New poetry book on India’s first female physician Anandibai Joshee released – Times of India

While Anandibai Joshee died at the young age of 22, she lived an inspiring and fulfilling life. For the unversed, Anandibai Joshee is best remembered as India’s first female physician. And now, in honour of her, a new book titled ‘Anandibai Joshee: A Life in Poems‘ by Shikha Malaviya is published by HarperCollins India.
In ‘Anandibai Joshee: A Life in Poems’, poet-author Shikha Malaviya chronicles Anandibai Joshee’s life — from her birth and childhood in Maharashtra to her marriage to a man who was 16 years older to her and her loss of her infant, which inspired her to become a doctor.
“The more I delved into the life of Anandibai Joshee, the more I realized how universal her struggles were, whether in the 19th or 21st century, to find one’s own voice and purpose in a deeply patriarchal world. Her strength and equanimity inspired me to rediscover my own voice. I hope her story will inspire others in similar ways,” Shikha Malaviya said about her book.
Praising the book, Prerna Gill, Commissioning Editor at HarperCollins, said, “These beautiful and deeply moving poems tell the story of India’s first female physician. I loved every page and was grateful for the opportunity to learn about a remarkable human being.”
‘Anandibai Joshee: A Life in Poems’ was published on July 16.