R. Srianand
Director, IUCAA
Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar (JVN as we fondly refer to) left us peacefully in his sleep at his residence in Pune on May 20, 2025. This marks the end of an extraordinary chapter in Indian science. During his long decorated career, he inspired an uncountable number of young minds to take up science, shaped the careers of a large number of young scientists who went on to become world leaders in various aspects of Astrophysics and Cosmology.
As a researcher, he made unique and groundbreaking contributions to cosmology, challenged prevailing scientific orthodoxy, and took it as a mission to spread science and scientific temper to the broader public. He is best known for co-developing the Hoyle–Narlikar theory of gravity and for championing the steady-state theory in the initial days and quasi-steady-state theory of the universe in the later years. These theories challenged the widely accepted Big Bang model. While being a strong proponent of alternative models, he did not impose his views on his students and colleagues. No surprise, best research articles providing support to the Big Bang model and those that improved the foundations of Big Bang model emerged from IUCAA when it was under his leadership. Allowing young researchers to grow in their own way is a rare but admirable trait among researchers - one well worth emulating from JVN.
JVN built IUCAA as a “role model” institute to promote the nucleation and growth of active groups in astronomy and astrophysics at Indian universities. He embedded the best practices of the world's most successful institutions into the constitution of IUCAA. IUCAA is the first institute to have both Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) and Users’ Committee (UC) as statutory bodies in its Memorandum of Association (MOA). He firmly believed that a regular scientific scrutiny is essential for an institute to constantly grow without stagnation. He had unparalleled commitment to spreading A&A in Indian universities. All steps were taken at IUCAA to encourage and support high quality research among university teachers. The whole setup is such that any university visitor will feel IUCAA as his/her home. Personally, I benefited a lot from IUCAA while starting my career from Utkal university, Bhubaneswar.
While JVN is a celebrity to the outside world, he was an easily accessible person to IUCAA members. I am sure each one of us have our own personal moments with JVN. He recognised even the smallest of contributions made by the members while building and growing IUCAA. His commitment to IUCAA is reflected in the fact that till his last breath, he was always there in the “farewell functions” of different IUCAA employees. In his speeches he used to highlight contributions, various interactions and personal moments with the retiring individual. This used to be the life-time moment for the employees of IUCAA. While he was emotionally involved in IUCAA, he showed remarkable restraint and stayed away from involving directly or indirectly on the day-to-day activities of IUCAA. This again is a unique virtue of JVN. Needless to say, he was extremely forthcoming and supportive when we went to him for advice/suggestions on any issues.
A common line we often hear from the science administrators is, ‘I am busy and have no time to do science’. As we say in Cricket (a sport he loved a lot) JVN had a lot more time in his hand compared to the rest. I think he was born with a natural instinct of “time-management”. When he was the Director he was guiding students, writing papers and books, regularly teaching in IUCAA Graduate School, Pune University and giving enormous numbers of public talks etc. I was always amazed by this. When you fix a meeting with him it used to start exactly on time and end within the scheduled time. He never seemed hurried at any point during the meeting. Despite that, all the key points were discussed, and the meeting ended smoothly — unlike what we often experience these days: 'Sorry, we need to end this meeting, I have another one starting in a minute.' I only wish I had even 10–20% of his efficiency.
Dr. Narlikar authored numerous books and articles in English, Hindi, Marathi and occasionally in Sanskrit as well, making science accessible to the general public. He firmly believed in bringing science to the general public as one of the duties of any researcher. This is why he made science popularisation as part of core IUCAA activities from the very beginning. Various regular activities like ‘Second Saturday Public Lectures’ and ‘Summer Programme for school children’ were started by him in early 1990s. His interaction with the public through “Ask the scientist?” during National Science Day celebrations was the most popular event every year. He was always there for this event. This year, when it became apparent that interacting with the public was difficult, he held a 30-minute session titled 'Mathematics Without Number Crunching.' It was an outstanding event.
When we talk about JVN, we can go on and on… Surely, we will miss him. But the best tribute we can offer is to follow at least some of his finest principles.
Ajit Kembhavi
Former-Director, IUCAA
Professor Jayant Narlikar passed away in his sleep in the early hours of May 20, following a brief illness precipitated by a simple fall at home, the ensuing surgery and the effects of a heart condition. He had not been in the best of health for some time, and yet was able to carry out his routine in a highly productive way. Since January 2024, he was writing a blog, covering different stages of his life, which I am sure will be sorely missed by the tens of thousands of people who read it.
