Author talks about Dr Mahinder C Watsa’s biography: ‘Forward-thinker… was globally loved, respected’

It was not planned. I had never met Dr Watsa or his family members. The family came to me a few months after he passed away in December 2020. They had gathered some pieces of writing on him, from condolence meetings and obituaries among others. They wanted me to put something together in his memory. I did not know the man, so I started collecting information on Dr Watsa, and reading about him… I had never read his column before that. Everybody I spoke to knew him. I thought this man deserves a bigger canvas. While his witty responses in the column were famous, I felt that his work was so much larger than that. The column gave him a second hand, but his impact has been immense in the field of sexual medicine and education. He inspired the concept of a biography… the man who himself wanted to write an autobiography. By the time he got to doing it, it was late…

His life spanned over nine-and-a-half decades. The book dates back to World War I, tracing the journey of Dr Watsa’s father Colonel Rattan Chand Wats, Dr Watsa’s early memory of his grandfather, who also practised medicine, and their home in Lahore before the Partition. How was it like tracing his history?

Here was a man who lived through almost 100 years, which only a very few get to do. While writing, I thought about how to explain this man’s life span and arc. Our today’s readers are very young, who likely do not have a sense of history dating back so many years. I am not a historian, but I wanted to write about the times Dr Watsa was living, the eras he had lived through. The book begins with the year 2020, and goes back to the times of his grandfather and parents. I tried to provide the readers with a glimpse of the period we are talking about. The book is full of different stories…

I have written about how Padma Shri-honoured social worker and writer Avabai Wadia formed the Family Planning Association of India (FPAI) — with which Dr Watsa was associated with later in many ways. The organisation was set up in 1949, when most women had not even heard about family planning, as Wadia was quoted as saying that ‘they tried to popularise the concept’, especially among underprivileged women to ‘restore some degree of control and decision-making over their bodies and reproductive health’. The whole time was very fascinating… to research about people who worked throughout their lives for the public and social welfare, it was inspirational.

The book also traces back to the time when Dr Watsa had started a medical column, as early as in 1975 for the FPAI. He was questioned by many teenagers and adolescents about puberty, and the changes they were experiencing. These stories show his impact much beyond the column, and everyone now associates him with.

His work in sexual medicine and education also had a great impact among the people. Can you tell us about it?

He was a person who could discuss sex, which is still a taboo subject, very dispassionately and scientifically without any awkwardness. He went from slums to five-star hotels, covering a spectrum of people, addressing and educating them. He was bothered about the fact that most people, who may have had sexual issues, did not even know where and how to seek help. Back then, there were no NGOs initially, even the general practitioners were not able to counsel and deal with their queries due to inhibitions and prejudices. To that extent, Dr Watsa trained thousands of doctors, sociologists and psychologists. He conducted distance education courses to reach doctors in villages, those practicing alternative systems like unani medicine.

As a biographer, what do you think is the most revelatory aspect of Dr Watsa, whom you never met, but researched thoroughly and finally wrote about him?

While everybody talks about his wit and sense of humour, I took it for granted. He loved his life, and loved to party. He managed to bring wit and humour in everything, including PowerPoint presentations on serious topics. But, I wanted to write about him beyond all that. I realised that he was universally loved and respected across the board, and was very progressive. He was open-minded, and wrote about the rights of adolescents, how they should be treated… in a manner which is rare. It was forward-thinking, and that too since over 50 years ago. He also passed on his knowledge freely to others in the field. This man’s life inspires more people to be like him.