[2][3] Her great-grandfather, Dr C. R. Krishna Pillai, was associated with left-wing politics in India, and played an instrumental role in the formation of the state of Kerala.

[13] During the 2020 New Zealand general election held on 17 October, Radhakrishnan on preliminary results came second to National MP Denise Lee by a margin of 580 votes in the Maungakiekie electorate,[14] but was returned to Parliament on the Labour Party list.

[19] During the 2023 New Zealand general election on 14 October, Radhakrishnan was unseated in Maungakiekie by National candidate Greg Fleming by a margin of 4,617.

[22] In January 2021, Radhakrishnan was conferred a Pravasi Bharatiya Samman award for public service, by the Indian president in a virtual ceremony.

[23] On 5 December 2023, Radhakrishnan was granted retention of the title The Honourable, in recognition of her term as a member of the Executive Council.