Top 20 Most Famous Indian Doctors

Top 20 Most Famous Indian Doctors

Originally published by Ruth on March 2022. Edited by Charity K on May 2023 and Updated by Purity M in February 2024.

Indian medicine has a long history. Its earliest concepts are set out in the sacred writings called the Vedas.

The Hindus believed that the body contains three elementary substances, which act as representatives of the three divine universal forces, which they called spirit, phlegm, and bile. Health depends on the normal balance of these three elementary substances.

Hindu physicians employed all five senses in diagnosis. Hearing was used to distinguish the nature of the breathing, alteration in voice, and the grinding sound produced by the rubbing together of broken ends of bones. 

Dietetic treatment was important and preceded any medicinal treatment. Fats were much used, internally and externally.

The most important methods of active treatment were referred to as the five procedures: the administration of emetics, purgatives, water enemas, oil enemas, and sneezing powders.

Inhalations were frequently administered, as were leeching, cupping, and bleeding. However, with the advancement of medicine and technology, a lot has changed in terms of techniques and doctors have improved on their craft.

Let’s look at the 15 most famous Indian doctors.

Click here to read more about other famous doctors.

1. Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee – Biologist

Siddhartha is a physician, biologist, and author. Mukherjee writes for The New Yorker and is a columnist in The New York Times.

He is described as part of a select group of doctor-writers who have transformed the public discourse on human health. He has also allowed a generation of readers a rare and intimate glimpse into the life of science and medicine. 

He is best known for his 2010 book, The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer, which won notable literary prizes. His research concerns the physiology of cancer cells, immunological therapy for blood cancers, and the discovery of bone- and cartilage-forming stem cells in the vertebrate skeleton.

The Government of India conferred on him its fourth highest civilian award, the Padma Shri, in 2014. 

2. Dr. Naresh Trehan – cardiothoracic surgeon

Naresh Trehan by World Economic Forum – Wikimedia Commons

Trehan is an Indian cardiovascular and cardiothoracic surgeon.

He graduated from King George Medical College, Lucknow, India, and went on to practice at New York University Medical Center, Manhattan USA from 1971 to 1988. Later he returned to India and started Escorts Heart Institute and Research Center. 

As chairman of Global Health Private Limited, Trehan has overseen the building of an integrated healthcare facility in Gurgaon, India, referred to as Medanta The Medicity. Medicine combines modern medicine with traditional medicine and holistic therapies.

Trehan serves as the chairman, managing director, and chief cardiac surgeon of Medanta. He has also served as a personal surgeon to the President of India since 1991 and has received numerous awards in the course of his career.

3. Dr. Sudhansu Bhattacharyya – Cardiac surgeon

Sudhansu is a renowned Cardiac surgeon in Mumbai. He currently practices at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital and research center in Mumbai.

Bhattacharya is credited for pioneering the technique of total arterial revascularization with LIMA-RIMA technique grafting in a beating heart, in the world. He has performed over 5000 cases using this technique since 1998.

In his career spanning 38 years, Sudhansu has gained proficient skills and knowledge in surgery which has earned him various recognitions and awards.

Most notably, the prestigious Solomon Victor Memorial Award which is given only to those who have made original contributions in the field of CVTS was conferred to him in 2010 for this innovation. 

He has designed a few surgical instruments, the most important ones being Arterial Retractor for Mitral Valve Replacement and Internal Mammary Artery Retractor. These are used for taking down bilateral Internal Mammary Arteries.

Read more on other influential doctors here.

4. Dr.  Surbhi Anand – Endodontist

A lady doctor with a Stethoscope – by Alexandr Podvalny – Wikimedia Commons

 Surbhi Anand is a practicing Endodontist and Conservative Dentist.

After completing her bachelor’s degree, she pursued a master’s course in Endodontology. She is well known for specializing in Single sitting Root Canal Treatment, cosmetic dentistry, and giving a smile makeover.

She has been associated as a senior consultant with healthcare setups including Fortis Hospital and Columbia Asia Hospital and has a vast consultation base to various reputable dental practices in Delhi/NCR. 

In her career, Surbhi has published more than half a dozen international and national research publications. She was also conferred with the best scientific paper presentation award at an international conference held in Dubai. She is a firm believer in rendering quality dental care with compassion.

5. Dr. Ashish Sabharwal- Urologist

Sabharwal is a Senior Consultant in Urology, Andrology, and Robotic Surgery. He is Board Certified in Urology and practices in Okhla, Delhi. 

In 2011, he completed a three-year fellowship training in endourology and robotic prostate surgery at Jackson Health System in Miami, Florida.

