'Anandi Gopal' inspires Pune medical college for girls

Director Sameer Vidwans critically acclaimed film "Anandi Gopal" has inspired a medical college for girls in Pune.

In 2019, the Marathi film industry saw the release of "Anandi Gopal", a biopic on the life of Anandi Gopal Joshi, who was one of India's first female practitioner of western medicine.

Dr Shantaram Balwant Mujumdar, founder and president of Symbiosis Society, has set up a new medical college only for girls. During its inauguration he revealed how the film inspired him.

"I am inspired by the biographical movie about India's first lady doctor Mrs Anandibai Joshi, the idea of establishing a medical college exclusively for women was born. With an objective of women empowerment and contributing to the requirement of more women doctors in the country, symbiosis established this exclusive college and the faculty of health science," Dr Mujumdar said.

Reacting to the development, film director Sameer Vidwana said: "It's a very big achievement for me and my team. This is a true success of 'Anandi Gopal'. There are almost 150 students who have already taken admission. We are very happy that this film has made a positive impact on society."

The film stars Bhagyashree Milind and Lalit Prabhakar, and it has emerged a raging success at the box office. It received mostly positive reviews, too, for bringing alive the story of Anandi Gopal Joshi and capturing the innocent love story between her and her husband, Gopalrao Joshi.