The Brown Heart Review: This documentary is chilling, thought-provoking, and impossible to ignore
Story: Two senior doctors embark on a journey across India, the UK, and the US to investigate the alarming rise in heart attacks among young South Asians, seeking to uncover the underlying causes and raise awareness about this growing health crisis.
Review: 'The Brown Heart' is an engaging and quietly alarming documentary that, by the time it ends, almost forces you to pause and reassess your lifestyle choices. Helmed by a husband-wife duo of Indian-origin doctors based in the US, it explores an unsettling health crisis that's spreading through the South Asian community—an unexpected surge in heart attacks among young people. The documentary draws from a wide pool of experts—renowned cardiologists, public health professionals, celebrities, and survivors—and strings together evidence and stories that are as gripping as they are disturbing. What makes this documentary stand out is how it blends emotional testimonies with scientific insight. The result is a film that doesn't just inform; it unsettles. It's hard not to feel a growing sense of unease as the dots begin to connect. You're left with one unavoidable question: if this could happen to them, could it happen to me?
This two-hour-plus documentary is the result of a painstaking investigation by Dr. Nirmal Joshi and Dr. Renu Joshi, who together bring over 70 years of clinical experience. Early in the documentary, Devi Shetty, a respected cardiac surgeon, shares a jarring observation: these days, it's not the son bringing in the father for bypass surgery—it's often the other way around. That reversal alone underscores how young the victims have become. Dr. Ankur Kalra, a leading interventional cardiologist, reveals that nearly 70% of South Asian heart attack deaths occur in people aged 30 to 60. Cases like the sudden deaths of singer KK, actor Puneeth Rajkumar, and ten individuals during last year's Garba festivities add a haunting urgency to the narrative. The documentary doesn't dramatize these incidents—it simply presents them. But even that is enough to send a chill down your spine.
In their journey across India, the UK, and the US, the Joshi duo focus on three essential questions: How widespread is the epidemic? Why is it hitting South Asians so hard? And—most crucially—what can be done to stop it? The answers are revealed through rigorous data and quiet, devastating facts. South Asians are far more vulnerable than their white counterparts, and India ranks disturbingly high in early-age cardiac deaths. The documentary also dismantles several myths along the way. In a culture where the first signs of a heart attack are often dismissed as mere gas or acidity, early detection becomes a tragic missed opportunity. There's an eerie consistency to the ignorance—people just don't see it coming until it's too late.
Perhaps the most powerful aspect of 'The Brown Heart' is how accessible it makes all this information. While medical terms are used, the language remains simple, familiar, and never overwhelming. But the documentary saves its most sobering revelations for the end. Just when you think the worst is over, the focus shifts to food—and it hits hard. Snacks like jalebi and samosa are shown in a new, terrifying light. Trans fats, often dismissed as a buzzword, are revealed to be poison in disguise. Jalebi contains 17% trans fats—compared to the WHO-recommended limit of less than 1%. That statistic alone might make you drop your next plate. 'The Brown Heart' doesn't preach. It educates. But it also disturbs—just enough to get you thinking and maybe, just maybe, changing.
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The research team also put together over 1.3 million viral genomes â€' the largest collection of its kind so far. Lake Mendota in the US has been monitored consistently since the late 1800s (Photo: Center for Limnology, University of Wisconsin–Madison) "In our lab, we are exploring how phages behave over time. We conducted a 20-year study of a single lake, using DNA sequencing and artificial intelligence (AI) to track how phage populations changed. By sequencing environmental DNA and using AI tools, we identified over 1.3 million viral genomes. This allowed us to see how viruses shift month to month, season to season, and year to year, and to predict their future behaviour," Dr. Anantharaman said. While phage therapy might seem like a relatively new concept to Indian populations and even the West who rely heavily on antibiotics, Anantharaman mentioned that the phenomenon of using viruses to kill bacteria has been used in countries like Russia, Poland, Ukraine, and Georgia for decades. 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That's a game-changer for preserving overall health during treatment," Anantharaman explained. Another surprising fact is that viruses are everywhere - even inside us. There are 10 to 100 times more viral particles in and on our bodies than human cells. These include many harmless phages that silently regulate bacterial populations. Phages are found in lakes, rivers, soil, oceans, and even in our intestines and on our skin. Anantharaman lab member Dinesh Kumar Kuppa Baskaran sampling Lake Mendota in the Summer. "In our lab, we use AI â€' both machine learning and deep learning â€' to rapidly identify phages from environmental samples. This process, which used to take years, now takes just a day. AI allows us to sift through millions of DNA sequences and pinpoint the viruses that can infect specific harmful bacteria," Anantharaman said. BARRIERS PERSIST However, awareness remains a major barrier. The medical community and industry are still focused on antibiotics. There's limited investment in phage therapy, and the necessary research infrastructure hasn't yet been built. For phage therapy to move forward, government support and academic research are essential. "Industry isn't currently interested in developing phage-based treatments â€' it's mostly up to institutions and public funding. But as the threat of antibiotic resistance grows, this is expected to change," Anantharaman opined. Phage therapy isn't just a scientific curiosity. It could be a major pillar of future medicine â€' if we choose to invest in it. Join our WhatsApp Channel
Business Standard
an hour ago
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Govt orders high-level probe into Ahmedabad air crash
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