Shakuntala Devi is out now: Know everything about the mathematical whiz

Vidya Balan-starrer Shakuntala Devi will be releasing on Amazon Prime on July 31. Shakuntala Devi is a film about the mathematical genius, who was commonly called the ‘Human Computer.’

A mathematician and a writer, here are some interesting facts about the mathematical whiz:

• Born on November 4, 1929, in Bangalore, Shakuntala Devi father discovered her mathematical talent when she was three. Hence he quit the circus company he was working in and started doing roadshows projecting his daughter’s talent.

• At the age of six, she proved her mathematical talent at the University of Mysore and moved to London with her father in 1944.

• She earned a place in the prestigious Guinness Book of World Records in 1982.

• She wrote, ‘The World of Homosexuals,’ the first book on homosexuality in India, that was published in 1977. She has also authored books on astrology and cooking.

• She was given the moniker of ‘Human Computer’ after her appearance in the BBC show in 1950.

• However, she did not like the name as according to her, the human mind is much more capable than a computer.

• She earned international fame after demonstrated her ability to multiply two random 13-digit numbers in just 28 seconds. She did this at the Imperial College London, UK, on June 18, 1980.

• At the Southern Methodist University of Dallas in 1977, she extracted the 23rd root of a 201-digit number in 50 seconds. With this, she had beaten a univac computer, which did the same calculation in 62 seconds.

• Apart from mathematics and writing, she also had a political inclination. She contested the 1980 Lok Sabha elections in South Bombay and Medak in Telangana against Indira Gandhi. However, she did not win.

• She died in Bangalore on April 21, 2013, at the age of 83.