He has an E.C.F.M.G certificate from the USA and holds an unrestricted license to practice medicine and urology in Florida, USA.

During this training, he was involved in more than 1,000 laser and robotic prostate surgeries and handled several cases of kidney stones using laser treatment.

Ashish has been certified as a Proctor for Robotic surgery in India by the American Company for Da Vinci Robot: an innovative surgical technology. This makes him one of three certified Proctors for Robotic surgery in India. 

6. Dr.  Sanjay Sachdeva – Otorhinolaryngologist

Two men wearing lab coats by Olga Guryanova – Unsplash

Sanjay is one of the best ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) Surgeons in Delhi with a specialization in Otorhinolaryngology.

Otorhinolaryngology is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the surgical and medical management of conditions of the head and neck. He is recognized as an expert in the area of Endoscopic Minimally Invasive Approaches for Skull Base Surgery. 

Sanjay has conducted several live surgery workshops and has been an invited faculty, moderator, and speaker at many national and international conferences.

He has received several awards and accolades for his remarkable contributions to the field of Medicine, including an award from The Association of Otolaryngology of India for his outstanding work. 

7. Dr. Aditya Gupta – Neurosurgeon

Aditya is an accomplished Neurosurgeon and has been a graduate and topper at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.

He is presently practicing in the World’s renowned Artemis Hospital, Gurgaon. He also co-founded the Institute of Neurosciences at Medanta Hospital. 

Aditya is known for having developed excellent surgical techniques for a wide variety of brain tumors, with an emphasis on microsurgery and radiosurgery.

He also has special and unique skills in managing patients with Movement Disorders with Deep Brain Stimulation, Surgery for Epilepsy, Nerve, and Brachial Plexus Surgery, Brain aneurysms, and AVMs. He is also an expert in all kinds of spine surgery. 

Click here to read more about other famous doctors.

8. Dr. H. S. Chhabra – Endoscopic surgeon

A Doctor conducting operation by JC Gellidon – Unsplash

Chhabra is one of the coveted & most experienced surgeons in the field of Spine Surgery in India. He is well known for pioneering Laser and Endoscopic disc surgery in India.

Chhabra is an opinion leader in the development of spinal endoscopes and other spinal implants and instruments, manufactured by famous international companies. 

In addition to the spine, Chhabra also performs complicated trauma surgery, like pelvic acetabular & intraarticular comminuted fractures and joint replacement surgeries.

He specializes in percutaneous Transforaminal endoscopic disc surgeries under local anesthesia, where the patient can resume his normal activities the next day. He has also successfully organized many conferences on Laser and Spine surgery.

9. Dr. Gaurav Kharya – Pediatrician

Gaurav is a Senior Consultant and current Head of Pediatric Hemato-oncology Immunology and Bone Marrow Transplant at Artemis Hospitals, Gurgaon.

In his career, he has accrued vast skills in transplanting children with various blood disorders benign or malignant, and immunological diseases. 

Kharya is credited for doing the first haploidentical bone marrow transplant for sickle cell disease in India.

He is also famed for doing in-vitro TCR alpha beta CD 19 depleted haploidentical BMT in a 4-month-old baby suffering from severe combined immunodeficiency, which is the smallest child transplanted in the country so far.

Kharya along with his team has performed more than 600 bone marrow transplants.

10. Dr. Mohamed Rela – liver transplantation surgeon

Prof Dr. Mohamed Rela by Premkumarbas – Wikimedia Commons

Mohamed is a renowned surgeon known for his expertise in liver transplantation and hepatopancreatobiliary surgery. He has performed more than 3000 liver transplant surgeries so far.

He was recognized in the Guinness Book of Records in 2000. This was after a team led by him had done successful liver transplantation for a five-day-old baby girl in 1997. 

Other commendable works by him include: He carried out the first living-related Liver Transplant on a patient with acute Liver Failure in the UK.

He also successfully did a liver transplant for a four-and-a-half-year-old girl suffering from terminal-stage liver disease.

Mohamed has conducted research in the field of liver regeneration and harnessed its potential in making liver surgery safer for liver donors, liver recipients, and patients with advanced liver tumors. 

Read more on other influential doctors here.

11. Anandi Gopal Joshi- First Female Doctor

Anandi was the first Indian female doctor of Western medicine. She is known as the first woman from the erstwhile Bombay presidency of India to study and graduate with a two-year degree in Western medicine in the United States.

She began her medical training at age 19 and graduated with an MD in March 1886. 

The Institute for Research and Documentation in Social Sciences has been awarding the Anandibai Joshi Award for Medicine in honor of her contribution to the cause of advancing medical science in India.

