Ranna Sushil Nagar

Ranna Sushil Nagar, daughter of Jayalata and Chintuprasad Bhatt, was born on October 24, 1938, in Gujarat, India. One of five siblings, Ranna spent her childhood in Ahmedabad, where she frequently participated in biking competitions. She attended Prabhudas Thakker College in Gujarat, where she majored in Sociology. A bold, forward thinking, and practical woman, Ranna worked to educate the local community on family planning in the conservative environment of Gujarat the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Ranna met Sushil Nagar through a family connection and was married in 1960, eventually having two children, Mandar and Ashish. Ranna and Sushil worked hard to send both children to the United States in the 1980s, cementing their family legacy overseas. After their departure, Ranna pursued a master’s degree in Sociology at Gujarat University, becoming the first in her family to earn a master’s and completing a personal goal she had set for herself. Ranna and Sushil both moved to the United States in the 1980s and earned their citizenships in the early 2000s. 

In her spare time, Ranna enjoyed gardening, creating what was the envy of the neighborhood in her front yard, along with bonsai creations that were almost unheard of in that era. She also enjoyed music and was an avid reader. A beloved mother and grandmother, Ranna was known as the rock of her family and instilled the same discipline and family values that she lived by in others. She is survived by her two sons, Mandar and Ashish; their wives, Shuchi and Devangi; and her grandchildren, Som, Tej and his wife Kiran; Rooshi; and Saumya and his wife Anjali.