By any measure, for long Jayant has been the face of astronomy, and even wider science, in India. He rose to fame as a research student of the great Fred Hoyle at the University of Cambridge. He did an astonishing amount of work, got coveted awards including the Adams Prize, and held his own in fiery meetings of the Royal Astronomical Society. On a visit to India in the mid-sixties, he thoroughly impressed the scientific community, and captivated the public imagination through his ever smiling face, a gentle way of talking about the most profound matters, and a singular ability to convey to non-expert people his thoughts about the universe including his own researches. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan at the tender age of 26 years. He continued to interact with the public in many ways right to the end.
Jayant’s first work was on the distribution of cosmic radio sources as a function of their flux, the log N-Log S distribution. The shape of the distribution depends on the metric of the Universe, the distribution of the sources in space, and whether or not the source population evolves as a function of cosmic time. The radio data was from the Cambridge radio telescopes built by astronomers from Cavendish Laboratory led by Martin Ryle. Ryle favoured the Big Bang theory of the Universe in which the radio source population could be evolving, while Fred Hoyle, one of the creators of the steady state theory, believed that the distribution should be constant in time. The young Narlikar was sandwiched between these quite different points of view. A clear resolution of the problem would have then been impossible, because of the very limited data available and absence of measured redshifts of the sources. Nevertheless, the debates had far reaching consequences, not only for cosmology, but also for the career paths of the protagonists. Martin Ryle and Anthony Hewish jointly won the Nobel Prize in Physics for 1974, being the first astronomers to be so honoured.
Along with the data analysis, Narlikar also worked on difficult theoretical problems, including Newtonian cosmological models with rotation and shear, to study the nature of the singularity present in them. Such models in general relativity had already been studied by A. K. Raychaudhuri, but models in the Newtonian framework could not be obtained as simple special cases of the Raychaudhuri equation, and needed a sophisticated approach. In the same years, Jayant worked with Hoyle on the age of galaxies and the avoidance of singularities in steady state cosmology, Mach’s Principle and the Creation of Matter, Time Symmetric Electrodynamics and Arrow of Time in Cosmology. This output was remarkable by any standards; it had great variety, depth and novelty, and went against many cherished conventional ideas. In 1966, Hoyle and Narlikar published work on a new theory of gravitation, which is invariant under conformal transformations. The theory incorporated Mach’s Principle, action-at-a-distance concepts and so forth, and is sweeping in its scope. It reduced to Einstein’s theory in the weak field regime of the classical test, but was different in its global implications. The attractive nature of the gravitational force arose as a consequence of the theory.
Jayant spent much effort, first with Fred Hoyle, and then with other distinguished astronomers including Geoffrey Burbidge, on the steady state theory, working out its astrophysical implications. The model lost much of its allure after the first discovery of the cosmic microwave background, but in the early years of the discovery attempts were made by Jayant, Hoyle and Chandra Wickramasinghe to attribute the origin of the radiation to Galactic sources. Over the years accurate measurements of the Planckian form of the radiation, and its isotropy made an early hot phase of the Universe inescapable. That required a modification of the model to a quasi-steady state theory in which hot phases would be possible with mini-bangs, but there would be no singularity, making the Universe eternal as in the pure steady state theory. A possibility here is that galaxies from an earlier phase of the Universe could survive to appear as seemingly prematurely evolved galaxies in early epochs of our phase. Jayant carried out observations with collaborators to find such galaxies, and it is intriguing that the JWST is finding just such objects in the very early epochs. With Burbidge and Halton Arp, Jayant also worked on possible anomalous redshift of quasars.
In later years Jayant pursued the idea, originally due to Fred Hoyle, that microorganisms could have entered the Earth’s atmosphere from outer space. The idea seemed very fanciful when Hoyle first proposed it. He was denied publication of his theory in scientific journals, and he had to publish it as a science fiction novel. Jayant proposed experiments which could be carried out to detect organisms in the upper atmosphere, which could not have gotten there from the surface of the Earth, and which could possibly have nature distinct from their terrestrial counterparts. While much planning was done in collaboration with people from ISRO and other organisations, the experiment was never carried out. That was possibly a great lost opportunity, especially given the growing realisation that living organisms could exist in several locations in the Solar system, and the ubiquity of habitable extrasolar planets in our Galaxy, even though those planets are too distant to contribute organisms to our atmosphere.
