Prem Virmani was born at Lyallpur, India, on 14 April 1928, the daughter of Ramnarain Virmani, a businessman, and after early education entered Lady Hardinge Medical College in New Delhi. After junior hospital appointments she came to Great Britain for postgraduate studies, working at Hammersmith Hospital under Professor Ian Aird and in Liverpool under Professor Charles Wells. She passed the FRCS Edinburgh in 1957 and the FRCS in the following year before returning to India to take up a post as lecturer in surgery at Lady Hardinge Medical College. After two years as lecturer she was appointed assistant Professor and head of the department of surgery. She carried out much research and published over a hundred articles in Indian and international journals. A special interest was abdominal tuberculosis. She married Sandip Mukerjee FRCS on 24 December 1961 and they had a daughter, Ramona, who was a medical student in 1987. Her main interests were badminton and travel. She died in 1985, aged 57.