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Who is Prof. Balki? Ex IIT Madras professor's viral lecture with no slides, no notes: 'What a legend'
Professor Balakrishnan, an influential physicist and former professor at IIT Madras, is earning praised for his engaging lectures.
A video of former IIT Madras professor V Balakrishnan delivering a physics lecture has suddenly taken social media by storm. On X, where the video surfaced two days ago, people are praising his command over the subject as well as the clarity with which he communicated his thoughts — minus the help of any teaching aids like slides or notes.
The video was published online through the National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL), India's national open courseware programme. Although IIT Madras alumni can already attest to Professor Balakrishnan’s skills, the video has brought him into the limelight for the larger public as well.
Who is Professor V Balakrishnan?
Venkataraman Balakrishnan, also known as Professor Balki to his students, is an Indian theoretical physicist and retired professor.
He has worked in a number of fields and areas, including particle physics, many-body theory, the mechanical behavior of solids, dynamical systems, stochastic processes, and quantum dynamics.
He taught at IIT Madras for decades, where he was counted among the most influential faculty members. He was known for his engaging style of teaching.
An idea of his teaching prowess and skills can be ascertained from this testimonial posted by a former student, Arun Kannawadi, on Quora: “Sitting in Balki's class is like sitting down to watch 'Game of Thrones' or any other favorite series of yours. You don't want it to get over!” Kannawadi compared Balakrishnan to a modern-day Feynman and said that his lectures along inspired him to switch from engineering to physics.
Childhood and education
Professor Balakrishnan spent a large part of his childhood in Pune and Mumbai.
As an undergraduate student, he studied Physics Honours at Delhi University’s St Stephen’s College. He graduated from St Stephen’s in 1963.
After completing his Master’s degree, Balakrishnan went to the US to obtain a PhD from Brandeis University.
He returned to India in late 1970 and spent three years at Tata Institute in Bombay, following which he joined the Reactor Research Centre (now the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research) at Kalpakkam.
In 1980, he joined IIT Madras as a Professor of Physics — where he remained until his retirement.
He was elected a Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1985.
Personal life
Professor Balki is married to Radha Balakrishnan, a theoretical physicist and retired professor from the Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai.
The couple has two children — their son, Hari Balakrishnan, is currently the Fujitsu Professor of Computer Science at MIT.
Their daughter, Hamsa Balakrishnan, is also on the faculty at MIT as a Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Both Hamsa and Hari Balakrishnan received their undergraduate degrees from IIT Madras.
