Cyres: The Education of an Ophthalmologist by Dr Cyres K. Mehta as Narrated to Prof Cyrus Gonda. Published in 2023 by i-Read Publications, a brand of Dharya Information Pvt Ltd, A-162, Antop Hill, Chemical, Warehousing Complex, Vidyalankar College Road, Wadala (E), 400037; email: support@i-read.publications.com. Pp: 315. Price: Rs 540.
Ophthalmologist Dr Cyres Mehta is "not the stereotypical surgeon, simply because there are so many facets and dimensions to his mercurial personality… He is also a bodybuilder, musician, biker and cyclist” states the remark on the back cover of his autobiography, Cyres: The Education of an Ophthalmologist.
Cyres’s father Dr Keiki Mehta, ophthalmologist and pioneer in intraocular implants, reveals in the Foreword that "right from his earliest days (Cyres) was very clear in his mind that he wished to become a doctor. I gave him various options of being a lawyer, a businessman, or even a banker like my father. However, he wanted to be an ophthalmologist… It was in medical college that he came into his own… His teachers told me that he was a person to look out for as ‘most likely to succeed.’ From the kid who refused to study, he got the highest theory marks in his postgraduation…
Dr Cyres Mehta: progressive methods
"He joined me at my practice… (His) knowledge was fresh and in many ways superior to mine. We spent blissful days talking about patients and the nuances of treatment to achieve the best results. And of course he commenced his surgical practice under my guidance… We continued to work together but after some time it became obvious that there was a need for him to spread his wings… He needed to set up his own clinic…where he would be recognized for his own merit and not as an adjunct to his father.”
Cyres has fond memories of his childhood, growing up with two siblings, sister Shirina, five years younger and brother Rustom 10 years his junior. Since their father’s clinic would be open till past midnight, the children’s upbringing devolved on to their paternal grandparents. "My grandmother would get me ready and pack me off to school in the morning; my grandfather would take care of my studies and encourage me to develop varied skills.” Unfortunately, Cyres does not reveal their names, referring to them as grandpa and grandmom.
It was during his school days ("cool days”) that Cyres developed an interest in bodybuilding, cycling, playing the harmonica and having adventures with the air-gun his father bought him when he was six. The section on his days in school, junior college, Kasturba Medical College in Mangalore right up to postgraduation is a mundane recitation. By the time Cyres left for Belgaum for postgraduate studies, he was married to his childhood sweetheart Vinifer (née Mistry) who accompanied him there and later to Germany.
The pair reached the hospital in Germany where he was to undergo training and told the person at the reception desk, "We are from India, and you must be expecting us.” She took one look at them and called out to someone behind her, "The Indians are here to repair the computer.” Cyres corrected her politely, stating that he was there to study ophthalmology under Prof Rentsch. She responded: "Oh so you have come to repair Prof Rentsch’s computer.”
Cyres describes his professor as an "absolute perfectionist… (who) left no room for error.” Rentsch was probably around 70 years old at that time, working from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., performing an average of 20 surgeries every morning — cataract, retina and glaucoma — often using techniques he had invented. It was a "wonderful opportunity to have trained under such a master of our craft.”
Always keen on learning new techniques, Cyres has been abroad several times to learn and implement these progressive methods. He has trained doctors both in India and abroad and participated in conferences and workshops. Cyres has treated leaders of business, film stars, army generals, noted sportspersons and other people from all walks of life and has garnered myriad awards.
His wife Vinifer writes, "We were almost children when we first met… We have literally grown up together.” She describes Cyres as a "larger than life personality, somewhat a tad in your face, always brutally honest with a ribald sense of humor that you need a real thick skin for… (but) a friend who will always have your back, inspire you to work hard and make your goals and aspirations a reality.” They have two sons, Bizan and Zane. Bizan is now in medical college. The boys are very much in awe of their father.
At the age of 32, Cyres noticed a lump on his abdomen which turned out to be a malignant tumor. He recalls, "I drove myself to the hospital… and checked myself in. My son Bizan was all of two months old and Vinifer had her hands full with him.” The surgery was followed by chemotherapy; not a pleasant experience. "I had kept it a closely guarded secret — with only immediate family and one or two friends sworn to secrecy… Even my sister had no idea. That was 21 years ago... It feels like a lifetime away today… I was lucky to not only have a totally curable tumor, but also that it was detected so early…”
Prof Cyrus Gonda: corporate storyteller
The other occasion when his life was in the balance was in 2017 at the California Motorcycling School where he met with a serious accident. Subsequently "there was a lot of resistance about me riding a bike again” but two years later he was back on the track in California because "cowardice is unacceptable!”
In the chapter "Transformation time,” Cyres shares how he dealt with his obesity… accompanied by before and after pictures showing first his puffy countenance and later his toned six-pack abs and chiseled face. His bare chested photograph adorns the book’s cover.
Though the autobiography has been written by Cyres, it was compiled by Gonda, known as "coporate India’s storyteller” because of his expertise in leadership communication. He has authored and co-authored 18 books on management and leadership. He has also conducted training modules for organizations.
SHERENE VAKIL