12. Devi Shetty- Cardiac Surgeon

Devi is an Indian entrepreneur and cardiac surgeon who is the chairman and founder of Narayana Health which is a chain of 21 medical centers in India. Devi has performed more than 100,000 heart operations.

In 2004, he was awarded the Padma Shri which is the fourth-highest civilian award by the Government of India. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, he pioneered low-cost diagnostic services.

13. Anita Bhardwaj- High Altitude Rescue Doctor

Ministry of WCD of Indian Gov, GODL-India, via Wikimedia Commons

Anita is a joint medical director of the Six Sigma High Altitude Medical Rescue Services and she has received the highest award, the Nari Shakti Puraskar, for women in India. The service has saved the lives of over 5,000 women and children operating at altitudes up to 24,000 feet.

Anita was awarded the Kalpana Chawla Shaurya Award in 2014. She was later awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar was made in the Durbar room of the Rashtrapati Bhavan by the President of India on International Women’s Day. It is the highest civilian award for women.

14. Bal Krishna Goyal- Cardiologist

Bal was a cardiologist and medical educationist from India. He was an Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston, USA.

He was the honorary dean and chief cardiologist at the Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences and was a former Director-Professor of cardiology of JJ Group of Hospitals and Grant Medical College.

Bal was a visiting professor of cardiology at the University of Alabama in the USA and a visiting cardiologist at the Oschner Heart Institute in New Orleans. He was appointed as the Professor Emeritus of Cardiology at the Grant Medical College.

15. Vikram Harshad Patel- Psychiatrist

Vikram is an Indian researcher and psychiatrist best known for his work on child development and mental disability in low-resource settings. He is the Co-Founder and former Director of the Centre for Global Mental Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Vikram is also the Co-Director of the Centre for Control of Chronic Conditions at the Public Health Foundation of India and the Co-Founder of Sangath which is an Indian NGO dedicated to research in the areas of child development, mental health, and adolescent health.

16. Dr. Soumya Swaminathan-Pediatrician

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (GODL-India), GODL-India, via Wikimedia Commons

A distinguished pediatrician and clinical scientist, Dr. Swaminathan served as the Chief Scientist at the World Health Organization from 2019 to 2022. Her extensive research on tuberculosis and other infectious diseases holds immense public health significance.

She is a Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medical Sciences. She holds an MBBS degree from Madras Medical College and an MD (Pediatrics) from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi. As one of the leading global voices in public health, she plays a crucial role in shaping global health policies and strategies.

17. Dr. Gagandeep Kang (b. 1962)-Virologist

A leading virologist and Director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Dr. Kang is a pioneer in vaccine development. Her groundbreaking research on rotavirus infections has led to the development of life-saving vaccines, significantly reducing childhood mortality rates in India and beyond.

Her achievements include the Infosys Science Prize (2016) and the TWAS Prize for Technology in Developing Countries (2016). She became the first Indian woman to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2019.

She holds an MBBS degree from Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, and a DM (Microbiology) from PGIMER, Chandigarh. Her ongoing research focuses on developing vaccines for other prevalent viral diseases. She has been leading research on enteric diseases at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation since 2023.

18. Dr. K. M. Cherian (b. 1938)-Heart surgeon

Frontier lifeline hospital, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A pioneering cardiac surgeon, Dr. Cherian founded the Madras Medical Mission, a renowned medical institution known for its innovative cardiac care services. He performed India’s first coronary artery bypass surgery and the first heart lung transplant.

He continues to actively contribute to the advancement of cardiac surgery through research and mentorship, shaping the future of cardiac care in India. He is a Padma Shri (1991) awardee and is considered a pioneer of pediatric cardiac surgery in the country.

19. Dr. Ashok Seth (b. 1953)-Interventional Cardiologist

A renowned cardiologist and a Fellow of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of London, Dr. Seth is known for his expertise in interventional cardiology. He has performed numerous complex procedures and actively contributes to research aimed at improving minimally invasive interventions for heart ailments, providing minimally disruptive treatment options for his patients. He is a Padma Bhushan (2015) awardee and holds an MBBS degree from Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Aligarh Muslim University.

20. Dr. Randeep Guleria (b. 1959)-Pulmonologist

The flawed human, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A renowned pulmonologist and former Director of AIIMS, Dr. Guleria established India’s first center for pulmonary medicines. He played a vital role in leading India’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, providing crucial guidance and leadership throughout the crisis. He is a Padma Shri (2015) awardee and is a co-author of the book ‘Till We Win: India’s Fight Against The COVID-19 Pandemic (2020).’

Click here to read more about other famous doctors.