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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Healing Beyond the Clinic

Dr Kirti Samudra “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.” This thought by Mother Teresa finds reflection in the life of Panvel-based diabetologist Dr Kirti Samudra, who has spent decades caring not only for her family but also thousands of patients who see her as their guide. As we mark International Women’s Day, stories like hers remind us that women of substance often shape society quietly through compassion, resilience and dedication. Doctor, mother, homemaker,...

Healing Beyond the Clinic

Dr Kirti Samudra “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.” This thought by Mother Teresa finds reflection in the life of Panvel-based diabetologist Dr Kirti Samudra, who has spent decades caring not only for her family but also thousands of patients who see her as their guide. As we mark International Women’s Day, stories like hers remind us that women of substance often shape society quietly through compassion, resilience and dedication. Doctor, mother, homemaker, mentor and philanthropist — Dr Samudra has balanced many roles with commitment. While she manages a busy medical practice, her deeper calling has always been service. For her, medicine is not merely a profession but a responsibility towards the people who depend on her guidance. Nagpur to Panvel Born and raised in Nagpur, Dr Samudra completed her medical education there before moving to Mumbai in search of better opportunities. The early years were challenging. With determination, she and her husband Girish Samudra, an entrepreneur involved in underwater pipeline projects, chose to build their life in Panvel. At a time when the town was still developing and healthcare awareness was limited, she decided to make it both her workplace and home. What began with modest resources gradually grew into a trusted medical practice built on long-standing relationships with patients. Fighting Diabetes Recognising the growing threat of diabetes, Dr Samudra dedicated her career to treating and educating patients about the disease. Over the years, she has registered nearly 30,000 patients from Panvel and nearby areas. Yet she believes treatment alone is not enough. “Diabetes is a lifelong disease. Medicines are important, but patient education is equally critical. If people understand the condition, they can manage it better and prevent complications,” she says. For more than 27 years, she has organised an Annual Patients’ Education Programme, offering diagnostic tests at concessional rates and sessions on lifestyle management. Family, Practice With her husband frequently travelling for business, much of the responsibility of raising their two children fell on Dr Samudra. Instead of expanding her practice aggressively, she kept it close to home and adjusted her OPD timings around her children’s schedules. “It was not easy,” she recalls, “but I wanted to fulfil my responsibilities as a mother while continuing to serve my patients.” Beyond Medicine Today, Dr Samudra also devotes time to social initiatives through the Bharat Vikas Parishad, where she serves as Regional Head. Her projects include  Plastic Mukta Vasundhara , which promotes reduced use of single-use plastic, and  Sainik Ho Tumchyasathi , an initiative that sends Diwali  faral  (snack hamper) to Indian soldiers posted at the borders. Last year alone, 15,000 boxes were sent to troops. Despite decades of service, she measures success not in wealth but in goodwill. “I may not have earned huge money,” she says, “but I have earned immense love and respect from my patients. That is something I will always be grateful for.”

Calculated Disrespect?

In the world of Indian politics, it is axiomatic that symbolism often speaks louder than words. Recently, at the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA)’s rally at Dadar’s iconic Shivaji Park, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi turned down a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj when his party colleague, Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad, presented the statue of the great Maratha warrior-king to the Congress Leader of Opposition. In a clip that went viral, Gandhi does not even look at Gaikwad and the statue – a gesture that provoked the ire of netizens across Maharashtra and the country. This was not the first time. Earlier in Pune, during a rally ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Gandhi had similarly declined to accept a statue of Shivaji Maharaj on the dais.


In a state like Maharashtra, where the figure of Chhatrapati Shivaji holds immense cultural and political significance and is central to its proud heritage, such gestures do not behove the country’s Leader of Opposition and cannot be dismissed as mere political missteps. Shivaji Maharaj is not just a historical figure but a symbol of pride, a source of inspiration for millions owing not just to his military exploits in facing up to the mighty Mughal and the Deccani sultanates, but for his statesmanship and rare nobility of character.


This is hardly the first time Rahul Gandhi has found himself at the centre of controversy over symbols and figures with strong emotional appeal particularly to the Hindu majority. His repeated criticisms of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, a prominent freedom fighter and a polarising figure in contemporary political discourse, have further fuelled the perception that the Congress party, under his leadership, is determined to distance itself from icons of ‘Hindu pride.’


The question here is whether the Congress leader is attempting to appease his party’s Muslim constituency by avoiding overt identification with symbols supposedly linked to Hindu nationalism?

Rahul’s stance appears paradoxical. On one hand, he lost no time in criticizing the BJP for the collapse of a statue of Shivaji in Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, in August. On the other hand, he cannot seem to accept a statue of the very same figure when presented by his own party leaders. This inconsistency is hard to overlook.


The optics of snubbing Shivaji Maharaj while sitting beside his ally, Shiv Sena (UBT) Uddhav Thackeray, only adds to the confusion given it was Uddhav’s father, Bal Thackeray, who founded the Shiv Sena. Uddhav’s silence at such gestures only makes one wonder what his father, a fiery opponent of the Congress, would have thought of his son.


Whether or not Rahul Gandhi’s actions are a calculated attempt to navigate the delicate balancing act between secularism and regional pride is open to debate. But what is clear is that in poll-bound Maharashtra, where the memory of Shivaji Maharaj looms large, symbolic missteps like these may prove costly.

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