MUMBAI: Eighty years after he immortalised the fascinating story of Dr Dwarakanath Kotnis through the 1946 film Dr Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani, legendary filmmaker V Shantaram has received the Dr Kotnis International Humanity Award posthumously.“Not many were aware of the life and times of a young doctor Kotnis who died serving the Chinese soldiers during the World War II till V Shantaram made Dr Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani. Recognising his contribution in immortalising Dr Kotnis, we decided to give this award to him posthumously. His son and former Sheriff of Mumbai Kiran Shantaram received this award,” said Rajendra Jadhav, chairman of the Dr Kotnis Memorial Committee.Dr Kotnis was part of a team of five doctors who had set sail for China on September 1, 1938, to help the Chinese army during the Second Sino-Japanese War in the 1930s. While the other four physicians returned to India, Dr Kotnis stayed back, fell in love with a Chinese nurse whom he married, but died young because of the inclement weather he faced there. Dr Kotnis is a much-revered figure in China, which considers him a great “friend”.As India and China improve their relationship, the award adds to the enduring “friendship” between the two neighbours.Those who attended the event included Consul General of China in Mumbai Qin Jie, Kiran Shantaram, and Dr Kotnis’s nieces Dr Sumangala Borkar and Nirmala Kotnis.
