Attend this unique comedy performance by a doctor in Mumbai to laugh about the funny side of health

Dr Tushar Shah in an edutainment video. PICS COURTESY/INSTAGRAM

Life inside a doctor's consulting room is sometimes stranger than fiction. This writer's father, a senior physician, was once offered two shiny hens by a patient under the influence of toddy in exchange for saving his life. These bizarre anecdotes often don't make it past dinner table conversations. Dr Tushar Shah, 64-year-old general physician, would beg to differ. His stories have travelled far and wide, from The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, to the Royal Albert Hall in London.

"My goal is to teach lay people the basics of medicine through humour," he tells us over a call from his Juhu clinic. Through his upcoming bilingual performance Thoda Gyaan, Thodi Muskaan, the audience will learn the ABCs of a healthy lifestyle through 26 snippets that alternate between gyaan (education) and muskaan (humorous tidbits). A is for AI in Medicine, but it also stands for ‘Atrangi Mareez' (peculiar patients), he shares with a chuckle.

Shah hasn't been offered any hens (yet), but he has a fair share of wonderfully odd encounters. "For some weird reason, married patients often choose the doctor's office to vent out their woes. ‘It's been troubling me non-stop, I don't think I can stand it anymore,' they complain. It's hard to tell if they're talking about a creaky knee, or their spouse," he quips.

George Carlin; a bust of Mirza Ghalib in Old Delhi. PICS COURTESY/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Jokes apart, the sexagenarian spends his time writing satire and poetry, and helms the biennial QED Quiz series in Mumbai. Between conversations about presenting his performances in Tanzania, Belgium, and London, the doctor quotes the likes of Shel Silverstein, Mirza Ghalib, Dushyant Kumar, and his favourite comedian, George Carlin. Does he side with Carlin on God? People often seem to remember one when they're in a hospital, we nudge him. "Well, I'm in a hospital all day, and I don't believe in one yet," he signs off.

ON August 9; 11 am
AT Hall of Harmony, Nehru Centre, Worli.
LOG ON TO @drtusharshah1962 on Instagram (for tickets)

Doctor's orders

It's not important for young doctors to have a hobby; it's mandatory, says Shah.

» Work-life-balance: Treat your medical practice like a day job. Shah works from 9 am to 4 pm, and retreats into his writing corner in the evening.

» Three's the trick: Shah suggests youngsters must have three pursuits. A day job, a passion that you master and present to the world, and a creative pursuit to keep for yourself.