#312 The Functionalist — Raj Ahlowalia

Raj Ahlowalia's remarkable 33-year journey in a single practice reveals what true dedication to the craft looks like. From almost missing university entirely to becoming an internationally recognised authority on functional occlusion, his story challenges everything we think we know about dental careers. The son of a polyglot interpreter who hitchhiked from India to the UK, Raj stumbled into dentistry through a teacher's intervention, then methodically built expertise that took him from Biggleswade to the stages of Pankey and Spear. His time on Extreme Makeover taught him the crucial difference between patients who want cosmetic work and those who genuinely need rehabilitation—a distinction that shaped his entire philosophy of practice.In This Episode00:07:15 - Father's extraordinary hitchhiking journey from India00:19:20 - The accidental path to dentistry00:39:25 - First job and VT experience00:44:15 - Extreme Makeover TV breakthrough01:13:15 - Teaching at Pankey and Spear institutes01:28:00 - Blackbox thinking01:31:40 - Forced retirement due to spinal issues01:34:05 - Photography passion and flying adventures01:59:25 - Learning NLP and hypnosis techniques02:03:40 - Patient litigation experience02:15:00 - Fantasy dinner party02:15:25 - Last days and legacyAbout Raj AhlowaliaRaj spent his entire 33-year career at one practice in Biggleswade, evolving from VT to an internationally recognised expert in functional occlusion. He taught at both the Pankey Institute and for Frank Spear, appeared on the Extreme Makeover TV show, pioneering the first implant shown on British television, and developed a comprehensive approach to full-mouth rehabilitation that emphasises function over pure aesthetics.

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