After he joined TIFR in 1972, Jayant continued his work on various fronts in gravitation and cosmology. He mainly worked with a number of talented graduate students, with some working on problems of his interest, while others devoted their effort to areas of their own choice. He was very democratic in the matter, as he was in all his interactions at every level, and that attitude seems to have worked very well. Many of his students and other young researchers have done excellently in their professions, and others who have worked for him in various capacities have always contributed their best.
Jayant’s phase as an institution builder started when Professor Yash Pal, who was then the Chairman of the University Grants Commission, invited him to set up a new institution, which would be unique in addressing the difficulties of the universities in carrying out research in astronomy and astrophysics. When Jayant moved to Pune for the purpose on June 1, 1989, the piece of land where IUCAA now stands was a verdant plot with tens of banyan trees, and where buffalos grazed peacefully on the abundant grass. Soon the buffalos moved on, the trees were relocated to other places on the plot where they have thrived, and in their place rose the unique buildings of IUCAA, designed by Charles Correa. But even before the facilities became available, scientific work and all related activities had started and soon IUCAA became known as a place where good astronomy was done.
The unique feature of IUCAA of course were the tens of visitors from the universities and colleges who came all the way from distant parts of the country, even though there were hardly any facilities. They worked in collaboration, and brought their students and soon there was a thriving astronomical community in the universities. Jayant helped by interacting personally with the visitors, who soon increased greatly in number. He often visited departments all over the country lecturing and introducing teachers and students to IUCAA, and providing basic email and other then emerging facilities at IUCAA’s cost. The development of the university community is Jayant’s greatest contribution to astronomy in India.
The process was far from simple. First there was widespread skepticism in the existing astronomical community about setting up a new centre outside the traditional umbrellas, and that too by a small group of untested young persons. There was great support from the highest levels of the government, but there was the regulatory space to be traversed, which was made so much more difficult because of the uniqueness of the new venture. Jayant mostly got over the difficulties in his usual gently persuasive way, but on occasion he had to tell people at the highest level that either the project goes in his way, or he goes.
Jayant made public outreach an integral part of IUCAA. The activities began with hundreds of school children coming to the campus, still under construction for Saturday lectures. In many countries that would have been an insurance nightmare. But the children were not worried, and now in their middle age, still fondly recount the inspiration that they received from Jayant to do well, and better, in whatever they were doing. That was a simple message, but it has produced many stars over the decades. Jayant took the message beyond students and teachers to the general public, who always came in great numbers whenever and wherever he lectured, and were mystified that the great person they had heard so much about was after all one of their own. Jayant’s books, articles and science fiction stories have been received very well. The public affection and adulation he got has been truly unique.
Jayant’s father was a general relativist, with his first student P. C. Vaidya being the discoverer of the famous Vaidya metric, and his mother was a Sanskrit pandit. Jayant lost his wife Mangala almost two years ago, just two days before his 85th birthday. She was a mathematician, teacher and author, but spent much of her time facilitating, and in later years enabling his many activities. She was a great strength and inspiration for him, and to countless others who met her. Jayant is survived by his three daughters Geeta, Girija and Leelavati, and their families. The three work at the top of their chosen professions in science and technology.
Tarun Souradeep (RRI)
Director & Professor, Raman Research Institute
It is with a very heavy heart that I convey the sad news that Professor Jayant Narlikar passed away peacefully in his sleep at his residence last night.
Professor Narlikar was a doyen of Indian science. Renowned cosmologist, a distinguished science stateman and communicator, and perhaps most importantly, a gifted institution builder. Our sister institution, IUCAA, stands as a lasting legacy of his commitment to creating and promoting scientific excellence across the nation.
He was instrumental in the setting up of the Indian Association of General Relativity and Gravitation to organise the Indian community in Gravitation and Cosmology. The first International conference on Gravitation and Cosmology (ICGC) meeting in Goa in 1987 brought together the best researchers in the world in touch with the Indian community. This meeting series, much like many of his other inititatives, has sustained and grown over the decades.
