Presi physics legend, ‘DRC’ to students, passes away

Kolkata: One of the most celebrated teachers of physics of the erstwhile Presidency College, Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri, died of cardiac arrest at his residence on October 24. He was 75.
He studied physics at the college from 1961-64 after ranking first in the Senior Cambridge Examinations. It was after serving Acharya Jagdish Chandra Bose College for 10 years that he joined Presidency College and later became the head of the department of physics.
A brilliant student of legendary teachers of the college like Amal Ray Chaudhuri and S N Ghoshal, Rai Chaudhuri furthered their cause in theoretical physics and went on to complete his PhD in Queen Mary College, London University, before returning to the city.
Rai Chaudhuri was caught in the turbulence of the Naxalite movement of the 60s and in the 70s, he got arrested with other prominent leaders like Asim Chatterjee in Deoghar.
He spent 11 months in jail, recalls contemporary colleague Subhas Ranjan Chakraborty.
Known to his students as DRC, he lovingly groomed them till he retired in 2004. Many of his students have gone on to have illustrious careers.
“He had a rare passion for improvising teaching methods in science and mathematics which left its mark on Sramajibi Pathsala, Belur. His interest spanned several fields that included literature, history, politics, economics and movies,” Chakraborty said.
While physics and the fight for rights were the dominant themes of his life, it got chiselled further with poetry and creative writing in both English and Bengali, colleagues and friends recalled.