In 1793, a bullock cart driver went to two British surgeons in Pune and asked them to replace his nose — cut off by Tipu Sultan. That moment rediscovered Sushruta for the world.

Dr. Brishti Guha (JNU) narrates the extraordinary story of how Sushruta Samhita was reintroduced to the world: when British surgeons stationed in Pune encountered Kovaschi, a cart driver with his nose cut off, they had no idea how to reconstruct it. They found the technique being performed by an Indian potter using a skin flap — and when they published it in the Gentleman’s Magazine, London, the technique became known as “Indian rhinoplasty” or the “Indian flap.” It was dated to 600–800 BCE — 2,800 years before their encounter.

The episode covers Charaka’s kidnapping by the Kushan king Kanishka, the brain tumour operation performed on the two-year-old King Bhoja (documented in Bhoja Prabandha), the 120+ surgical instruments described in Sushruta Samhita, and the extraordinary precision of plastic and cranial surgery practised in ancient India. A compelling corrective to the global narrative that surgery began with Hippocrates.

About the Speakers:
Dr Brishti Guha has a PhD in economics from Princeton. She studied at St Stephen’s College and JNU and is currently an associate professor at the School of International Studies, JNU. Besides publishing in international academic journals, she publishes regularly on themes related to ancient India in the popular press. Her translations from Sanskrit literature and her essays have also appeared in a number of popular international magazines.

Dr Sabareesh P.A. is a writer and author of ‘A Brief History of Science in India’, ‘Our Hindu Nationhood’ and a PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi with wide academic interests.