ADDA AT A PHARMACY

In the mercurial glow of Butto Kristo Paul's bonedi bari in Kolkata, at once, pharmacy and home, Dr Devi Shetty reflects on the intersection of community, faith and the practice of healing in contemporary India

- DR DEVI SHETTY INTERVIEWED BY NAMRATA DEWANJEE PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANIRBAN MITRA AND 42FPS PRODUCTIONS PRODUCED BY MRUDUL PATHAK KUNDU AND SHRITI DAS

Do we call it a pharmacy, a residence, or a phenomenon of chimerical character? Under the streetlights of Kolkata, which once harboured a halogen glow, there is a crack in the veneer of the expected. A crowd gathers on the grand steps that lead to the palatial quarters. A cloud of tobacco smoke then a green cross blinks into view. Between haphazard feet, it reads “Chemist. Butto Kristo Paul. Druggist.” The name repeats above in wrought iron, curling over a deep verandah. Inside, an elderly woman sits behind the counter, flipping the day's newspaper at 8 p.m. She is surrounded by artefacts that too seem to have forgotten to check the timestamp. A Lewis Carroll-like tableau spills out from the shelves: tinctures, tonics and stickers. Boroline, contraceptives, Hansaplast advertisements. Sanitary pads and Cerelac. A refrigerator from the 1920s under lock and key. Four calendars from four different years. Oxygen cylinders engraved “BKP” next to a print of Kali Maa. A night bell in the age of 24-hour-delivery apps. A ticking clock that has long since run out of time.

DOCTOR’S NOTE

“It is a nondescript place, but something stands out. I can’t explain why,” reflects Dr Devi Shetty on his brief encounter with BK Paul’s home and pharmacy. It was in 1989 when the renowned cardiac surgeon, then a young practitioner, left England and arrived in the city. He quickly became a household name. He was Mother Teresa's personal physician in her last years whose words inspired him to begin the Narayana Hrudayalaya hospital. “In Calcutta, everything works on emotions. Even though I'm a thoroughbred South Indian, I've always felt at home in West Bengal,” he muses, “My years here have shaped my life, my family and my career. What stayed with me most is how non-transactional relationships feel, built on trust. As a doctor, I've rarely seen patients elsewhere say, ‘I trust you, do what's best’, without questioning.”

BELIEF IN COMMUNITY