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Home› People of Bangalore› SCIENCE
SCIENCE

Raja Ramanna: The Physicist Who Played the Piano and Founded NIAS

A nuclear physicist schooled at Bishop Cotton Boys' who led India's first nuclear test, then came back to Bengaluru to found an institute for advanced study.

QUICK ANSWER

  • Raja Ramanna was a nuclear physicist who led the team behind India's first nuclear test at Pokhran in 1974.
  • He was schooled at Bishop Cotton Boys' School in Bengaluru and later directed the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre.
  • He founded the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bengaluru in 1988 and was an accomplished pianist.
Tariq Sallam, founder of The City 24/7 Tariq Sallam September 23, 2026 • 2 min read • Updated October 17, 2026
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A grand piano with sheet music in a wood-panelled library, with a chalkboard of physics diagrams, stacked leather books and a window onto a domed building

NIAS, on the IISc campus, was founded by Raja Ramanna.

“Science and music were, for him, two ways of looking for order.”

• On Raja Ramanna

Raja Ramanna was a nuclear physicist who led the team behind India's first nuclear test in 1974 and served as director of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. Born in 1925 in Tumakuru and schooled at Bishop Cotton Boys' School in Bengaluru, he was also an accomplished pianist. He founded the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bengaluru in 1988 and died in 2004.

NIAS is his most direct legacy in the city. This profile keeps to the well-documented record.

Quick Information

A nuclear physicist who could play Beethoven, and who came home to Bengaluru to build an institute for thinking.

Born
January 28, 1925, Tumakuru
Died
September 24, 2004
School
Bishop Cotton Boys' School, Bengaluru
Career
Nuclear physicist; director, BARC
1974
Led the team behind India's first nuclear test
NIAS
Founding director, Bengaluru, 1988
Music
Accomplished pianist
One memorable fact
He wrote a book on the structure of music in Indian and Western traditions

What Is the National Institute of Advanced Studies?

An interdisciplinary research institute on the IISc campus in Bengaluru, founded in 1988, bringing together natural sciences, social sciences and humanities.

What Was Raja Ramanna's Role in 1974?

He led the scientific team behind India's first nuclear test at Pokhran.

A LESSER-KNOWN FACT

He wrote The Structure of Music in Raga and Western Systems.

Why Does Raja Ramanna Belong in People of Bangalore?

THEIR BANGALORE CONNECTION

Schooled in Bengaluru, he returned to found NIAS, one of the city's most distinctive research institutions.

FAQs

What is NIAS?

The National Institute of Advanced Studies, an interdisciplinary institute in Bengaluru founded by Raja Ramanna.

Where did Raja Ramanna go to school?

Bishop Cotton Boys' School, Bengaluru.

Was Raja Ramanna a musician?

Yes, an accomplished pianist.

Contact Details

Where to find out more.

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Tariq Sallam, founder of The City 24/7

Tariq Sallam

FOUNDER, THE CITY 24/7

placeBangalore calendar_monthSince 1991 groupsPeople. Places. Possibilities.

Tariq Sallam is the founder of The City 24/7, a platform dedicated to celebrating everything Bangalore. Having lived in the city since 1991, he has witnessed its remarkable journey from a laid-back Garden City to one of India’s most dynamic and innovative cities.

Passionate about its people, businesses, neighbourhoods, food, culture and hidden gems, Tariq believes every corner of Bangalore has a story worth telling. When he’s not writing or interviewing inspiring Bangaloreans, you’ll find him exploring the city. And through The City 24/7, he invites you to discover Bangalore with him, one story at a time.

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