[2] Deshpande grew up in Dadar, Mumbai, studied at Bombay Scottish School in Mahim, and gained a B.Tech.

in engineering, initially working on transportation with David Cebon, and earning his Ph.D. in 1998.

After further research in the United States, he returned to Cambridge, became a fellow of Pembroke College in 1999, a lecturer in engineering in 2001, and a professor in 2010.

[3][4] His achievements include the development of "metallic wood", which comprises nickel sheet with wood-like, nanoscale pores that make it as strong as titanium but four to five times lighter.

[9][10] He was elected a foreign member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2023 "for contributions to mechanics of microarchitected solids with applications to structures under extreme dynamic loading".