Book excerpt: This book explores the lives and achievements of ten Indian scientists who made remarkable contributions in various fields of science—from measuring the brightness of stars and discovering a treatment for cholera to inventing fibre optics and increasing food sustainability. Though their names and work may not be widely known, they have transformed the quality of our lives. They are . . . Ruchi Ram Sahni Meghnad Saha Yellapragada Subbarow Sambhu Nath De Narinder Singh Kapany Obaid Siddiqi Modadugu Vijay Gupta Chandrima Shaha Jagannathan Vijaya V.R. Lalithambika Vaishali Shroff traces the journey of these scientists, detailing the challenges they faced—financial scarcity, gender bias, inadequate facilities and infrastructure—as she takes us through the evolution of science in India over three centuries.