Ancient Indian Science, Technologies & Culture

Dr. Arjak Bhattacharjee is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the David Kaplan's Lab, Department of biomedical engineering, Tufts University, Boston, USA. Arjak is currently pursuing his research in a highly reputed group under Prof. Kaplan, which is ranked within the world's top three cited research groups in the domain of tissue engineering, biomaterials, and regenerative medicine. He did his Ph.D. (December 2022) from the School of Mechanical and materials engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, USA under Prof. Susmita Bose and Prof. Amit Bandyopadhyay. His research area is 3D-printed implant manufacturing for various cancer treatments and tissue engineering applications, including lab grown artificial meats without animal killing with the help of ayurvedic medicines such as turmeric extract. He completed his M. Tech (2018) in materials science and engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, and received a gold medal from then the president of India, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind, for overall best performance. Arjak did his B. Tech (2016) in ceramic technology from Govt. College of Engineering and Ceramic Technology, Kolkata. He directed the world's first documentary on ceramics titled "Oneness with the Infinite" in collaboration with Prof. Hmadri Shekhar Maiti, Prof. Indranil Manna, Prof. Bikramjit Basu, and Prof. Kantesh Balani, which won two international awards in 2017. Arjak was felicitated by Dr. Harsh Vardhan, then the minister of the science of technology, Govt. of India for his contribution to scientific documentary-making. Arjak has a total of more than 16 national- international awards in his credit, including the Best Ph.D. Researcher award. He has directed and edited a unique documentary on the scientific significance of each ritual followed in a Vedic marriage ceremony, named "Vivaha". Arjak has authored & co-authored a total of 16 peer- reviewed international journal articles in reputed scientific journals based on his research. Arjak is currently serving as the president of Tufts University's postdoctoral scholars' association (PDA). Previously he has served in multiple leadership roles including graduate school senator during his Ph.D. at Washington State University and head of IIT Kanpur Vivekananda Samiti during his M. Tech at IIT Kanpur. During COVID, he served as a United Nations Online volunteer teacher for underprivileged kids.

Prof. Sukanta Majumdar is an assistant professor of Botany at the University of Gour Banga, West Bengal. He did his Ph.D. in Botany from the University of North Bengal. His research area is soil microbiology, biocontrol of fungal pathogens, and clinical applications of ayurvedic medicines and plant-derived compounds. He has authored and co-authored more than 25 peer-reviewed international journal articles in reputed scientific journals. He is serving (2019-present) as an elected member of parliament (MP) in the seventeenth Parliament (Lok Sabha) of India, representing Balurghat, West Bengal constituency. He is the parliamentary committee member of the communications and information technology committee, Govt. of India. He won the best parliamentarian of the Year award in 2023, for his excellent performance in the Indian parliament. As a policy maker, he has taken an active role in promoting Govt. of India's initiatives to spread awareness about ancient Indian science and technology for the betterment of humanity and reviving India's glorious knowledge system.

Arpita Routray is pursuing her Ph.D. in Robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, USA, which is currently the world's best institute for Robotics. She did her master's degree (2019) in Robotics from the same university. Her research area is robotic surgery, medical robotics, automation, and image processing for next-generation healthcare technologies. She has published research articles in leading peer-reviewed journals. She holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Engineering Science & Technology (IIEST), Shibpur (previously BE College Shibpur). She won a gold medal for the best academic performance during her studies at IIEST. Ms. Routray worked as the narrator and script writer of the documentary named "Vivaha" summarizing the scientific significance of the Vedic marriage ceremony

Prof. Debasish Ghorui is an assistant professor of the Department of Animation at Gujrat Law Society (GLS) Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. He did his Ph.D. (2022) in art & design at the Department of Humanities and social science, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur. His research area is visual arts, performing arts, communication design, graphic design, creative thinking, cinematography, film studies, and photography. He has worked as an art director in the documentary named "Vivaha" summarizing the scientific significance of the Vedic marriage ceremony. He has actively participated in various design-related conferences and seminars in India and abroad.