Born in Narsapur, Andhra Pradesh, India • Birth Year 1987 • MSc in Mathematics at Madras Christian College, Chennai, India • PhD in Mathematics from Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, India • Lives in Bengaluru, India • Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics, Christ University, Bengaluru, India
I was born in June 1975 in Narsapur, Andhra Pradesh, India. I studied at Nirmala High School, a prestigious school in the quiet town of Machilipatnam. When I was around 10 years old, I had the privilege of learning from a brilliant teacher who taught mathematics at my school and would occasionally read a story during class. Mathematics did not excite me much, but I fell in love with reading, most specifically, literature. Since the teachers who taught me mathematics in high school were strict, I dreaded my math teachers more than the subject itself. Some of the teachers expressed great displeasure that I was not following the subject at all. The fact of the matter was, I was unable to grasp the concepts. I had neglected the subject for a long time.
I realized that studying mathematics made me logical, precise and optimistic in life. The subject helped me gain the confidence and skills to achieve much more than I ever aspired to.
Though I made efforts, I could not follow the subject at all. With time, I became cold and distant with mathematics. Being a mathematics teacher herself, my mother insisted that studying mathematics was essential until a certain point in a student’s life. Heeding her advice, I pursued mathematics. Though I struggled initially, I did not give up and made persistent efforts to learn it. When I noticed in the first class of my undergraduate studies that a peer of mine performed very well in the mathematics class, I approached her for help, seeking guidance on strategies for learning the subject rather than on what to learn. In a couple of days that I spent with her, I picked up the skills to teach myself the subject and figure things out. There was no looking back since then. Gradually, I began to feel that mathematics was very interesting and not difficult to score well in. But love for mathematics developed much later during my Master’s as I learnt courses like abstract algebra and number theory.
Why teaching?
I still cannot decide what I love the most: Is it the subject of mathematics, or is it the joy of teaching it, or is it the excitement of learning mathematics?
As much as I felt intimidated by my teachers, I was in awe of them as well. So much so that I made up my mind to become a teacher very early in life. I wanted to teach, and wanted my students to feel differently from how I did as a student and see me as a very approachable teacher. I also realised that the best way to learn anything was to teach someone. At every stage, I would look for peers who were struggling and volunteer to teach them. I realized that studying mathematics made me logical, precise and optimistic in life. The subject helped me gain the confidence and skills to achieve much more than I ever aspired to. I started teaching right after my postgraduation. I took maternity breaks and quit jobs whenever my presence was needed at home. But even during those breaks, I upgraded myself in academics or taught individuals so that I stayed in touch with the subject. My kids have more memories of their mummy studying rather than playing with them. But that is what gave me joy in life and kept me going. I have close to three decades of teaching experience. With great conviction, I can admit that my career in teaching is all about learning mathematics every day and getting paid for learning. I still cannot decide what I love the most: Is it the subject of mathematics, or is it the joy of teaching it, or is it the excitement of learning mathematics?
Why Graph Theory?
Years later, when I contemplated doing a PhD, I realised that graph theory was the most suitable option for me. The nature of this course is that anyone can start learning this at any point. It is simple to learn, easy to visualise and totally captivating in mind. Completing a PhD was not an easy journey. Despite the challenges and lags, I tried my best! It was a great learning experience and a humbling one. When I started teaching again after my PhD, I took every opportunity to teach graph theory and promote research in it.
What do I love to do?
I find great joy in teaching foundational courses such as discrete mathematics, graph theory and algebra. These courses promote a lot of dialogue in the classrooms, and I constantly learn from their queries and responses. Research in graph theory gives me a lot of fulfillment. It gives me immense pride when any of our students choose a career in teaching mathematics or research, and my joy is doubled when it is a female student. My message for future mathematicians would be to pursue the subject diligently. Without a doubt, I can say that teaching mathematics gives us a sense of purpose and a sense of great pride.
Published on April 22, 2026
Photo Credit: Tabitha Rajashekar