FAST India's India Science Book Fellowship (ISBF) announces its cohort, funding 5 authors to blend Indian science research with public-focused storytelling.
India Science Book Fellowship (ISBF)
India Science Book Fellowship, an initiative by the Foundation for Advancing Science and Technology (FAST India), is not merely an initiative to mentor and provide publishing support to science authors in India, but a larger movement seeking to make Indian science visible to the world.
In a country that produces world-class science but strives to make it part of everyday conversation, the India Science Book Fellowship (ISBF) is quietly redefining how research, blended with storytelling, reaches the public instead of staying confined to labs and journals. FAST India, currently in its third edition and following the overwhelming response to the ISBF 2024-25 fellowship program, has announced its latest cohort of authors who will receive mentorship, editorial, and publishing support to bring their books to completion.
The Selection: Where Ideas and Purpose Unites
From an overwhelming pool of 249 applications, five applicants made the cut this year after a rigorous three-step evaluation process that involved abstract screening, detailed proposals, and jury interviews. Of all the winners, three have been granted full fellowships of ₹10 lakh each, while two others will receive partial fellowships of ₹7.5 lakh. Their upcoming books span a varied range of themes - delving into frontier materials, breakthrough mathematics, the history of π, environmental storytelling, to citizen scientists.
Among the winners is Dr Vineeth Venugopal, a postdoctoral scholar at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, awarded for his book ‘Where is Vibranium?’ Another team comprising Dr Nivedita Bhaktha and Keshav Aggarwal, from the Department of Management Sciences, IIT Kanpur, India, earned the fellowship for their book, ‘Fourier Analysis and its Real World Applications: A Panorama of Mathematics that Transformed the World’. Writer and illustrator Nikhil Gulati, along with Prahladh Harsha, PhD, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, received the fellowship for their book ‘π-Quest: A Journey Through the History of Pi’.
The partial fellowships honor works with an equally compelling public focus. Pratyasha Nath and Dr Jenia Mukherjee of IIT Kharagpur won the fellowship for their upcoming book, ‘Fables for the Anthropocene’, while freelance science writer Sneha Mary Mathew received support for her book ‘Why We? Stories of Citizen Scientists in India’.
Support that Goes Beyond the Grant
For the authors, the fellowship extends not just financial support but also platform for editorial guidance and publishing - resources that are often missing in India’s science writing landscape. Besides growing interest from applicants, the initiative has also drawn support from diverse jury that included Jhanavi Phalke - Author, Filmmaker, and Historian; Karthik Venkatesh - Executive Editor at Penguin Random House India; Luis Miranda - Chairman, Centre for Civil Society & Co-founder ISPP; Gagandeep Kang - Director at Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Their rich, collective experience echoes the fellowship’s broader aim: to ensure that Indian science finds its way into bookstores, classrooms, and eventually, the global stage.
Bringing Science to Life for Everyone
As the recipients embark on their journeys, the fellowship reinforces an important idea: science writing in India is more than simplifying complex jargon, but about narrating stories that truly resonate. Through mathematics, citizen scientists, and environmental fables, these works seek to make science accessible, engaging, and part of everyday life.
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