Kolkata, October 15: Economist Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee's mother Nirmala Banerjee was reading a book at her home when she recieved the big news. Abhijit Banerjee, his wife Esther Duflo and Harvard professor Michael Kremer were awarded the 2019 Nobel Economics Prize on Monday. For Nirmala, an eminent economist in her own right, Abhijit Banerjee is an economist by accident. Speaking to a newspaper, the proud mother revealed a big secret about her Nobel award-winning son. Indian Economy 'Doing Very Badly': Abhijit Banerjee.

Nirmala described Abhijeet as a brilliant student who never ranked first in school. She said that not many know that Abhijeet is an ace cook and a complete family man. He is an economist by accident, she added. "He has always been brilliant, but I had never thought he would bag the honour at such a young age. It’s a proud moment not only for me but for the entire nation," she was quoted as saying. Nirmala recieved a tray of sweets from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s office. Abhijit Banerjee, On Winning Nobel Prize 2019 For Economic Sciences, Says 'Entire Movement to Alleviate Poverty Honoured'.

Abhijeet, Duflo and Kremer jointly won the 2019 Nobel Economics Prize "for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty". Nirmala said that Abhijeet's childhood plays a big role in his research and helped him understand economics and poverty. “Jhima (Abhijit’s nickname) spent his childhood playing with poor kids from a slum near our home. He always wondered why they were better at the street games, and used to talk about their approach to life," she said.

A Marathi by birth, Nirmala said that her family shares a close bond with Nobel laureate Amartya Sen. She added that Sen knows Abhijeet since he was just two years old and still mentors him. Revealing further about his son, Nirmala said that Abhijeet has a keen interest in classical music and spends hours listening to good music. From football to cricket, he loves playing all sorts of sports — although he was not very good in any of these, she said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 15, 2019 08:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).