In my humble opinion, a couple of points that make him stand apart among the Indian greats are his strong sense of justice and equality and his unwavering commitment to the causes he believed in — science popularisation and outreach, empowering the university sector and peudo-science-based superstitions and astrology.
This is a great loss to the nation and, in particular, Indian science. Personally, it is an deep loss for Sucheta and me since we took our first steps in research in the unique ambience that he fostered at, the then nascent, IUCAA. He mentored my first years of PhD when I enjoyed his unstinted support for complete freedom of thought.
I was also fortunate to have him as the Director when I returned to a faculty position at IUCAA. He remained a true well-wisher for all my endevours till date. He will remain a source of inspiration for me and, as I am sure, many others around the country and the globe.
Bobo Ahmedov
Vice-Chair of the Council of Physicist of Uzbekistan
Today, we were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar. He was the most prominent scientist in theoretical astrophysics and cosmology in our Asian region. He played a pivotal role in the development of relativistic astrophysics in Central Asia, serving as the founding director of the Inter-University Centre of Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in India.
Professor Narlikar was not only a brilliant scientist, known internationally for his pioneering work in cosmology and gravitation, but also an inspiring educator and science communicator. He was a brilliant speaker at the scientific popular events. I remember his numerous interesting talks for the school children in the Chandra Sekhar auditorium. His contributions to the field, including the Hoyle-Narlikar theory, have left a profound impact on modern astrophysical thought. He remained committed to promoting scientific temper and education throughout his life.
On behalf of the GR community of Uzbekistan, we extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, our collegues, friends and the wider scientific community in India and beyond. His legacy will continue to inspire generations of scientists, students, and science lovers. May his soul rest in peace.
P. Sreekumar
Professor & Director, Manipal Centre for Natural Sciences (MCNS)
It is with deep sadness that we at the Manipal Centre for Natural Sciences, MAHE received the news of the passing away of Prof. Jayant Narlikar.
Prof. Narlikar is the leading figure in Indian Astronomy in this era and has made numerous contributions to Astronomy & Astrophysics research, teaching, and community outreach. His vision of IUCAA truly transformed the size and extend of the Indian astronomy community, in particular the University sector. His own fundamental contributions to Cosmology research and pedagogy is well recognised globally and we will truly miss his presence, guidance and support in future activities.
The faculty, IUCAA Associates and students of MCNS, MAHE express their heartfelt condolences to the family of Prof. Narlikar and IUCAA in this time of grief.
Shyam Narayan Tandon
Prof. Jayant Narlikar made very major contributions to science, propagation of science, teaching and institution building. For all his contributions he received abundant love and praise of Indians as well as many national and international recognitions. In addition to quality of his contributions, the sheer volume of his contributions makes one wonder how a single person could accomplish so much. In my long association with him I had the opportunity to observe his unique personal traits. I shall try to share some of these in my narration below.
His insistence on keeping time-schedule was known to anyone who had any direct interaction with him. On an occasion he could not find a car for some short trip because the driver had left quite early to pick up a guest at Shivaji Nagar Railway station. On his return the driver was told by Jayant that reaching too early for an event was as bad as reaching too late and therefore he should plan to reach the station only about 5 minutes before arrival of the train.
While he expected high standards from his surroundings, he had a lot of patience and hardly ever showed any anger if he found something not meeting his expectation. I remember two rare instances on which he expressed his disappointment. The first was when he experienced the terrible state of telephone connections at TIFR, Mumbai (then Bombay). He got so disappointed that he unplugged the telephone apparatus in his office-room and gifted it to the registrar. The other instance was related to poor quality of English used in the some of the notices at IUCAA. One day he got so upset that he circulated an e-mail asking the notices to be sent to him for correcting the language before being displayed.
In his vision, observational astronomy and hence instrumentation were essential components of IUCAA’s academic profile . As he was a theoretical astronomer, many were surprised by this emphasis. However, despite the slow maturation of instrumentation activity at IUCAA he supported it whole heartedly through the years and the other directors continued to provide similar support. It is the result of this sustained support, resulting from his long term vision, that IUCAA has been a major participant in the first two space missions of ISRO which are fully devoted to astronomy.
We shall always remember him for his contributions to science and Indian society.
Shiva Kumar Malapaka
My deepest condolences to all the IUCAA family for we have lost the father figure of this institution.
