An introvert who spoke his mind, Abhijeet’s family, friends recall

KOLKATA: Indian-american economist Abhijit Banerjee’s mother, Nirmala, had a hunch that her son could win the Nobel Prize someday but she did not expect him to get it so soon.

“I knew it was too ambitious to think about that but I had a hunch, especially since he [Banerjee] turned his focus on poverty. He was looking at the issue from a different angle and was the first in his field to start using large samples,” said Nirmala, a former economics professor at Kolkata’s Centre for Studies in Social Sciences. “I did not expect him to win it so early.”

Nirmala described her son as “friendly, but not outgoing”. She added that he is “polite, has no airs and is fearless about expressing his opinions.” Nirmala said that Banerjee takes care of cooking at home.

Deepali Sengupta, who taught Banerjee mathematics at South Point High School , remembered him as a shy student who would wait after completing sums. “I would go t o his desk t o see whether he has finished the sums. I remember him as a frail and short boy with thick glasses,” said Sengupta.

Banerjee’s classmate, Sharmila De Sarkar, said that he was an introvert , who would be in his elements during neighbourhood football games. “He was good at his studies though I do not remember him topping the class. He has a streak of individuality,” said De Sarkar.

Banerjee’s mother recalled that his part I undergraduate results “were a mess”. Another friend of Banerjee, Bappa Sen said, “When he comes to Kolkata, he loves to chat with us. He loves Indian classical music.”

Nirmala said when she has problems in understanding certain aspects of economics, she ask her son. “Sometimes he explains and at some other times, he refers them to his friends. Sometimes he, too, asks for my opinion,” she said. “He is critical of economic policies pursued by present government [of India]. We share the opinion in this regard.” Pierre and Marie Curie Field: Physics, 1903 Frédéric Joliot and Irène Joliot-curie Field: Chemistry, 1935 Carl and Gerty Cori

Field: Physiology or Medicine, 1947 Edward Moser and May-britt Moser Field: Physiology or Medicine, 2014 Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo

Field: Economics, 2019