P.M. Bhargava: The Indian man who saw tomorrow in a cell

The double-helix structure of DNA was postulated in 1953. By 1959, Pushpa M. Bhargava, a chemistry PhD who switched to biology, wrote a note to create a Biological Laboratory of India. By 1977, Hyderabad had the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology carved out of the space of the IICT. A new biography by Bhargava’s long-time associate Chandana Chakrabarti ‘The Man and The Making of Modern Biology in India’ brings to life the fascinating story of India’s modern biology, its tryst with irrationality, homoeopathy, fish ‘prasadam’, bureaucracy and the man who saw tomorrow in a cell. Edited excerpts from an interview with The Hindu ’s Serish Nanisetti.