Mahatma Haffkine

Mahatma Haffkine is the true story of Waldemar Haffkine, the brilliant scientist who developed the first effective vaccines against cholera and plague - testing them on himself to prove their safety. Driven from a young age by a desire to change the world, he began as a member of a revolutionary group in Odessa but soon left Russia, eventually joining the Pasteur Institute in Paris. There, he made his groundbreaking discoveries, leading to his appointment as State Bacteriologist for the British Crown in India. In 1892, Anton Chekhov called him “the most unknown person in Russia,” yet in India, where his work saved over 33 million lives, he was honored with the title Mahatma, meaning “great soul.” Though he never found personal happiness, Haffkine’s legacy endures in the countless lives he saved through science and sacrifice.