Jyoshna Moyee Joshi

Jyoshna Moyee Joshi, age 63, a resident of Columbia, passed away Wednesday, October 7, 2020
at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
A funeral service will be held on __Tuesday October 13, 2020__ at _10AM – 12PM (puja), 12 –
2PM (visitation) and cremation at 2PM_ at Heritage Funeral Home. Heritage Funeral Home is
assisting the family with arrangements.
Born on March 7, 1957 in Odisha, India, Jyoshna was the eldest daughter of the late Dhruba
Charan Ratha and the late Basanta Kumari Satpathy-Ratha. Most of you may have remembered
her as the quiet sidekick helping Ajoya at the restaurant. But there was so much more behind that
quiet demeanor. She was the eldest of five children and her mother’s right-hand person in
wrangling all of the little ones. She studied Economics in college and graduated with honors in
1978. Hers was an arranged marriage. In the late summer 1979, she was 22 years old when a
young Ajoya—accompanied by his entire family—came to her home to “check out the
prospective bride.” The entire event took at most 10-15 minutes and an agreement was reached.
These two young folks were to be joined forever in the eyes of God soon. The young betrothed
spent less than 5 minutes together in the presence of their entire families and respected elders
before meeting again on the marriage altar. (Just spitballin’ here, but I highly doubt there was
any kissing or “hanky-panky”).
Fast forward to September 23, 1981 when Jyoshna and daughter Julie arrive at the Nashville
airport on her first birthday to be re-united with Ajoya for the first time in almost 2 years. Almost
all communication was through written letters and sparing Polaroids— which took 20+ days to
reach one another. Their 41-year marriage defied all odds, but it was a beautiful partnership that
continues to inspire those around them. They somehow melded into one person and it was
impossible to tell where one began and the other ended. Best friends, soul mates, partners in
crime; each could tell you what the other was thinking at any given moment.
They moved to Columbia in 1983 and took over New Orleans Famous Fried Chicken. In 1984,
they welcomed their second daughter, Milie. For over 35 years they smilingly served their
community delicious food. (It must have been good because one gentleman used to drive up
from Mobile, Alabama every month to get his fix.) They dearly loved their community and never
in almost 40 years did they ever consider moving.
Jyoshna was an incredibly selfless person and lived for absolutely EVERYONE besides herself.
She was a woman of God and loved to read/watch devotional items to deepen her faith. Some of
her hobbies included doing crafts, gardening, writing poetry, knitting/crocheting, finding a

609 Bear Creek Pike – Columbia, TN 38401- Phone: 931.840.4750
Email: [email protected] Website: www.TnFunerals.com
bargain, listening to music and cooking. Her favorite show was Wheel of Fortune and she never
missed World News with David Muir (whom Ajoya referred to as her boyfriend and she’d blush).
Jyoshna loved the beach and going anywhere with water. She was an incredibly strong woman
who never had an idle day. She loved her daughters fiercely. In the Indian culture, males are
more highly prized; but she gave birth to two daughters. Her absolute biggest goal in life was to
raise her girls to be “strong trees who could stand tall alone and without help” instead of “weak
vines relying on anyone else,” she succeeded with this and it was her greatest source of pride…
She is survived by her husband, Ajoya Kumar Joshi of Columbia, TN; daughters: Anjalie “Julie”
Joshi, M.D. and Philip Matthew Hines of Tullahoma, TN, Deepalie Milie Joshi, Esq. and
Thomas Michael Basham of San Diego, CA; brothers: Rajanikanta Ratha of Odisha, India,
Kamalakanta Ratha of New Delhi, India; sisters: Sabita Ratha of Odisha, India, Sasmita Ratha of
Odisha, India; Swami Adyananda Saraswati and the late Maa Adyamoyee Saraswati of
Nashville, TN and their children Rashmi Acharya, Smriti Panda, and Prashant Joshi and their
spouses and children; from Santa Clarita, CA and Odisha India – Mr. Binayak Acharya and Mrs.
Sanjukta Acharya, their children and grandchild, the late Mr. Padmanav Mohapatra and
Annapurna Mohapatra; from Odisha, India – Mr. and Mrs. Nrusingha Joshi, their children,
children’s spouses, and grandchildren; Dr. and Mrs. Pravat Joshi, their children and children’s
families; Dr. and Mrs. Bijoy Joshi, their children and their children’s families; from Nashville,
TN – Mr. Akshay Joshi and Mrs. Arati Joshi, their children, Mr. Amit Joshi, Mrs. Gira Joshi, Dr.
Abinash Joshi, and Ms. Aparna Joshi; from Chicago, IL – Narasimhan Ramakrishnan; the
Southern Odia community; and last but never least, her grandson, best friend and light of her life,
Nikhil Karthik Narasimhan.

Pallbearers will be: Philip Mathew Hines, Tom Basham, Amit Joshi, Abinash Joshi, Prashant
Joshi, Akshay Joshi, Pramode Mohapatra, and Narasimhan Ramakrishnan. Honorary pallbearers
will be: Nikhil Narasimhan, Shonki and Aaira Mohanty.
You may share condolences with the family at the Heritage Funeral Home website:
www.TnFunerals.com .
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to St Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
Jyoshna was a lifelong contributor.