Dr. Mahatme received his medical degree in ophthalmology from Nagpur University in 1983. He lectured at the Government Medical College in Nagpur until 1985, then founded the Mahatme Eye Hospital in 1986. He is a member of many ophthalmological societies, including the All India Ophthalmological Society, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Academy of Medical Sciences and the National Society for Prevention of Blindness. As a faculty surgeon, Dr. Mahatme has conducted innumerable phaco and skill-transfer workshops, and he has performed live surgical demonstrations in India and abroad. He has performed more than 70,000 cataract surgeries and 35,000 phaco cataract surgeries, and he has compiled his techniques into a book, Step by Step Phaco Tips & Tricks, published in 2005. He developed the woodcutter nucleus cracking†phacoemulsification technique, in which a phaco tip is used instead of a chopper to divide the nucleus. The technique works especially well on hard nuclei and is gaining popularity in India and abroad, he said. Other contributions to the field include a filtration-enhancing knot used in trabeculectomy, as well as developing pigment for cosmetic corneal tattooing. Dr. Mahatme also received the Colonel Rangachari Award and Gold Medal for his research on rectal mucous membrane graft for dry eye.