Vijayalaxmi Deshmane

Vijayalaxmi Deshmane grew up in a slum in Kalaburagi and became one of Karnataka’s leading cancer surgeons. In 2025 she was named for the Padma Shri in the field of medicine, from Karnataka ^[1].

Against the odds

Deshmane was born on 10 April 1955 in a slum in Kalaburagi, into the Madiga Scheduled Caste community ^[2]. Her mother sold fruit and vegetables, and her father was a freedom fighter ^[2]. She studied medicine at Karnataka Medical College in Hubballi and became the first woman MS student at Government Medical College, Bellary ^[2]. She trained in cancer surgery, including at Tata Memorial Hospital ^[2].

Thirty years at Kidwai

She served for three decades at the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology in Bengaluru, as its first woman senior resident and first woman faculty member in surgical oncology ^[2]. She retired in 2015 as professor and head of surgical oncology, and also served as the institute’s director in charge ^[2]. She led breast cancer research projects as principal investigator and trained many cancer surgeons ^[2].

She has also chaired the boards of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology at Kottayam and Kurnool ^[2]. Her life story was made into the film Matangi Deevatige ^[2].