Prof. Narlikar will be remembered by all in Indian Astrophysics Community not only as the creator of a great institution called IUCAA but also as a Scientist, who, through his talks, writings and various other outreach activities touched the lives of countless young minds and inspired them to take up Astronomy/ Astrophysics.
I will never forget my first encounter with Prof. Narlikar. I was a M.Sc (Astronomy) student at Osmania University and visited IUCAA for Automated Data Analysis conference in 1999. He gave a talk in that conference and I asked some very naive question and he instead of telling me that it was not an intelligent question, answered it. Later in the dinner I went to take his autograph and he asked me where I was from and said some nice things. Later I also listened to him in Nanded as a part of the Introductory School on Astronomy and Astrophysics and there he gave a wonderful talk on Cosmology. We(all the students who came there.. i mean) had some long interactions with him during this meeting. I will always remember that one conversation of how the proposers of Steady state theory also chanced upon CMB Radiation and its correct current temperature, but because of disagreements among themselves on that thought, did not publish that critical result. He told us about this just before this was to be published in one of his books, if I remember correctly in Nanded itself.
Later, when I was doing my Ph.D at MaxPlanck Institute (MPI) for Plasma Physics, Garching,Munich, I suddenly saw one day Prof. Narlikar walking towards MPI for Astrophysics. I stopped immediately and re-introduced myself and we both walked together and he asked me what I was doing there. He was very happy to hear I was a Ph.D student there and invited me to his apartment. I went and met him there and also met Mrs. Narlikar . He told me that he had promised madam of the Rhine river cruise and that he is now fulfilling it in few days and that they were eagerly looking forward for that trip. I informed about Prof. Narlikar to my Marathi friends in my hostel and they too visited him at his apartment and invited both him and madam for dinner, for which he obliged and came. We all had a great evening.
As our routes were same, I used to bump into him during that visit more often and I had some interesting conversations during that time. One particular conversation comes to my mind. I asked him what was his favorite quantum mechanics text book. He said Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals by R. Feynman. I never heard of that book before .. so went to our institute library and looked at that book. That was too high standard a book for me. Next time when I bumped into Prof. Narlikar... I remarked the same. He said you should read that book with love and care then you will start liking it. Maybe some day I shall do that.
I visited IUCAA a few times after my Ph.D and never missed a chance to meet Prof. Narlikar. I always could learn something from him and also take with me thoughts that I could use in my life and research. Last time I saw him was when I visited IUCAA as a visiting associate. He was not well that time and did not come to the institute regularly during the days I stayed there, but on the day he did come I happened to meet him but just could enquire how he was.
I always was (am) inspired by Prof. Narikar, his leadership, his vision and for the love of science he had and carried throughout his life.
Next time when I visit IUCAA, I will dearly miss him.
Thank you Professor Narlikar for inspiring generations of students to take up Astronomy and Astrophysics.
Manzoor Malik
Intimidated by modesty
My first encounter with Professor Narlikar was in 2002 at the 10:30 tea near the IUCAA pendulum. I was standing in the queue when I realized that Prof. Narlikar was just behind me. Being used to the false prestige we associate with positions and status, I quietly tried to slip aside so that I can go behind him (in the queue). Prof. Narlikar sensed it quickly and gently pushed me back to where I was standing. There were 3-4 people ahead of me but it took almost ages for that queue to clear.
Later I could chat with him many times and discovered how humble the soul is. He had truly earned the respect he received from everyone and besides being a great scientist was a genuinely good human being.
D. Shanti Priya
It is with deep respect and admiration that the Department of Astronomy at Osmania University pays tribute to Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar, a towering figure in the field of theoretical astrophysics and cosmology, and an enduring inspiration to generations of scientists, educators, and students in India and around the world.
Beyond his research, Prof. Narlikar has been an extraordinary science communicator. His popular science writings and lectures have ignited the imaginations of countless young minds, bringing the wonders of the cosmos within reach of every curious student. His establishment of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) laid a strong foundation for collaborative astronomical research in India, empowering institutions like ours to flourish.
At Osmania University, we have long drawn inspiration from Prof. Narlikar’s integrative vision of science and education. His legacy continues to guide our teaching, research, and outreach activities.
On behalf of the faculty, researchers, and students of the Department of Astronomy, we express our heartfelt gratitude to Prof. Narlikar for a lifetime of scholarly brilliance and selfless service to the advancement of science in India.
