April 5, 2025 - Prime Minister Narendra Modi is among the four Indians - living or dead - Bill Gates would like to have dinner with. The billionaire philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder disclosed this in a candid chat on Raj Shamani’s podcast Figuring Out.

The other three prominent Indians named by Gates are Ratan Tata, Dr Maharaj Kishan Bhan and mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. He cited their extraordinary contributions to science, business and mathematics as his reason for selection.

When the philanthropist was asked to choose three Indians, living or dead, for an ideal dinner conversation, he found it difficult to narrow it down to a few names and decided to name four, saying, “There are so many incredible talents”.

Gates praised PM Modi’s leadership and his long-term vision for India and said he would want to “understand his vision and how we fit into that 2047 ambition.” He described Modi’s vision as a source of inspiration for him.

Ratan Tata, the iconic industrialist and philanthropist, also featured prominently on the list, with Gates highlighting their collaborative philanthropic work. “I got to work with Ratan Tata and so many amazing philanthropists and innovators here in India,” he said.

Gates’ list includes the late Dr MK Bhan, who helped found India’s Department of Biotechnology and who he referred to a “great scientist.”

On Ramanujan, he said, “He was almost mysterious - how he was so brilliant at what he did.” One of the greatest mathematician of all times, Ramanujan died aged 32 in 1920.