The Life of Gangadhara Babu Gavini

Gangadhara Babu Gavini was born in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh in Southern India on September 2, 1943.  He was the second of seven children. His parents were Suryanarayna and Mangamamba Gavini. Babu is survived by his wife Bharathi Gavini, daughter Mamatha Gavini, brothers Vinaya Gavini, Murali Gavini, Vijaya Kumar Gavini, and sisters Seetha Gavini-McFadden, Swarna Latha Tetali, and Anu Radha Gavini.  

Babu grew up in the city of Guntur, in Andhra Pradesh, India.  He was married to Bharathi on March 5, 1969. Babu attended the University of Madras and earned an undergraduate degree in Chemistry and a Master’s degree in Leather Technology. His first job was at the Madras Central Leather Technology Research Institute as a leather research scientist.  

 He and his wife Bharathi moved from India to the  US to Buford, GA for a job at the Bona Allen Tannery in 1971 where he lived for almost 50 years. He spent the last decades of his career at the FDA as a food chemist where he retired in 2014. 

He liked the music of Gantasala and Whitney Houston. He liked watching old Telugu movies and keeping up with current US politics. He often looked serious but was very kind. He was knowledgeable on a wide range of subjects but always intellectually curious. He was devoted to his family and lived a  simple life.  He enjoyed my moms homemade South Indian food and pizza. And he loved playing bridge! 

He died in his home, with his family by his side, on April 30, 2021, after several years of battling dementia.