“To look up at the stars and dream is human. To show others the way to the stars—that is greatness.”
Thank you, Professor J. V. Narlikar.
Amit Pathak
Prof. Narlikar has helped directly or indirectly hundreds of PhD students across India to pursue research in Astronomy. Establishing IUCAA and designing it in such a way that the facilities are open for use by University researchers has uplifted the quality of research in Astronomy in India. I have been a personal beneficiary of this. Most of my PhD work was done using the then newly established HPC facility of IUCAA. Most of my PhD students have benefitted by using facilities of IUCAA or collaborating with IUCAA faculty members.
It is slightly disappointing to note that except IUCAA, the idea of having such institutions in other areas of research have not been thought of. Replicating IUCAA in other areas of science will be extremely helpful for the research environment of the country. May be we cannot replicate JVN. He was one and only...
My heartfelt tribute to Prof. Narlikar.
S. K. Bannerjee
I am shocked to my core. We have lost one of the best teachers we had ever met. Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar had been a remarkable brilliant teacher who touched the lives of countless students, as well as teachers. He wasn't just an educator but also a mentor and a friend to all. He left behind a legacy in the field of education with his inspirational and thought-provoking teaching style and a multitude of scholarly publications. On the collaboration of research projects, many of us will always treasure the moments of delightful discussions and the hearty laugh that shattered the weekend silence in IUCAA. I personally have lost my guru, my mentor and a great human being. I fall short of words to express my profound grief on the sad demise of our beloved Narlikar Sir. We pray God for his soul to rest in peace. We plead almighty to give his family members and the entire scientific community strength and fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.
Heisnam Shanjit Singh
We are deeply shocked and saddened by his sudden departure. It is truly painful to think that we will no longer see him or meet him at the IUCAA premises during our visits. Yet, his quiet strength, intellectual curiosity, and a rare blend of simplicity and humility will continue to inspire us and live on in our hearts and memories. May his noble soul rest in eternal peace.
Rinku Jacob
A Guiding Star in Indian Science
Prof. Jayant V. Narlikar was more than a pioneering cosmologist—he was a visionary who illuminated Indian science with intellectual courage, clarity, and deep public engagement. His contributions to alternative cosmological models, especially the Hoyle–Narlikar theory, challenged conventional thought and expanded the boundaries of our understanding of the universe.
As an institution builder, he laid the foundation of IUCAA with a vision for collaborative excellence, where science could be pursued with integrity and freedom. His writings, both academic and popular, inspired countless students—including myself—to look beyond textbooks and engage deeply with the universe.
His legacy will continue to inspire generations of scientists, thinkers, and educators.
Ksh. Newton Singh
Loss of Another Great Theoretical Physicist
Prof. Jayant Vishnu Narlikar was a visionary astrophysicist, a pioneering thinker, and an inspiring educator whose contributions reshaped our understanding of the universe. His work challenged conventional cosmological theories, offering alternative perspectives to the widely accepted Big Bang model.
Born on July 19, 1938, in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, Prof. Narlikar’s intellectual brilliance was evident from an early age. He pursued his education at Banaras Hindu University and later at Cambridge University, where he collaborated with the legendary Sir Fred Hoyle to develop the Hoyle–Narlikar theory of conformal gravity—a revolutionary alternative to the Big Bang theory.
Beyond his scientific achievements, Prof. Narlikar was a passionate science communicator. He believed in making complex scientific ideas accessible to the masses, writing extensively to popularize astronomy and astrophysics. His leadership as the founding director of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune helped establish India as a global hub for astronomical research.
His passing on May 20, 2025, at the age of 86, marked the end of an era in Indian astrophysics. Yet, his legacy lives on in the countless students, researchers, and admirers he inspired. His contributions will continue to illuminate the path for future generations of scientists, ensuring that his vision of a universe filled with curiosity and discovery remains alive.
Rest in peace, Prof. Narlikar. The cosmos you studied so passionately will forever carry your imprint.
Gyan Prakash Singh
Prof. J. V. Narlikar provided invaluable support to researchers specially working in colleges and universities in the form of IUCAA. First time I participated in the Graduate School on Gravitation and Cosmology at IUCAA, Pune, September 04-23, 1989. Since then I got opportunity to visit IUCAA and utilize its facilities for research. Similar to me large number of researchers, students received motivation, encouragement and support from Prof. Narlikar which enable to enhance their knowledge and career in the field of Relativity, Cosmology, Astronomy and Astrophysics. Prof. Narlikar was always interested in teaching and motivating young generation specially students. On our request, twice he visited VNIT, Nagpur twice and delivered talks for the benefits of students, researchers, and teachers.
