Bhavani works on research areas at the intersection of food, nutrition, health and environmental sustainability. He joined the Institute of Sustainable Food at the University of Sheffield in April 2020. From 2011 to March 2020, Bhavani was Professor at SOAS University of London, and has previously also held appointments at the University of Reading and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Bhavani’s recent work has been funded by the Wellcome Trust, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The Leverhulme Trust, UKRI, GCRF, UKAid and the European Commission, among others. During 2022-23 Bhavani is chairing the drafting group for the HLPE report on 'Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition'. He co-leads the Food Consumption, Health and Sustainability Pillar of the Institute for Sustainable Food at Sheffield and serves on the editorial advisory boards of the journals Global Food Security and Food Policy.