Dushman to Doctor Ji, Bollywood and its portrayal of medical experts

National Doctor’s Day 2024 will be celebrated on July 1. Many films have been made in Hindi cinema on Indian doctors in different periods, in which they have been depicted from being dedicated to humanity to being corrupt. On the occasion of Doctor’s Day, -let’s have a look at the artists of the cinema world who have immortalised the character of a doctor.

Early years of portrayal of doctors in Bollywood films 

The changes in society are reflected in cinema through stories. Although in every story the character is associated with some profession, when it comes to doctors, many limits and ethics are also associated with it. Hindi cinema displayed such an image of doctors in its early period. Perhaps the first portrayal of a doctor in film was in the romantic drama film ‘Dushman’ (1939). Starring K.L. Saigal, Leela Desai, Nazmul Hasan, and Prithviraj Kapoor, this film was directed and written by Nitin Bose. The TB patient, i.e. the hero of the film K.L. Saigal, finally gets cured with the help of the doctor. This was the time when the country was boiling on the front of the freedom struggle. Cinema gives the message of humanity and the cure of a disease like TB through the story of doctors.

This trend continued in the film ‘Doctor’ (1941) as well. The hero Amarnath (famous singer Pankaj Malik) devotes his entire life to serving the villagers during the cholera epidemic. A few years later, I.V. Shantaram’s film ‘Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani’ (1946) was the true story of an Indian doctor rising above the country’s borders and putting humanity above everything else. During the war between China and Japan, a team of Indian doctors was sent to help the Chinese soldiers.

In a true sense, the dedication of doctors towards society was reflected in the early films only. This trend continued in the film ‘Anuradha’ (1960) which came a few years later, in which Balraj Sahni’s idealistic character ignores his family and remains dedicated towards the patients.

Display of responsibility

With time, stories also took a turn. ‘Dil Apna Aur Preet Parayi’ starring Rajkumar and Meena Kumari told the story of a love affair between a doctor and a nurse. Whereas ‘Aarti’ (1962) showed the story of a doctor taking advantage of his profession through Dr. Prakash (Ashok Kumar). Despite all the bitterness, it maintains the belief that doctors are not dishonest towards their responsibility. After that, ‘Anand’ (1971) and ‘Tere Mere Sapne’ (1971) brought a different perspective about doctors.

‘Tere Mere Sapne’ hit hard on the condition of doctors in rural India and the notions made about them. In ‘Anand’, through the line ‘Babu Moshai, zindagi badi honi chahiye lambi nahi’, an attempt was made to show that doctors are more concerned about the length of life rather than its quality. In this, the relationship between the patient and the doctor was closely assessed.

Story of society associated with doctors 

After portraying medical professionals as gentle, gentle and sacrificing, there was a change in the portrayal of doctors. Yash Chopra did the most daring experiment in his film ‘Silsila’. In this, Sanjeev Kumar’s character, who plays a doctor, remains silent despite knowing everything about his wife’s extramarital affairs. This doctor, who treats the diseases of others, does not allow himself to become a heart patient despite adverse circumstances. This is his strength that captivates the audience. At the same time, filmmakers did not shy away from showing unethical practices or negligence emerging in the healthcare system.

‘Bemisaal’ starring Vinod Mehra and Amitabh Bachchan was an example of this. In this, Vinod Mehra’s character Dr. Prashant charges a hefty fee for performing illegal abortions. Then the death of a patient during abortion brings turmoil in his life. In the true sense, this film shows the disadvantages of taking undue advantage of one’s profession.

After that, many popular films like ‘Meri Jung’, and ‘Ek Doctor Ki Maut’ were released. ‘Ek Doctor Ki Maut’ is the story of a doctor who is engaged in developing a vaccine for leprosy, whose success fills the people around him with jealousy. This shocking story tells the truth of our society and how talent is violated.

When the doctor’s form changed in films 

Many aspects related to doctors were seen in the stories after the year 2000. In this, ‘Munnabhai MBBS’, which is counted among the most successful films, first started treatment and then completed the formalities and then ‘Jaadu Ki Jhappi’ caught everyone’s attention. Salman Khan’s ‘Kyunki’ showed a different way of curing a patient suffering from mental illness by the doctor.

‘Vicky Donor’ (2012) starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Yami Gautam and ‘Udta Punjab’ (2016) starring Shahid Kapoor and Alia Bhatt presented a story that was out of the box. ‘Vicky Donor’, based on sperm donation, talked about bringing happiness to the lives of childless couples. ‘Udta Punjab’, based on drug addiction, investigated the causes and effects of drug addiction and showed the efforts of a doctor. 

In this context, 2015’s Naseeruddin Shah starrer ‘Waiting’ is worth mentioning. The film shows that the patient admitted to the hospital is struggling with the disease and outside his close ones are trying to adjust between the hospital and normal life. 

The most controversial film about the doctor’s profession was ‘Kabir Singh’ starring Shahid Kapoor. The film was severely criticised for glorifying violence in the name of love and promoting misogyny. In the film, Shahid plays the role of an angry surgeon who behaves violently with his girlfriend Preeti (Kiara Advani). The surgery he performs in a state of intoxication raises many questions along with putting a question mark on his career. This portrayal of a doctor showed in depth the impact of negligence towards the profession. 

When authenticity met comedy

The story of ‘Good News’ starring Akshay Kumar was based on In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), in which sperm is exchanged. This story of two couples shows the perspective of women along with fulfilling their dream of becoming a mother. In the film ‘Doctor Ji’, Uday Gupta (Ayushman Khurana), who wanted to become an orthopedist after completing MBBS, is very uncomfortable when he becomes a gynaecologist. This film raises that issue but fails to show it properly. Cinema has always woven the changes that have come in the medical world along with technology into the story. Apart from these issues, there are many stories related to the medical world which will continue to shake people from time to time by becoming a part of cinema in the coming times.

However, the best portrayal of what a media expert has to go through, especially in tough times is perfectly shown in Amazon Prime’s superhit series ‘Mumbai Diaries’. The series is based on the 26/11 Mumbai Attack and displays the true royally of medical soldiers in tough times.