Indu Bhatt nee Pathak was born to the late Harilal bhai and Deviben Pathak on January 26th, 1927 in Palitana, India. She grew up in Palitana and in Ahmedabad, where she graduated from LD Arts College, receiving a BA in economics. She married Pravin N. Bhatt, then a student of medicine, on May 19, 1946. Ravishankar Maharaj, an ardent follower Mahatma Gandhi, was the officiating priest. Gandhi himself sent a personal letter of congratulations to the young couple. In 1950, thanks to a scholarship, Dr. Pravin Bhatt arrived in the US to continue his studies at Tulane University. Indu joined him in 1953, also enrolled at Tulane, and studied at the School of Social Work. In 1954 they returned to India, and in 1955 they moved to Poona, where Dr. Bhatt worked at the National Institute of Virology. They had two children shortly after this move: Sujata, born in 1956 in Ahmedabad, and Nachiketa born in 1959 in Poona. In 1961, the family moved to New Orleans, where Dr. Bhatt had received another scholarship to study at Tulane. In 1964 they returned to Poona. In 1968, the family moved to New Haven CT, where Dr. Bhatt began working at the Department of Comparative Medicine at Yale. After a few years, Indu began to work as a Histology technician at the Department of Ophthalmology at Yale. She worked there for over ten years, quickly earning the respect and admiration of her colleagues. After retiring, Indu supported Dr. Bhatt's efforts for the South Asian Studies Program at Yale by regularly inviting students to their home for dinners, thus providing a home away from home for these students. Many of these students stayed in touch with Indu consistently over the years. Throughout her life, Indu had many interests including music, singing (she had a wonderful angelic voice which was at the same time resonant with an original, haunting power), history, philosophy, literature, cooking and gardening. She was an avid reader, and later in life could recall all the details of what she had learned. She was an excellent writer of letters, enthralling her readers with her incredible narrations, full of deftly observed details. She was blessed with an amazing, uncanny memory. Indu Bhatt was the heart and soul of her family. Her strength, patience and resilience combined with her warm, generous nature were a source of inspiration to those who knew her. Loved by all, she was especially adored by her three grandchildren, Jenny Mira Augustin, Michael Nanabhai Bhatt and Dean Kalyan Bhatt, who all had the good fortune to spend many hours with her during their childhood and youth. Indeed, it is her grandchildren who will also continue telling the stories she loved and cooking the food she once cooked for them. Indu Bhatt passed away at 5:15pm on Friday, October 8th, 2010. Her family and closest friends were with her as she peacefully breathed her last. She is survived by her husband, children, and grandchildren, as well as two of her younger siblings, Bharat Pathak and Urmi Bhatt, and a large extended family including cousins, nephews and nieces. A trust fund in the name of Indu Bhatt is being initiated at Yale University. The funds will be used to encourage promising young writers from South Asia to work for some time at Yale. In lieu of flowers you may consider giving a donation to this fund. Seed money has already been donated and your donation would enhance this project. Please make checks payable to Yale University and mail to Dr. Pravin N. Bhatt, 26 Hesse Rd, Hamden, CT 06517. You will receive an official acknowledgement of your donation from the University. Friends may call at Beecher & Bennett Funeral Home on Monday, October 11, 2010 from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM and may attend her funeral service which will begin at 6:30 PM in the funeral home