Bashabi Fraser was born on February 9, 1954, in Purulia, West Bengal, to geographer-parents Bimalendu Bhattacharya and Anima Das Gupta. Her father was, in 1960, the first Commonwealth Scholar from India to the UK to research at the London School of Economics in Urban Geography. Her mother, with a master’s in Geography from Presidency College, traveled to London to join her husband. She was also offered a scholarship for a master’s program through research at the same school. After their return, her parents joined North Bengal University, where they were instrumental in founding the first Department of Geography and Applied Geography in India, and from where they retired after a rewarding career of 34 years.