Played by The Resident star Manish Dayal, Dr. Theo Rabari is a scene-stealer on Med.
Manish Dayal has officially scrubbed in for Season 11 of Chicago Med, joining the ranks as a new psychiatrist ready to shake things up at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.
Known for his standout performances in medical dramas, Dayal is bringing his infectious energy to NBC’s One Chicago universe, making an exciting chapter for Chicago Med and some new dynamics among the staff. Several dynamite doctors have roamed these hospital halls, but from the moment viewers met Dayal’s Dr. Theo Rabari in Chicago Med’s “Family First,” it was clear the bright-eyed psychiatrist was going to make an impact.
Check out everything that happened during Dr. Theo Rabari’s Gaffney debut — and learn why you recognize the charming Dayal — below:
Why you recognize Chicago Med’s Manish Dayal
Dayal has built an impressive television and film career, boasting chameleonic range across several genres. However, he’s no stranger to medical procedural, best known for playing Dr. Devon Pravesh in the long-running medical drama The Resident. Some of Dayal’s early television credits include guest appearances in series like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, 90210, Rubicon, and The Good Wife.
Before joining the One Chicago universe, Dayal guest starred in Dick Wolf’s mythic Law & Order franchise on two separate occasions. In 2011, he appeared in an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and then returned to the franchise in 2014 in an episode of Special Victims Unit. Outside of his countless appearances across primetime, Dayal has gained further recognition after starring in big-screen projects like The Hundred Foot Journey, Viceroy’s House, and Holidate.
Dr. Daniel Charles wasn’t initially a fan of Dr. Theo Rabari
Dr. Theo Rabari didn’t leave the most glimmering of first impressions on Gaffney Head of Psychiatry Dr. Daniel Charles (Oliver Platt) after introducing himself to the board to pitch an innovative new tool called an “FMRI,” designed to replace the guessing game of mental health diagnosis with hard facts. Rather than psychiatrists relying on emotion and biases to make patient assessments, these new MRIs would be fully impartial.
Dr. Charles didn’t love Theo’s approach, which he felt was a bit reductive to their work and relied on technology to understand patients. Theo countered that his new tools were meant to increase efficiency, allowing doctors to instantly diagnose mental disorders and push psychiatry into a more cemented science. Still, Dr. Charles remained adamant that patients needed human contact and compassion more than anything.
Theo urged Dr. Charles to consider the potential of the FMRI, concluding his presentation with a request to continue his research at Gaffney. Later, a patient named Lionel was admitted after amputating his own hand. Dr. Charles soon learned that Lionel was struggling with OCD-like compulsions to hurt others, so he severed his hand to prevent any potential incident.
To complicate matters further, Lionel didn’t want his hand reattached, giving Dr. Charles quite a puzzle to solve. After diagnosing Lionel with Harm OCD, he determined the best way to convince Lionel to reattach his hand would be to show him a brain scan so that he could understand that he didn’t actually have murderous intent; he had a chemical imbalance in his brain.
Having recently met just the person with the tools for this job, Dr. Charles brought in Dr. Theo Rabari to utilize his technology on Lionel, discovering that his suspicions were correct. Charles later showed Lionel his brain scan, explaining that he was someone who deserved to feel whole again and encouraging him to trust the science. Inspired by their findings, Lionel agreed to the surgery.
Theo visited Dr. Charles’s office to follow up about Lionel, delighted to learn his reattachment procedure went well. Dr. Charles clarified to Theo that he wasn’t anti-innovation; he just felt that every week, there was some new technological advancement that inhibited a doctor’s ability to connect with patients. But Dr. Charles couldn’t deny the effectiveness of Theo’s research.
“Look, if you were willing to put people before technology, maybe there is a place for you and your research here at Gaffney.” Dr. Charles told him. “What do you think?”
Theo beamed at the idea. “Ditto.”
