Not much about Sneh Bhargava’s life seems ordinary.

In 1984, she became the first woman to helm the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the capital Delhi – one of the country’s top medical institutions – and in its almost 70-year history, remains the only woman to have done so.

At 90, Dr Bhargava – one of India’s pioneering radiologists – began writing her memoir, The Woman Who Ran AIIMS, which was published earlier this month, and at 95, continues to remain an active member in the medical community.

From choosing radiology when it was still emerging in 1940s India to becoming one of its most well-known practitioners, Dr Bhargava’s legacy is nothing short of extraordinary.

Not unlike her first day on the job as director-to-be of AIIMS, which was nothing short of a trial by fire.

It was the morning of 31 October 1984, and a meeting was under way at the hospital to confirm her appointment after India’s then prime minister Indira Gandhi had selected her for the role.