Ep 59 - Ashwini | Growing Up Inside IISc Bangalore, catching Fireflies & ₹ 10 Pizza | Jimmy Jimmy

What was it really like to grow up inside the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), fondly called Tata Institute by the people who lived there? In this episode, we sit down with a true-blue Bangalorean whose entire childhood — birth, school, college prep, and first crushes — unfolded within the gates of one of India's most prestigious research campuses in Bengaluru. This is not a story about science. It's a story about community, safety, fireflies, and a Bangalore that barely exists anymore. Our guest takes us inside the quarters of the Indian Institute of Science, where doors were never locked, kids roamed till 1:30 am without worry, and midnight forest walks with a neighborhood Hindustani classical musician turned into firefly-catching adventures near the GRD Tata statue. She describes a two-degrees-cooler microclimate inside the Tata Institute campus thanks to its dense tree cover, a 24x7 coffee board and tea board, an open-air theatre, a full-fledged in-campus restaurant, and a five-movies-for-25-rupees punch card system. We talk about the IISc Open Day every March, where kids got to blow their own glass light bulbs, watch student-built rocket launches inspired by PSLV, and walk up to IISc professors and PhD researchers just to ask questions — an openness to curiosity that defined her entire outlook on learning. From there, the conversation moves into the wider map of Bengaluru that shaped her life after she left campus for Maharani Ammani College. We journey through New BEL Road and its tree-lined avenues back when it had none of today's pubs and cafes, Ramaiah College as a neighbourhood landmark, and the discovery of Sai Ram Chaats in Malleswaram — home to the legendary Disco Chaat and Ding Dong Chaat that outshine the usual pani puri and bhel puri. We talk Malleswaram staples like Canara Union, Coffee Day, and the iconic 10-rupee pan pizzas on 8th Cross, plus evenings spent walking around Sankey Tank and eating at Mint Masala right across from it. We dig into Bangalore's dosa and chaat culture across neighborhoods — Jayanagar's Ashoka Pillar and Rathnamma Puri, JP Nagar's Essen Refreshments for breakfast and dry chaats like sprout masala and banana stem chaat, and nostalgic deep-cuts like Dwaraka in Jayanagar with its iconic four floors of handwritten menu boards. There's even a detour into Veena Stores vs Jonatha Hotel-style Udupi breakfast debates that every old-school Bengalurean will relate to. Beyond food, we cover her journey into mountaineering with a national expedition to Chandratal-Surajtal and climbing CB16, paragliding at the now-shut Jakkur Aerodrome, learning Bharatanatyam and Carnatic music inside the IISc campus, and her career path from BPO customer care at Dell to corporate communications, media analysis, and eventually heading brand and content at a media house. We close by comparing the distinct character of three Bangalore neighborhoods she's called home — BEL Road, Jayanagar with its Gulmohar-covered red roads, and JP Nagar. If you grew up in Bengaluru, remember Jayanagar's old chaat shops, miss Malleswaram's quiet mornings, or are simply curious about what life inside the Indian Institute of Science was really like, this episode is packed with Bangalore nostalgia, hidden food spots, and stories you won't find anywhere else. Peak Bengaluru Moments 🪲 Catching wild fireflies on midnight forest walks inside the IISc campus 🔬 Blowing your own glass light bulb at the IISc Open Day 🚀 Watching a student-built rocket launch inspired by the PSLV mission 🎬 Watching movies on a 5-punch, 25-rupee ticket card in an open-air theatre 🍲 Discovering Disco Chaat and Ding Dong Chaat at Sai Ram Chaats, Malleswaram 🥞 Sunday cycling trips to Veena Stores near Manipal Northside Hospital 🍕 10-rupee pan pizzas on Malleswaram's 8th Cross 🌳 Evening walks around Sankey Tank followed by Mint Masala dinners 🌺 Gulmohar flowers carpeting the red roads of Jayanagar 🏔️ Mountaineering to CB16 via a national expedition to Chandratal-Surajtal 00:00 – Introduction: Meet a Hardcore Bangalorean Born in IISc Tata Institute 00:44 – Growing Up Inside the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) 04:01 – No Locked Doors: The Safest Childhood in Bangalore 04:40 – Midnight Forest Walks and Catching Fireflies Near GRD Tata Statue 06:23 – Science Clubs, Curious Minds & Talking to IISc Professors 07:32 – IISc Open Day: Blowing Glass Bulbs and a PSLV-Inspired Rocket Launch 09:46 – Life Inside Campus: Open-Air Theatre, Family Restaurant & 24x7 Coffee Board 12:10 – Leaving IISc for Maharani Ammani College and New BEL Road 12:54 – Mountaineering, Chandratal-Surajtal Expedition & Paragliding at Jakkur 14:30 – Disco Chaat at Sai Ram Chaats and Malleswaram Food Culture 15:24 – Sankey Tank Evenings, First Job at Dell & Sunday Trips to Veena Stores 18:10 – Jayanagar vs JP Nagar vs BEL Road: Comparing Bangalore's Best Neighborhoods