Know Your Professor: Arghya Bhattacharya

Charvi Saraf, Class of 2019

Professor Argo manages to pull off a “fun-face” and a “serious-face” multiple times in a class. In his first class, he started by acknowledging that his name was tough to pronounce, and gave us permission to call him Argo. Minutes later, we were told about the no-talk, no-phone rules in his class.

Prof. Bhattacharya completed his PhD from University of California, Irvine last year before coming to Ashoka. He was very sure of not wanting to work in the corporate sector, and wanted to be an academician. Like nearly every student here, Professor Argo was delighted to come to Ashoka. However, unlike almost everyone here, it because of the university’s location: Professor Argo’s dissertation is focused on monetary phenomena in the context of emerging market economies. His love for Economics is quite apparent when he explained coming to Ashoka such: “it’s a job market outcome which is given by a lot of variables!”

Apart from teaching, Professor is currently exploring his musical interests. He started playing the ukulele in January. “In California, I got introduced to the art of mixing music. Some of my friends were DJs or musicians and they introduced me to it. I am an amateur right now. I haven’t planned to publish my music yet but maybe I will when I feel I am good enough.” (Watch out for his music!)

Talking about his overall experience at Ashoka so far, he remarked how students are active learners with a very different approach than the usual. He says that every class is very challenging and engaging as students ask a lot of questions. “Even I get intimidated. I do not have answers to all the questions, but I try and enjoy the experience.”

When I asked him about any class-traditions he follows, he said, “No traditions as such but first thing on my mind is to finish the syllabus!” He occasionally cracks some situational jokes in the classes and enjoys doing so on a regular basis, making up his quota for class traditions.

Interviewing Professor Bhattacharya was a delight for me! After attending his classes and interviewing him, I realized how much effort Professor puts into making his classes more fun and comfortable for his students, even if it means stepping out of his comfort zone. Through this interview I understood how difficult being a professor can be. It gave me a greater appreciation for the profession.

A must-have at Ashoka: Better Shuttle schedule
Comments on ICS Foods (Mess caterer): Simple things like Khichdi, Rajma-rice are great. Fancy stuff like Chinese, not the best.
A professor he’d like to have been taught by: Professor Bhaskar Dutta

Arghya Bhattacharya aka Argo Bhattacharya is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Ashoka University. His academic interests include macroeconomics (markets with frictions), monetary economics, and international finance.