This refers to the article, “Deep cultural roots beckon us all” (September 1) by Anirban Ganguly. I must congratulate the writer for the most timely tribute he has paid to the French school of Indian studies. I shall send a copy of the article to Jean Filliozat's son, Pierre-Sylvain, himself an eminent Sanskritist and a member of the French Academy.
As for Professor Sachchidanand Sahai's achievements, we should not forget that he was preceded by Kamaleswar Bhattacharya (who has recently passed away) in South Eastern Asia studies under the supervision of George Coedes, about 30 years ago, after Jean Filliozat's death. Bhattacharya was almost unanimously elected to the Chair of Sanskrit — the oldest in the West — at the coveted College de France; for reasons ‘unknown', the authorities decided to close that Chair.
I hope that the writer remembers that we had been attending Filliozat's classes together in the mid-1960s at Sorbonne University.