For most obstetricians and gynaecologists, the real calling of this profession was never about predictability or convenience, it was about showing up for families through some of the most uncertain, high-stakes moments of their lives, and finding meaning in what that role demands. Few describe that trade-off as honestly as Dr. Manisha Jagtap. “Obstetric practice can honestly feel like a nightmare at times, you never know when a walk-in patient might arrive and things could suddenly get complicated,” she admits. “But once you get through those moments, the satisfaction that follows is something words can’t really capture, and it isn’t about money either.” That candour, paired with decades of steady, hands-on practice, is exactly why Dr. Jagtap earns her place among the country’s top gynaecologists this year.
From Reluctance to Certainty
Medicine, for Dr. Manisha Jagtap, was never part of an early plan. Even through her internship following MBBS, she’d pictured herself elsewhere entirely, perhaps in engineering, IT, or interior designing, and it was largely family influence that nudged her toward medicine in the first place. Gynaecology proved an even tougher sell initially; she recalls actively steering clear of the labour room during her internship, put off by the noise, the smell, and the visible pain patients went through. Yet right at the tail end of that internship, something clicked, and she found herself certain that obstetrics was where she belonged, enrolling for her PG shortly after.
What followed wasn’t easy either. With no medical background anywhere in her family to draw guidance from, she faced a genuine dilemma – whether to take up a government posting, most of which meant relocating to remote areas she wasn’t willing to move to, or attempt private practice from scratch. A stroke of luck helped tip the scales when a doctor entering government service had a ready OPD setup available, and she stepped in to take it over. Patients came quickly, and with her family’s backing, there was no looking back from there. Admissions were the one real bottleneck early on, so roughly two to three decades ago, when setting up a small maternity facility was still relatively straightforward, she converted a ground-floor residential flat into a modest four-bed unit. Response was immediate, and deliveries began almost as soon as the doors opened.
Also understanding that OB-GYN field comes with its share of risks and involves many laws that one has to strictly follow, this pushed Dr. Manisha Jagtap to know the law and understand it thoroughly. She opted to do her LLB and completed it with distinction, attending college regularly alongside her routine practice schedule.
Reassurance as Part of the Treatment
Ask Dr. Jagtap about the emotional dimension of her work, and she doesn’t hesitate. “There’s a huge emotional weight attached to infertility and gynaecology cases,” she says, “and it’s never just about the patient or couple alone; their entire family and friend circle gets invested in the process.” A safe delivery, she notes, sends a wave of relief through everyone involved, though the road there is rarely free of anxiety, fear of labour pain and worry over complications being common companions along the way. Her approach leans heavily on communication. “Talking openly with patients goes a long way in easing that anxiety and helping them feel more comfortable,” she explains.
On the gynaecological side, she sees a different kind of fear play out, one triggered the moment a patient discovers a lump, in the breast or uterus, with cancer almost always the first assumption that comes to mind. “Not every lump is cancerous, of course,” she clarifies, describing counselling and proper investigation as central to her role before any conclusions are drawn. And even when a diagnosis does turn out to be cancer, she’s quick to add a note of reassurance that modern medicine has advanced far enough that a full recovery and good quality of life afterward remain genuinely achievable.
The Changing Face of Surgery
Over the course of her career, the surgical landscape itself has transformed almost beyond recognition. Minimally invasive procedures like laparoscopy have cut recovery times drastically, eliminated the visible scarring that once came with open surgery, and, paired with better antibiotics and stricter sterility standards, made infections and delayed healing far rarer than they used to be. Patient attitudes have flipped just as dramatically. Where laparoscopy once made patients visibly nervous, it’s now often the preferred option, and a growing number are turning to robotic surgery instead, drawn by its precision, minimal infection rates, and even faster recovery, a complete reversal from the environment Dr. Jagtap first practised in. That progress, however, hasn’t spread evenly: fertility treatment access still varies sharply between urban and rural India, a gap Dr. Jagtap points to as one that still needs closing through greater awareness around women’s health.
Beyond the White Coat
Away from the demands of practice, Dr. Manisha Jagtap’s interests lean toward the creative, music, painting, and dress designing, though her packed routine leaves little room to indulge them properly right now. “I love listening to music, and I’m actually planning to learn singing after I retire,” she shares, adding that painting and design are similarly on hold, waiting for a quieter chapter she fully intends to return to.
Yet despite the reality that medical practitioners are among the busiest professionals, working round the clock with the added unpredictability that comes with emergencies and labour cases, Dr. Jagtap has still managed to carve out space for a range of pursuits. She is an accomplished writer, having authored the book “Manvta: Vedna aani Vidroh,” and runs her own publishing house, Nav Siddhant Prakashan, through which she has brought out numerous books and periodicals. Among these is Nav Amitav, a Diwali magazine released annually that builds each edition around a specific theme explored in depth, a publication that has itself been honoured with a prize by a renowned institution as the best magazine in its category. It’s this range that has led to Dr. Manisha Jagtap being recognised as a multifaceted personality, equally at home across medicine, law, and social work, and she also holds positions with several social NGOs dedicated to community welfare.
That sense of patience extends to how she describes her own journey balancing career and family. The early years, she admits, were genuinely hard, a demanding practice often meant she couldn’t give her child or family the attention she wanted to. “It’s only after many years that things have stabilised, and I’ve been able to find a real balance between my career and my family life,” she says. It’s a hard-won equilibrium, and one she now speaks of with quiet satisfaction, a fitting close to a career defined less by ease than by staying the course until it finally paid off.
