Dr Arun Thareja
If you thought that life of doctors is all about the stethoscope and scalpel, you need to think again. While medicine might be their first love, many of them have other passions too, some conventional and some not- so- conventional: superbiking, painting, singing, writing, body-building, for example. And these doctors are perfectionists to a fault at their creative pursuits, too. Meet some such doctors...
"Riding superbikes needs control, patience and focus"
Dr Arun Thareja
Dr Arun Thareja, an ENT surgeon, loves to live life in the fast lane. Founder of GODS --Group Of Delhi Superbikers, the largest superbikers club in the country-- he loves to spend as much time in his garage as in the operation theatre.
He has 8 bikes in his garage at his home in west Delhi, among them a much sought after Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R, a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R and a Suzuki Hayabusa. Each of these bikes costs anything between Rs 15 to 20 lakhs and can run at a whopping speed of 300 kmph. The first-- A Yamaha RD 350, was a gift from his father in 1984, the year he completed his MBBS.
Besides, it has many models of motorcycles, posters of superbikes, various maintenance tools, oils, lubricants, polishes, fuel additives, and an air compressor. "I make it a point to spend some time in the garage every day tending to my bikes, either in the afternoon after seeing patients or at night," says Thareja, who is head ENT surgeon, Maharaja Agrasen Hospital, Delhi.
He fell in love with bikes when he rode his Yamaha RD 350 at 130 kilometer per hour "Ring road was not that crowded at that time. I loved the thrill of driving fast," he says.
A few years later, on his honeymoon in Thailand he got a chance to try superbikes and that led to a life-long passion for them. "There were many suberbikes available for hire, and I tried them all one by one," says Thareja.
GODS, which started with two members, now boasts 148 members— mostly pilots, retired army men, CEOs and businessmen. “We have a strict selection process. We want only responsible bikers in the group,” he says.
Every Sunday morning, Thareja goes for his weekly ride, wearing full biking gear — helmet, padded jackets, gloves, and riding boots —with his group members. " Greater Noida Expressway, Agra Expressway, GT Karnal Road are some of my favourite routes in and around Delhi," he says. Theraja goes for three national trips and at least one international trip every year.
Ask him what it takes to be a superbiker and he says, “Riding superbikes needs control, patience and focus just like in the operation theatre.”
"My camera is my best companion"
Dr Harsh Wardhan
Dr Harsh Wardhan
A road trip in Australia changed his life forever. The trip that made him-- a pediatric surgeon by profession-- a photographer.
That is not to say he no longer practices surgery.
“I don’t know whether it was the scenic beauty of the place or my photography skills, but I took some breathtaking pictures on that trip. And then there was no looking back. I found the joy of capturing a beautiful moment addictive,” says Dr Harsh Wardhan, a senior pediatric surgeon in Delhi.
His passion grew faster than he thought. Soon he found himself saving money for cameras and lenses. He started planning vacations based on photography opportunities his journey and destination would offer. “My family takes a back seat when we are on our ‘holidays’. I love to capture people, culture, picturesque landscapes,” he says.
Recently, he published a coffee table book of his photographs —'Lights, Camera, Travel.'
“Though I have travelled the world, Delhi remains my muse. I love clicking old Delhi—its lane, by-lanes, shops, monuments, hawelis. It still keeps surprising me,” says Harsh Wardhan.
"Paintings have a palliative effect on me"
Dr Aparna Govil Bhaskar
Dr Aparna Govil Bhaskar
She wields the scalpel and the brush with equal ease. Her living room serves as her studio where she paints to both de-stress and express her innermost feelings. Most of the paintings adorning the walls of her apartment in Worli, Mumbai are her own creations and they all have one thing in common— flawless figures of women.
A perfectionist, Aparna feels that she needs to get the facial expressions of her subjects right. A young art enthusiast, Kishori Kadam, 22, is helping her achieve that.
“If something appeals to me, I like to put it on canvas; colors never fail to lift my spirits," says Aparna, showing her latest painting, a scene from blockbuster Bahubali 2. "I love to paint faces and figures. So, both their attitude and expression matter. Kishori helped me understand the colours better. I learnt from her that a face has so many colours and tones—yellow, pink, brown,” she says.
Aparna has a huge suitcase full of her paintings. She plans to hold an exhibition of her works soon. The earnings from the exhibition, she says, will go to charity foundation she and her friends run. The foundation conducts free surgeries and distributes medicines to the needy.
She is a busy surgeon. So how does she find time to purse her hobby? “I get up early. That’s the time I give to my paintings and reading. That’s my ‘me’ time before I start my day,” she says. "Paintings have a palliative effect on me; they help me deal with the tensions of the operation theatre.
"Singing keeps my mind calm and composed"
Dr J S Rajkumar
Dr J S Rajkumar
This 54- year old laproscopic surgeon is a man of many parts--he is a singer, a musician, a poet, a writer, a martial arts enthusiast.
Gifted with a sonorous voice, he sings at private gatherings. He can play most musical instruments. His guitar is his constant companion —be it a birthday party or a medical conference.
"Singing and music for me is an elixir that keeps my mind calm and composed," he says. "It gives me the energy to undertake long and complex surgeries. It helps me participate in adventure sports at this age. I am 54 and have three stents in my main arteries, but it could not stop me from pursuing my passions," says Dr Rajkumar.
As a child , he says, he was hyper active who channelized all his energies in learning new things—musical instruments, sports, martial arts.
A perfectionist, he likes to master every art he pursues. He has also written 10 books. His latest book -- Scalpel Scribbles--- has poems and short stories that evocatively expresses his feelings when he witnesses tragedies as a surgeon.
A black belt in Karate, he is now taking lessons in flying and will be a licensed pilot soon. An avid reader, Kumar has read all the ancient scriptures from Puranaas, to Vedas, to Quran, to the Holy Bible.
Such is his curiosity to learn newer arts that he hardly sleeps for 4-5 hours. “Life is too short and I believe in making most of it," he says.
"I sculpted my body without a scalpel"
Dr Debraj Shome
Dr Debraj Shome
Dr Shome is busy writing his first book these days. The book is about his passion for body-building.
An facial aesthetic surgeon, Shome knows all the surgical and non-invasive methods people use to acquire desired look. But he wanted to ‘sculpt his body sans the scalpel.’
It all began around 10 years back, Shome was in shape but lack of time and hectic schedules were not giving him enough time to exercise.
"I felt my face required toning. Then and there I decided to work on my body," he says.
He designed a special workout and eating schedule for himself. “We doctors don’t have any fixed schedule. It all depends on our patients. We don’t have definite mornings or evenings. So, the task was difficult but I have achieved my target,” he says, showing his six pack abs in a photograph.
Shome says that there are days when he used to run at midnight after clinic . “It does not matter to me what time of the day or night it is, I need to do my exercise daily. If you want to perfect something, you have to make it your way of life. Isn’t?” he asks.
And we cannot agree more!