Freany Khurshed Rustomjee Cama

Biography

Dr Freany Khurshed Rustomjee Cama was born on 14 December 1866 in Bombay (now Mumbai), into a progressive Parsi family. She completed her schooling at Cathedral School, Bombay, before earning her Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery from Bombay University in 1892, where she was also awarded the Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy gold medal and became the first recipient of the Lady Reay gold medal for excellence in medicine.

In 1892, Cama received a J. N. Tata Scholarship, which supported her to travel to the United Kingdom to pursue further training in obstetrics and gynaecology, gaining her Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. Cama also studied in London and Brussels, and conducted research at the Pasteur Institute, Paris.

Following this, Dr Cama held clinical appointments across British India. Working alongside Rukhmabai, she served as Second Physician at Cama Hospital for Women and Children, Bombay, and later as Chief Medical Officer at Lady Dufferin Hospital in Karachi. Her work focused on increasing access to women-led care, reducing maternal mortality, and addressing conditions such as anaemia, tuberculosis, and malnutrition.

Despite facing gender and racial discrimination within colonial institutions, Cama maintained a long and impactful medical career. In later life, she supported women’s education and philanthropy, endowing funds to establish the Freany Cama Hostel for Women in Mumbai