It is difficult to express in words his help to the scientific community, rather it can be felt.
G. Ambika
I cherish the memory of my many interactions with Prof Narlikar , especially during his visit as Chief Guest for Convocation in IISER Pune on May 26, 2018
Kishor D Patil
It is with great sorrow that I learn of the passing of great scientist Dr.Jayant Narlikar . His contribution to the astronomy and astrophysics will be remembered. I am grateful for the opportunity to have known and worked with Dr.Jayant Narlikar.
Ranjan Sharma
May IUCAA be the shining 'star' that continues to inspire and guide us to fulfil Prof. J V Narlikar's dreams! His passing leaves a 'void' in this 'cosmos', but his memory will be a 'steady state' of warmth and inspiration in our hearts.
Gazi Ameen Ahmed
Passing of a legend
Few personalities can draw the love of millions of people. One such person was the legendary Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar. His enormous and tireless efforts towards the creation of the Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics in Pune can never be forgotten. His scientific contributions, especially in Astronomy and Astrophysics will continue to inspire and illuminate students, researchers and the common man for eons to come. Those who were fortunate to have met him cannot forget his kind words and humble nature. To be near him itself was a blessing. Although Professor Narlikar left us on May 20, 2025, his legend will continue. May his soul rest in eternal peace.
Shyamal Kumar Banerjee
I am shocked to my core. We have lost one of the best teachers we had ever met. Professor Jayant Vishnu Narlikar had been a remarkable brilliant teacher who touched the lives of countless students, as well as teachers. He wasn't just an educator but also a mentor and a friend to all. He left behind a legacy in the field of education with his inspirational and thought-provoking teaching style and a multitude of scholarly publications. On the collaboration of research projects, many of us will always treasure the moments of delightful discussions and the hearty laugh that shattered the weekend silence in IUCAA. I personally have lost my guru, my mentor and a great human being. I fall short of words to express my profound grief on the sad demise of our beloved Narlikar Sir. We pray to God for his soul to rest in peace. We plead almighty to give his family members and the entire scientific community strength and fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.
Srijit Bhattacharjee
JVN: A humble giant
When I entered into high school, I first heard about Prof. Jayant Narlikar from one my science teachers. Later, I encountered this name many times in quizzes, television programmes and newspapers but did not know at that time that one day I will get an opportunity to preside a meeting between JVN and research scholars. This remarkable incident happened in Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics some fifteen yeas ago when I was doing my PhD. I consider it one of the most memorable events of my life. I spent almost a hour sitting beside this towering figure of Indian science and noticed how astonishingly humble person he is, listening all the questions with immense patience and answering each of them with his characteristic smile. Apart from his scientific achievements he would be remembered as one of the greatest science communicators and administrators of the country. Above all the most important lesson one should learn from him is to remain calm, and humble even after achieving almost everything a scientist can dream for.
Bikash Chandra Paul
Prof. J. V. Narlikar was the father figure in the modern Indian Astronomy. IUCAA is our second home for doing research like a native place which was dreamt and built with extraordinary architecture by JVN and his active team from Pune. IUCAA is a sacred place marvelous creation and wonderful environment of learning. Creation of JVN will be remembered by the world and all Indians. We are expressing our deepest condolence for the journey of his soul from the earth a known place to the unknown.
Soumya D. Mohanty
I was fortunate to have been a PhD student at IUCAA during its formative years in the early 1990s when Prof. Narlikar was at the helm. Looking back, it is amazing to realize how he set IUCAA's course of growth from a few temporary buildings (a few years before my arrival) to the internationally known research powerhouse it is today. Proud of my association with it. On a personal note, I met Prof. Narlikar and his wife about 10 years after my graduation when we were both visiting Western University in Canada. I was surprised and humbled that they both still remembered me. This personal touch was a hallmark of Prof. Narlikar's many outstanding qualities as a leader.
Aakash Narayan
Sir, we are always thankful to you that you alone setup iucaa for many students and teacher, you are always part of our heart mind and Soul, we from Uttar Pradesh always thankful to you for your extraordinary approach and intellectual behaviour.
