NV Joshi - Session 01

(00:00:27) His name, parents, schooling in Bombay and siblings Joshi talks about his name stemming from the naming convention in Maharashtra, and shares those of his parents as well. He talks about being born in Belgaum in 1951, and shifting to Bombay. He talks about initially being in a Gujarati medium kindergarten school in Malad, but then switching to a Marathi medium school in Dadar, and then again to another school in the higher classes. He shares that his father was initially a professor of Sanskrit and his mother was his father’s student. His father also pursued studies in law and later started his practice in Bombay. His father continued teaching- a variety of subjects- both formally and informally- and his mother taught English in colleges. He is keen to share that a famous Hindustani classical singer was his father’s student when she was in school, but is unable to recollect her name. He talks about his siblings, sharing that his brother and him are especially close to each other. [Archivist’s note: at the time spoken about by the interviewee, it was called ‘King George High school’, but the index term uses the current authority record name, ‘Raja Shivaji Vidyalaya’] [Archivist’s note: at the time spoken about by the interviewee, it was called the ‘Primary School of the Indian Education Society’, but the index term uses the current authority record name ‘Patkar Guruji Vidyalaya’] [Archivist’s note: interviewee shares that his mother’s name was earlier Sudha Govind Kelkar and then changed to Pradnya Vasudeo Joshi] [Archivist’s note: interviewee shares that his sister’s name was earlier Karuna Joshi and then changed to Preeti Shenwai after marriage]

(00:08:07) Childhood homes and recollections of school life Sharing dimensions of his family’s living spaces, Joshi reveals never feeling like they were not enough, calling it the “Bombay style of living”. He talks about thoroughly enjoying his time in school (apart from homework during vacations) and the languages of instruction- Marathi and then English. He found the teaching to be really good. He explains the system wherein classes were based on the ranks of the students. He says he felt that learning multiplication tables was unnecessary and that knowing how to multiply was enough. Much to the amusement of his classmates, once when called upon to recite the multiplication table of 17, he proceeded to recite whatever he felt like. He also shares learning early on that one’s handwriting was not something worth putting effort into and his dislike for some other activities in school as well. When it came to things that he pursued or did , Joshi talks about what his parents expressed a preference for. He had an interest in reading from the 1st standard, reading whatever came to hand. He mentions a friend – Ashok Gadgil – as having a big influence on him and goes on to share more details about him. He was also interested in playing cricket and listening to film songs. He shares that he never felt anything amiss in terms of financial support while growing up, and also that it was not the case that he had any great requirements . He shares that his mother is still alive and his father is not. He again alludes to teachers in school being good and says they were extraordinarily dedicated.

(00:20:25) Opportunities to travel, academic choices and engagement with religion Every vacation, Joshi would go to Pune to visit his aunt and cousin, both of whom were major academic influences on him – especially his cousin. He says that it was not the case that his parents were particularly interested in science and they left him to his own devices in terms of making academic choices. They both read greatly and his father in particular, he says, was sort of interested in everything. Joshi shares that at home, they did not perform any rituals or celebrate any religious functions as such. He attributes being in Bombay as a reason for their being no mention of caste. [Archivist's note: Shakuntala Kelkar is a person the interviewee mentions in the interview as an aunt (mother’s sister), who was a professor of botany; name obtained from interviewee post-interview]

(00:23:31) Engagement with social and political issues Joshi’s mother had been involved with the freedom struggle and was a part of the female wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. He shares that while his father did not have any engagement with any political party as such, he supported friends and colleagues who had political inclinations.

