Year Released: 2017-2023
Directed by: Bill Eagles, Philip John, and others
Starring: Amanda Redman, Amitra Acharia, James Floyd, Neil Morrissey
(TV-14, 4 seasons, approximately 45 min. each)
Genre: Comedy, Drama

“I'm a huge fan of conflict, but a wise general only fights when she's sure to win the day. ” – Dr. Lydia Fonseca

Yes, it is a kind of soap opera, and even if you might think it’s General Hospital transported to Southern India early on, be patient. It has a depth that evolves from these quirky characters who continue to surprise and evolve as the series continues.

We see their facades at first, the determined happiness or assumed arrogance that only mask papered over past hurts and betrayals.

Like some other recent films with comic undertones, such as La Dolce Villa, The Life List or Man on the Inside, The Good Karma Hospital’s comic touches open us up to real emotions.

***

Ruby Walker (Amrita Acharia), a British doctor hoping for a new start in India after her boyfriend dumps her, is in for some surprises. The brochures of the sparkling research Indian hospital are just a glossy bait and switch, and she ends up in “The Good Karma Hospital, an under-resourced and overworked cottage hospital run by a strong-willed English expat, Dr. Lydia Fonseca (Amanda Redman).”

Dr. Fonseca is about as happy about the new untested recruit as Dr. Walker is at being one, but the good doctor is used to going to battle with the army she has, and so she throws Ruby into the fray, under the tutelage of the handsomely haughty Dr. Gabriel Varma, who seems more unhappy about it than either Dr. Walker or Dr. Fonseca

Of course, we all know where this is going, don’t we? Or as Different Drummer said about Miss Scarlet and the Duke :

“Of course, this dueling interplay where the intensity of the barbs reflects the passion denied, also taunts us in such old and new classics as John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara in The Quiet Man, Charlton Heston and Eleanor Parker in The Naked Jungle, Murdoch and Julia in Murdoch Mysteries, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Finch in Elephant Walk, Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redding in The Lady Vanishes, Lady Mary and Robert Crawley in Downton Abbey, Miss Phryne Fisher and Inspector Jack Robinson in Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, or Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts in Notting Hill.

***

Along the way we have emergencies that strain the people and resources of The Good Karma Hospital to the max: An ex pat artist who thinks clothing is an option, a nun who believes she has had an immaculate conception, the intricacies of arranged marriage and marriage brokers, a blistering heatwave that makes Arizona cool by comparison, an outbreak of the highly contagious Niphah fever, as well as several patients who refuse treatment, one which involves a Hindu religious figure and his best friend, a Muslim whose son is an imam. And let’s not forget snake bite, catastrophic car crashes, and buildings caving in.

There are some miraculous cures, but not everyone survives. Sometimes the worst cases recall painful memories, and the doctors and staff share hidden vulnerabilities with each other.

So as in life, we merge tragedy and comedy. Lots of the latter comes from Lydia’s love interest, Neil Morrissey (Greg McConnell), proving that opposites really do attract. He runs a beachfront bar and is a bit of a therapist, as all good bar tenders are.

He is as happy go lucky and as she is serious.:

Lydia: What would you do if you saw a young girl ruining her life?
Neil : I usually tell her to not stop and promise them a lift home.

More comedy comes from the Indian practice of arranged marriages, this conversation between the son of a prominent Indian physician and a UK physician newly arrived in India:

My father hired a marriage broker.
-Is that so bad? Means a lot less effort on your part.
So you would have an arranged marriage?
-I met a girl once. Clever, pretty, sweet. For some reason, she liked me. Wanted to get hitched, kids, the whole deal.
OK. So what did you do?
-I bought a one-way ticket to India. I just think you should consider the alternatives before it's too late.

***

Fans of Agatha Christie’s Poirot, particularly those who remember Chief Inspector Japp (Phillip Jackson), Poirot’s somewhat dim but decent frenemy, have a treat in store for them. He weaves himself in and out of Good Karma Hospital, but without his bushy mustache and once slender build, you may not recognize him. I will let you watch and see if you can spot him yourself.

Another jewel sparkling in several episodes is Downton Abbey’s Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan), whose youthful beauty is hidden in that series, but is in full bloom in the wonderful Lovejoy series, where she plays redhead Lady Jane Felsham

Here, even 20 years older, Ms. Logan is still quite the beauty and full of joie de vivre even as life hits her hard.

***

Isn’t it a about time to run away to India yourself? Here’s the easy way - no long flights, no dread tropical diseases or snakes, just the warm sea breeze in a tropical paradise streaming from your telly.

Not to miss.

–Kathy Borich
🥁 🥁 🥁 🥁

Trailer

Film-Loving Foodie

It is tempting to provide cocktail recipes from Neil’s alluring seaside bar, supposedly in the Kerala region of South India. Mostly he serves beer, though, and the film was actually made in Sri Lanka, where there is no alcohol allowed.

Greg McConnell, the actor who plays Neil, once a chain of pubs in real life, only in Staffordshire, England, not India or Sri Lanka. One Guardian article calls him “a bar tender in real life,” but that is a stretch., to say the least.

As Greg McConnell tells us himself:

“A beach-bar owner? Filmed in Sri Lanka? Starring with Amanda Redman? Tick, tick, tick! I told the producers there was no one else who could play this part. It was wonderful when I walked on set for my first day and there it was, my bar… However, it was so realistic that tourists were walking up mid-scene wanting beers and asking about happy hour. Sadly, there wasn’t a drop of alcohol in the bar, so I’d just say, ‘I wish, mate!’” –Rebecca Mahoney

***

But since this isn’t a real bar and Sri Lanka is dry, I will go another route. A final poignant scene occurs among Dr. Ruby Walker, her father, and Gabriel Varma, who is trying to get back in Ruby’s good graces. They quibble about the right way to eat a mango, and her father vows to show her.

I won’t give anything away but get ready for the hankies.

Let’s take those mangos and make them even more delicious. How abou a Mango Milkshake, with optional ice cream?

I turn to a real expert here.

“Mango milkshake made with fresh ripe mangoes is absolutely the perfect summer drink! It not only fills your hungry tummy, but also soothes you, satisfies your sweet tooth & cools you down on a hot summer day. “– Swasthi Shreekanth © Swasthi's Recipes

The link below provides several versions of this delicious drink