Vasant Wagh
खगोलशास्त्रातील प्रेरणास्त्थान होतेत डॉ. जयंत नारळीकर
Murli Manohar Verma
A tale of unknown destinations !
Jayant Vishnu Narlikar or JVN is no more with us in this world, at least as much as we know about this sad event.
In him lay a huge inspiration that came my way.
I recall my meeting him first in July of 1987 at Centro Brasiliero de Pesquisas Fisicas, Rio de Janeiro, though I had interacted with him several times through postal mail before that as a master's student at Allahabad University. Postal communication through those pale postcards or blue inland envelopes kept going on for years further. One such letter to me was written by him on the day when his mother (Tai) passed away. He had scribbled a few lines about black hole entropy and arrow of time. JVN was fond of writing... yes, even letters. He carefully and sparingly chose his words.
Later, as my research work progressed and time flew by, we met at Allahabad, and more frequently, at IUCAA along with my family and at his own house at Pashaan for lunch or evening snacks.
At the door of his house, he had put up a self made cardboard clock for the milkman, telling him not time, but the amount of milk to be given on a particular day.
Often, when in Pune, he took my family to a restaurant for Lunch. He would come to pick us up at the guest house foyer at the exact scheduled time. At lunch, Mangala ji and he himself used to describe the recipe of food items or condiments in detail. Thus, he explained to us why in the IUCAA canteen, he had put up a quote by Brillat-Savarin, ""The discovery of a new dish brings more joy to mankind than discovery of a star"". His culinary traits were matchless.
We also invited him to Lucknow in December of 2012 for a lecture on the topic, ""How well do we know our Universe?"" It awfully attracted a huge audience in our large Malaviya Hall as never before. Despite being hit by Parkison's in his seventies then, he expressed his desire to visit the Bhoolbhulaiya at the Imaambaara which has many sharply inclined stair steps to walk up, but with unyielding excitement, he, along with Mangala ji and my wife Leena, happily moved around with insatiable curiosity. He also inquired if the state government had a map of the labyrinth, which no one had any clue about. Even though he followed the protocol of being the state guest and stayed in the Raj Bhavan as the Hon'ble Governor had insisted, both of them visited my University flat on the third floor, (which too had stairs but he was undeterred) for lunch. He smilingly asked me to keep ready a list of items at the table before lunch so that no item is missed in serving!
Once, I took a handicraft (chikankaari) kurta for him from Lucknow and presented it to him in his office at IUCAA in the following morning. He burst into cheers like a child, and softly said ""Aaj to main ise hi pahnunga."" And post lunch, like a magic wizard, he appeared in the new robe.
Such was this man!
A train of seemingly endless memories flashes through my mind.
I had already seen him walking a long distance in the corridor from his office at a far end slowly up to the tea room and back with a stick without accepting any human help, holding tea cup with trembling hands, sipping tea while sitting on stones at the IUCAA lawns, keeping a tab to write even when he got stuck in flight delays at airports (interestingly, he dedicated one of his books to airlines authorities for the delays which allowed him enough time to write).
Last my family joined Mangala ji and him together in Pune, was in January 2023, 9th of that month to be precise, when we again had lunch in the same restaurant, and incidentally, when he came to know that it was my birthday too, he happily asked me to eat more as a mark of celebration cracking a few jokes about facts and fictions in life.
The same year, on July 17, Mangala ji passed away.
Following his health conditions, he had to take support of a wheel chair, still more recently, he continued writing enlightening blogs on life, science, world and how it all began. Clarity, precision and time management, as usual was the hallmark of his expression, as much as it was for the other parts of his life.
His autobiography ""My tale of four cities"" relaxes me to the extent that it has become a routine for me to read a few lines from it in free time.
...the tale of four cities has now taken him to an uncharted city in which he may have found his new abode. Knowing him from his ilk, I guess he would keep sending us his writings on the pale yellow post cards about the new wonders, with a strong message ""don't blindly follow the bandwagon"" or ""use your rational mind, quite often missing even in so called scientific pursuits"". He would be still saying, ""I'd reply back with my autographs only if you ask me questions about life and world"".
He may have crossed the event horizon towards a singularity that we don't know about. He would have many more tales. How would, then, we learn about those tales?
