About the Surgeon, Author & Activist
Full Bio for Event Introductions
Dr. Raj Bothra is a surgeon, interventional pain management expert, activist, and survivor of one of America's biggest false arrest and imprisonment scandals. He grew up with a loving family in a rural town in India with a population of 25,000 and no electricity or high school. He earned his first medical degree from Sardar Patel Medical College before completing a year-long junior house surgeon residency at Bombay Hospital in Mumbai and attending the University of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Surgeons in London. His U.S. surgical journey began in 1972 at Sinai Hospital in Detroit and led him to Holy Cross Hospital, where he acted as Department of Surgery Chair, Medical Staff President, and member of the Board of Trustees. During this time, he built a single-owner private practice that became the nation's largest interventional pain management system (The Pain Center, USA, and Interventional Pain Center). Over the years, Dr. Bothra has supported activist causes in India and the U.S. He co-founded the Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation with his mentor Sunil Dutt, an actor turned politician. From 1980 to 2000, he volunteered a month each year in India, working on various socio-economic issues. In the 1980s, he produced a Hindi film, Mehndi. By the invitation of India's Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, he started a national campaign against drug abuse, which was later extended to include HIV/AIDS and smoking. He worked with Bibek Debroy, CEO of Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, and Ekta Kapoor of Balaji Telefilms to produce educational videos distributed to schools across India. He’s worked with important public figures, including various Indian prime ministers, U.S. presidents, Mother Teresa, and Pope John Paul II. Indian President K.R. Narayanan awarded him the high civilian honor of PADMA SHRI and he’s received numerous awards in India and the U.S. for his public service. Since his acquittal in 2022, he continues to reclaim his freedom and rebuild the beautiful life he shares with his wife Pammi and daughter Sonia (adopted from a Mother Teresa orphanage) and her husband Zee. He hopes the book-to-movie, USA v Raj, illuminates the resilient power of the human soul and becomes a lighthouse and beacon of hope to those who are navigating their own dark storms.
Lifetime Bio
Dr. Raj Bothra is a surgeon, interventional pain management expert, humanitarian, activist, and survivor of one of America's biggest false arrest and imprisonment scandals. He grew up with a loving family in a rural town in India with a population of 25,000 and no electricity or high school. His burning desire to become a surgeon and serve his country led him to earn his first medical degree from Sardar Patel Medical College (a place he credits for chiseling him into the person he is today).
After a year-long residency as a junior house surgeon at Bombay Hospital in Mumbai, he traveled to England with $8 in his pocket and a heart full of dreams to chase his childhood aspirations. He attended the University of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Surgeons in London and earned a Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS). In 1972, with a doctorate degree in hand, he traveled to America, the land of opportunity. His U.S. surgical journey began in Detroit, Michigan, at Sinai Hospital and led him to Holy Cross Hospital.
While at Holy Cross, he assumed roles such as Department of Surgery Chair, Medical Staff President, and member of the Board of Trustees, while at the same time building a private practice together with a few surgeons working under his guidance. This single-owner private practice would become the nation's largest interventional pain management system under two clinics known as The Pain Center, USA, and Interventional Pain Center, serving close to 25,000 patients at its peak.
In addition to building a successful surgical career, Dr. Bothra has supported activist causes in India and the U.S. To give back to his native country that first invested in him, he co-founded the Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation with his mentor Sunil Dutt, an actor turned politician. From 1980 to 2000, he also dedicated a month each year in India, volunteering his services on various socio-economic issues. In the 1980s, he produced a Hindi film Mehndi. This experience led him to various health and human services related activism.
By the invitation of India's Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, he started a national campaign against drug abuse, which was later extended to include HIV/AIDS and smoking. He worked with Bibek Debroy, CEO of Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, and Ekta Kapoor of Balaji Telefilms to produce educational videos that were distributed to schools across India. This marked a new chapter in his political activism in India as well as the U.S. that led him to work with important public figures in the political, film, and corporate world, including various Indian prime ministers, U.S. presidents, Mother Teresa, and Pope John Paul II. He even shared stages with women's issues activists Kiran Bedi and Gloria Steinem.
In 2001, he was awarded the high civilian honor of PADMA SHRI by Indian President K.R. Narayanan. He received numerous other awards in India and the U.S. for his public service. Dr. Bothra is eternally grateful to India, England, and the United States for these opportunities and hopes he has paid at least part of his debt to Mother India and served his adopted country, U.S.A., well.
Thirty years ago, his work with one of Mother Teresa’s orphanages led him to adopt a six-month-old baby girl, Sonia, which he considers to be his highest life achievement. Since his acquittal in 2022, he has been reclaiming his freedom and rebuilding the beautiful life he shares with his wife Pammi and his daughter Sonia and her husband Zee. He hopes the book-to-movie, USA v Raj, inspires readers about the resilient power of the human soul and becomes a lighthouse and beacon of hope to those who are navigating their own dark storms.