(00:26:24) Undergraduate degree, academic performance and choices Joshi mentions the people who influenced him to go to Elphinstone College for his undergraduate degree, as well as a professor – RN Panditrao – who played a major role in physics becoming an important subject in his life. He names the various institutes Ashok Gadgil has studied at and has been associated with. He speaks about academic choices he made such as choosing science and mathematics over other options at hand. He mentions family members and another teacher who was a major influence on him in school – Pradhan [Archivist’s note: full name not known]. Having to take the local train to go to Elphinstone College was a break from his routine until that point. He also mentions his reasons for choosing this college. He mentions clearing the entrance examination for the India Institute of Technology (IIT), but giving up the opportunity to study there out of being unsure of which branch to choose. Another factor, he says, was thinking that it would lead him to a corporate life – something he was not interested in. It was a drive to pursue something with research or having a project component, that led him to give the National Level Science Talent Search Examination. He stood 51st in the public examination in the 11th standard and shares further about his academic performance in school in terms of his rank in the class. It was on his parents’ insistence that he continued with English medium education when the switch was made in the school. Although he began to read books by English authors in the years that followed, he shares that he was not comfortable speaking in English till college. Apart from the decision to switch to English medium education, his parents left academic choices to him.

(00:38:14) Engagement with science and mathematics

He says he had almost no “outside” interaction with science. However, one talk he attended that did stand out to him, in terms of the presentation, was by the Nobel laureate Hannes Alfvén. After joining college, he recollects the chemistry and physics professors as being very enthusiastic. He shares an anecdote about a talk he gave on ionisation [interviewee correction post interview: talk he gave on ‘methods of titration’], but being uncomfortable about asking his doubts as he prepared for it. He continues to talk about the subjects he studied, where he studied them and the teachers who left an impact on him. For his BSc degree, Physics was his principal subject and mathematics was the subsidiary one. Having been poor in chemistry practicals, he was attracted by the idea of not having to pursue the subject further. He shares an anecdote about professors trying to convince Ashok Gadgil about which subject to choose. He cites the National Level Science Talent Search Examination and as a result of clearing that, the summer schools, as having a major influence on him. It led him to interact with a group of people completely interested in science, for the first time. He shares the locations of the various month-long summer schools and that they focussed on physics. Thanks to them, he was exposed to topics outside of the regular syllabus.

(00:48:26) Interest in social issues During his school days, Joshi mentions being interested in social issues. In keeping with this interest, he states being exposed to the Yuvak Kranti Dal in Pune, attending a camp of Baba Amte’s and reading Marmik, the Shiv Sena’s mouthpiece.

(00:50:54) National Level Science Talent Search Examination Joshi talks about clearing the National Level Science Talent Search Examination and interview and the fellowships and grants he received as a result. He refers to the summer schools he attended as being most impactful.

(00:51:56) Years at Elphinstone College and getting into IIT Powai for a Master’s degree He remembers taking the local train to and from Elphinstone College and spending time with fellow students in the lunch break. Though he laments there being no research project or similar motivation, he speaks about professors, such as Galgali [Archivist’s note: full name not known] and VT Chiplunkar, who made a great impact on him. He speaks about getting into IIT for his Master’s degree in Physics. He credits an undergraduate professor as helping him in a practical examination and awarding him a first class. Along with this, he speaks about friends who were in IIT who played a role in influencing his decision, along with the exposure to hostel life that he had had thanks to the summer schools. He shares his reasons for choosing IIT Powai over IIT Kanpur and wanting to stay in the country till he completed his PhD degree. [Archivist’s note: the interviewee refers to the institute as ‘IIT Powai’, and this is retained in the summary. However, the index term uses the authority record name, ‘IIT Bombay’.]

(00:57:55) Staying in the hostel and other memories of IIT Powai He recollects not being very good at the subjects taught, but nonetheless being elected to the Indian Academy of Sciences’ fellowship. He recounts Rohini Godbole as being one of his classmates. He shares about standing for the post of General Secretary of the hostel and getting elected with support from fellow Maharashtrians. However, he had to resign, being unable to cope with the demands of the post and his studies. He speaks about feeling enthusiastic about a last semester project on laser Raman spectroscopy. Joshi also shares about his interest in walking and hiking and since his college days, in lasers and fuel cells. He was interested in academic activities outside of the syllabus. More than the teachers at IIT, he says his classmates had a great influence on him. He says he landed up with the subjects he studied thanks to getting the last rank, and they became relevant for his getting admission into the Indian Institute of Science. He talks about the authors he read after being exposed to their books at IIT and the previous summer schools.

(01:05:12) Travel Not really having an interest in any sightseeing, Joshi shares that the only travelling he did outside Bombay was to the locations of the summer schools he attended.