Dr Balesh Jindal

This book is a tale of grit and perseverance. It's a tale of metamorphosis of a modern, dilettante medical graduate to a seasoned and compassionate village doctor. It’s an incredible chronicle of a reluctant, young doctor who was venerated to dizzying heights. Suddenly my small clinic flashed from ignominy to international fame. I hadn’t set any targets nor set myself a roadmap. I just went along and let life lead me. Once I gave up on my girlhood ambitions, it was a free fall till I gathered my bearings and set to soar again. Yes soar, I did! It wasn't long before entire villages adopted me as their ‘family doctor’ and my waiting room became a club of sorts. My courteous staff, the water coolers and a relaxed, homey atmosphere made the clinic into a clubbable spot. I saw piquant family scenes, heard strange stories, learnt their dialects, their mores, celebrated their joys and mourned their losses. The Reluctant Doctor holds these stories in its covers exactly as they unfolded before me in the span of four decades. There were vignettes of life that I observed, some that I listened to and most stories that remained untold yet burned inside me, are all there. Stories of bride burnings, battered wives, abandoned parents and rapes. I saw them all. I have witnessed incredible human resilience and fortitude as well as the depths and depravity that human beings can precipitate into.