 𝙎𝙤𝙣 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝘿𝙤𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧 The year was 1969. …