The key to a successful ACL surgery is rehabilitation and it was my dream to provide in-house rehabilitation to my patients after their surgery,” says 40-year-old doctor Manu Bora. Bora is an expert in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgeries, the most common surgery in sports medicine. In February, he is about to inaugurate his inhouse sports medicine rehabilitation centre in Gurugram. But that’s not his only dream; he has actually fulfilled another, quite distant from the medical realm — modelling.
As a child, Bora admired models Milind Soman and John Abraham, but he understood the importance of prioritising studies. Inspired by his mother, a doctor in Jodhpur, he decided to focus on completing his medical studies before pursuing his modelling dream. He earned his MBBS from SN Medical College in Jodhpur, where he observed a significant shortage of sports surgeons. “Many athletes underwent ACL surgery but struggled to return to the game. That’s when I decided to specialise in sports medicine,” he recalls.
Becoming a model
His modelling career took off unexpectedly when he was completing his post-graduate degree at Grant Government Medical College, Mumbai. “Someone suggested I create a portfolio, and after a considerable wait, I got selected for a Hero Honda print ad campaign in 2010,” he recalls. Excited, Bora joined the team in Alibag for a two-day shoot involving three other models.
It turned out badly for him. The shoot progressed without featuring Bora until the last shot—a volleyball match where he was asked to serve the ball. Ironically, the camera was positioned behind him, and when the ad was released, only his hair was visible. “I was heartbroken. I finally got a shoot, but my face wasn’t shown,” he says.
But since then, things have only got better. In October 2010, Bora walked in a Karan Johar+Varun Bahl show, and by January 2011, he made history as the first Indian male model to walk at the Paris Fashion Week. “It was a big achievement that jumpstarted my modelling career, after that, I got a lot of campaigns in India and opened shows for Sabhyasachi,” he adds.
Best of both worlds
However, that did not diminish his commitment to his profession as a medico. While in Paris, he also pursued a fellowship in sports medicine and arthroplasty from Hospital Ambroise Pare. He also pursued his senior residency in sports medicine at the Sports Injury Centre, Safdurjung Hospital. “It is a three-year training you must do before you start your practice,” he says. He furthered his expertise with another fellowship in sports medicine in New York. In 2019, Bora founded Orthosport, a company exclusively dedicated to sports medicine.
When asked about managing two different, yet demanding professions, Bora’s answer is simple: “double work”. He used to work night shifts to free up mornings for shoots or align his off days with shoot days. With his own company and an assistant managing the dates of his surgeries and shoots, the juggle is smoother now.
“I have observed many medical professionals in showbiz, but they either leave medicine or model occasionally. I am committed to pursuing both professions full-time,” he asserts. Bora has 143K followers on Instagram; and a YouTube channel, ‘Dr Manu Bora – ACL Expert’, with 225K subscribers, receives praise daily for sharing insights on sports medicine, joint injuries, surgeries and recovery.
“Physiotherapy is crucial for “back-to-game” recovery after ACL surgery. I am proud to say that I operate on around 70 patients a month, facilitating recovery within six months,” he says. He continues his practice from three centres in Gurugram, Mumbai and Bengaluru, catering to patients from across India. With an inhouse rehabilitation centre in Gurugram opening soon, he also plans to expand ACL surgery centres across the country by training medical professionals from non-metro cities while simultaneously slaying it on the ramp.