Rashi Lunia wins the HBNI Outstanding Student Award 2025 in Mathematics
July 17, 2025 | Bharti Dharapuram
Rashi Lunia finished her PhD in Sanoli Gun’s research group at IMSc, where she looked at the ‘Arithmetic and analytic aspects of values of L-functions’. She recently won the Homi Bhabha National Institute Outstanding Student Award in Mathematics. She spoke to Bharti Dharapuram about her research, early interest in mathematics, experience at IMSc, and future plans.
What is your broad area of research?
My research interests lie in analytic number theory and modular forms. For my PhD thesis, I studied the non-vanishing and extreme values of L-functions attached to modular forms and Dirichlet characters along with their transcendental nature. L-functions show up in all branches of mathematics and form the backbone of Langlands program. There are several interesting problems in number theory related to the behaviour of these L-functions. In particular, I am interested in studying the zeroes of these functions and the values of these L-functions at points in the complex plane.
How did your interest in mathematics develop?
Some of my fondest childhood memories are of my mother sitting with me and teaching me math. She made it a lot of fun, and that is how my interest in mathematics began to develop. I was also blessed with many good teachers in school, which further encouraged me to choose mathematics as a major for my Bachelor’s at St. Xavier's College, Ahmedabad. The professors encouraged me to participate in competitions and to attend the Mathematics Training and Talent Search (MTTS) Programme where I met students and professors from different parts of India. They encouraged us to ask questions and solve problems from the basics, without recalling the theorems and results that we learnt in our regular courses. It was a one-month training camp, which helped me move out of my home and city, a foreign idea to me and my parents. I did my Masters in Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar, where I was guided by supportive professors who pushed me to work hard. I learnt about IMSc from my professors and applied there for a PhD.
Can you tell us about your experience as a PhD student at IMSc?
Moving to IMSc was a transitional phase for me, because I came from a university background where there was a lot of emphasis on exams. At IMSc, the faculty encouraged us to understand concepts and think independently. One of the most important lessons for me was that you learn math not just by working alone in a corner but by discussing it with others. It helps you to learn different approaches to the same problem. I also learnt that it is important to keep an open mind and attend lectures in different areas because you never know what may interest you.
The number theory group at IMSc is very active — we have visitors from across the world and hold conferences regularly. This helps students meet other researchers with similar interests, which can help start collaborations and open up opportunities. Since IMSc gets many visitors, it helps students get out of their comfort zone and have discussions with people from different places and academic backgrounds. IMSc also supports students to participate in conferences in India and abroad. This, in my opinion, is very important as it gives students an opportunity to learn about research in other parts of the world and experience different academic cultures.
On a more personal note, I really look up to my advisor, Prof Sanoli Gun. She is very supportive of young researchers and always encourages us to be better versions of ourselves. I have seen her work hard and persevere, and I really admire this about her.
What have you been doing since your PhD, and what are your future plans?
After finishing my PhD, I joined a postdoctoral position in Chennai Mathematical Institute with Prof Purusottam Rath as my mentor. Currently, I am a postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics, Bonn and Prof Pieter Moree is my mentor. After Bonn, I will be starting a postdoctoral position at the Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics, Budapest next year. I would like to return to India after sufficient postdoctoral experience for a few years and pursue an academic career.
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