Ashna is an associate professor of physics at IISER, Pune, with research interests in experimental low-temperature physics that include magnetic oxides, carbon nanotubes, and spintronics.
In this episode, we explored her explorations in condensed matter and nanophysics. Also, we converse about Prof. R. Srinivasan, a remarkable experimental physicist who pioneered cryogenics and teaches it to college students and researchers across India.
Prasad Subramanian is a Professor at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune whose research spans plasma astrophysics, solar physics, and space weather. His work focuses on solar coronal mass ejections, black hole accretion, and astrophysical jets, combining theoretical approaches with observational data. He has contributed significantly to understanding turbulence, magnetic fields, and energetic processes in cosmic plasmas. He is also actively involved in science communication and interdisciplinary academic initiatives.
In this conversation, we discuss general aspects of astrophysics and the research topics he is interested in.
Dileep Mampallil is an Associate Professor at IISER Tirupati, specializing in microfluidics and soft matter. As a prolific science communicator in Malayalam, he has authored books on evolutionary biology [molecular foundations and human origins] and the search for extraterrestrial life [cosmic evolution]. His latest book, We May Not Be Alone, Yet Alone, is written in English and explores the scientific quest for alien intelligence.
In this episode, he presents an overview of his recent book, motivated by some intriguing questions.
Binay Panda is a Professor at JNU’s School of Biotechnology. The Oxford-educated scientist specializes in genome science, cancer genomics, and data integration, while advocating for open science and Indian biofoundries. He is also an avid long-distance cyclist.
In this freewheeling conversation, we discuss his intellectual journey and his thoughts on doing science, particularly in India.
Sanjit Mitra is a Senior Professor at IUCAA, Pune, and explores gravitational wave astronomy. Serving as the science spokesperson, Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO)-India and project coordinator, his research focuses on stochastic backgrounds, detector noise, and CMB analysis.
In this episode, we discuss the science and technology behind LIGO and its Indian expansion.
Sudipta Sarkar is a Professor of Physics at IIT Gandhinagar, specializing in gravitation, black hole thermodynamics, gravitational waves, and quantum field theory in curved spacetime. He is also interested in the history of science, particular history of relativity and connected ideas.
In this conversation, we discussed his intellectual journey and the research questions that he has been interested in.
Renny Thomas is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Social Anthropology at IISER Bhopal. An anthropologist of science, his research explores the intersection of science, religion, and culture in India. He is the author of Science and Religion in India: Beyond Disenchantment (2021) and co-editor of books: Mapping Scientific Method: Disciplinary Narrations (2022) and Decolonial Keywords: South Asian Thoughts and Attitudes (2026). Thomas, recently, was also the Taki Visiting Global Professor at New York University.
In this episode, we explore the sociology of science from an Indian perspective.
Anderson, Robert S. ‘Science and Religion in India: Beyond Disenchantment: By Renny Thomas, New York, Routledge, 2022, 203 Pp., $128CAD (Hardback), ISBN 9781032073194’. Tapuya: Latin American Science, Technology and Society 5, no. 1 (2022): 2141013. https://doi.org/10.1080/25729861.2022.2141013.
Debarati Chatterjee is a Professor of theoretical astrophysicist at IUCAA and the Chair of Education and Public Outreach for the LIGO-India project. An avid science communicator, she founded the Indian branch of the Pint of Science festival and regularly holds outreach events in multiple languages to make science accessible to all.
In this episode, we explore her intellectual journey so far.
12.Sharma, Kanika. ‘I Encourage Women to Claim Their Space in Astrophysics and Beyond’. Nature, ahead of print, 21 November 2025. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-03400-1.
Siddhesh Kamat is Professor of Biology at IISER Pune. His research explores lipid signaling, chemical biology, metabolomics, and serine hydrolases in neurodegeneration and immunity. In 2024, he was awarded the Infosys Prize (Life Sciences). He has also played under-14 cricket for Mumbai.
In this episode, we explore his intellectual journey and how sports played a vital role in his thinking.
Prof. Krishnendu Sengupta is a Senior Professor of Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata. His pioneering research explores strong correlations in ultracold atoms, quantum phase transitions, topological phases like insulators and Weyl semimetals, quantum scars, Hilbert space fragmentation, and non-equilibrium dynamics in driven systems. In this episode, we explore his intellectual journey.
References:
‘Bird, Jonathan, Jinguang Cheng, Chun-Gang Duan, et al. ‘Future of Condensed Matter Physics for the next 10 Years*’. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter 37, no. 42 (2025): 421502. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-648X/ae0be1.