The Nobel laureate Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman FRS and his contacts with the British scientific community in a social and political context

Abstract

The Indian Nobel laureate Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman FRS (18887–1970) interacted closely with the British scientific community. He was elected a Fellow of The Royal Society in 1924, was knighted by the Colonial Government in 1929 and was awarded the Hughes Medal by The Royal Society in 1930. With the help of unpublished letters and newspaper clips, we show the influence of Raman's British physics professor on his life. Next we discuss how Raman came in contact with influential British men of science, who nominated him for the Fellowship of the Royal Society. Then we explore the ways in which he promoted Indian science by nominating his countrymen for Fellowship of the Society. Last, we describe how, in 1943–44, the Secretary of The Royal Society visited India to hold a historic meeting and for various reasons Raman did not take part in it.