Book Review | Jagadish Bose, idealist who shone against odds

In 1897, the Italian inventor, Guglielmo Marconi, met Jagadish Chandra Bose, the subject of this thoroughly researched biography. See, the work I have come here for is far more worthy than money… I turned down his offer.” The scientist and scholar, Meher Wan, is adroit at capturing this unwavering idealism twinned with a lack of worldliness that lie at the heart of Bose’s life and work. After his father’s death, Bose spent years – refusing waivers from his creditors – repaying the debts his father had run up through failed charitable enterprises. After an undistinguished undergraduate degree from St Xavier’s College, Calcutta, Bose’s parents borrowed money, sold off jewellery and sent him to study medicine in London. The Scientific Sufi: The Life and Times of Jagadish Chandra Bose By Meher Wan Penguin pp 264, Rs 499