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Sarojini Naidu

British at that time colonized India and plundered its wealth. Sarojini Naidu, popularly known as the “nightingale of India, was an Indian political worker, freedom fighter, and renowned poet. She was a dominant image and a role model in making the country free from the shackles of British rule. Inspired by many activists, Sarojini Naidu also played her part to be well recalled today.

During her stay in England, she has much attracted to the “Indian national congress” movement, which was operated to make India an independent and self-reliant country. She was assigned the position of the President of the Indian national congress in the year 1925.

Personal life of Sarojini Naidu

Sarojini Chattopadhyay was born on 13 February 1879 to a Bengali Brahmin family. She completed her schooling at three different locations like that Madras, London, and Cambridge. She resided in a house at BrahmangaonBikrampur in Dhaka. Her father was a Hyderabad college principal, now known as Nizam college. Her mother used to pen down poetry in Bengal. Her family background was well connected to revolutionary and poetic thoughts. One of her brothers was a poet, while the other was a revolutionary.

Inspiring factors

Sarojini Naidu was greatly inspired by a number of activists writers that came and went, leaving a patch of guidance and example for the young generation. Some of the prominent writers that raised her insights include Rabindranath Tagore and Gopal Krishna Gokhale. She also brought out her inner voice to speak against evil practices that affected the lives of several women across India.

Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s swaraj movement, she came back to India from England to join Mahatma Gandhi in the Satyagraha movement. She turned out to be a headache for the British due to her shining ambitions and urged women across the country to step their foot out of their homes and contribute to making their country free from the hands of British rulers.

Poetry

Sarojini Naidu was highly praised for her memorable works of art in poetry and writing by several other writers. Her collection of Poems was published in 1905, which attracted much recognition from various authors.

Her worldwide recognized poetries include ‘ in the bazaars of Hyderabad’ and ‘The Gift of India’. The poem Gift of India communicates the following message:

It describes the scene of an Indian soldier’s body after death which appears to be heart-wrenching.

• It describes the agony of the mother, India, who had to forcefully part with her sons to serve the British cause in various battles and wars.
• It compels the British rulers to remember the spilled blood of Indian soldiers who never failed to perform their duties and always gave heed to the commands and orders of the British.
• It shows the vision of the mother India and her yearning for freedom at the cost of her sons.

Another most popular of her poems include the Bangle seller

• It portrays the three stages of a woman’s life – maidenhood, adulthood, and as a senior old age woman, through bangles worn at such stages.
• These are also worn at some notorious rituals which play their part in every woman’s life.
• It portrays the ambitions of a fair young lady who is soon going to be married and wears yellow bangles before marriage and red bangles that match the flames of her wedding fire.
• It also portrays the role of women during adulthood and how she serves their families and gets satisfaction out of serving them fruitfully. Her poem reveals a sense of patriarchy and womanhood and her responsibility to attend to the needs of her family.
• She began writing at the age of 12 and mostly wrote in English, which also emerged in lyrical form. She was marked for the vivid use of images like auditory images, visual images, and sensory images. These are seen and appreciated in her several poems that became famous over time. Being a poet during British rule was not easy, especially writing the praises of mother India, but Sarojini Naidu wrote it with ecstasy and overcame the fear of British rule. The use of several images inside small poems imparted great characteristics to her poetry. Her first poetry book was published in London in the year 1905. The book is named ‘ the Golden threshold.’

Political career

Her Purposes as an Early Orator

Naidu worked as an orator performing her part in raising her voice for women’s rights and promoting India’s struggle for Independence. She contributed a helping hand in social work for flood relief, resulting in awarding her with Kaisar-i-Hind Medal, but she returned it during the protest over the JallianwalaBagh massacre, a piteous condition that involved the murder of several innocent people.

In 1914, she met Mahatma Gandhi, who credited her and inspired her to boost her actions. She was the second woman appointed the President of the Indian national congress. Her oratory works were well recognized due to their personality and the poetic style followed.

Non-Violent Resistance

One of these marches is well known to us even today. It was a resistance that involved no physical threats towards anyone for claiming Independence or getting the demands of aggrieved parties satisfied or quenched. What it involved was relying on own struggles, involving voice, satyagrahas, hunger strikes, marching on to get the demands fulfilled. In 1917, Sarojini Naidu contributed a major hand to Mahatma Gandhiji in the Satyagraha movement, including ion-violent resistance. In 1920, she also fulfilled a major role in the non-cooperation movement of the Gandhiji, when Britishers refused to reduce the excessive rates of salt in India.

It was said that Gandhiji at first did not allow the women to take part in salt March due to the reasons that this movement had a high chance of arrest. But Naidu, along with other female activists, came forward out of the restraints to play their roles and joined the March. During Quit India Movement, Naidu gave her best and established her role but was imprisoned by the British for two years. She was appointed as the new leader of the campaign after Gandhi’s arrest.

Legacy

Naidu’s birthday is recognized as women’s day in India every year, marking the powerful voices of Indian women in India’s history. She was given the title of ‘ the nightingale of India’ by Gandhiji. She is remembered in her first book, ‘ golden threshold’. It is now housed at the University of Hyderabad. Google also celebrated her birth anniversary during the year 2014.

Several quotes on her life are available on various websites. Her notorious works and books are purchased and read by people even today to remember her works and feel her thoughts at that period.

Naidu: An Inspiration

Many works, including documentaries, autobiographies, and books on Naidu, were published. Her first biography was published in 1966 by PadminiSengupta. Some of the works on her life were also published by Hachette in 2014. The government of India produced twenty-minute documentaries on her life. In 2020, a biopic on her life was also announced. In this way, she got recognition and left a legacy to reflect on her achievements, social contributions, and other unforgettable works. Her poetry gave a glimpse of the beautiful imageries our Mother India is filled with. She wrote so beautifully that she attracted much and many appraisals for her writings and continued to write and be selected by several publications for publishing her works with them.

Death

Sarojini Naidu breathed her last on 2 March 1949. She was attacked by a cardiac arrest on the afternoon of 2 March, the main reason behind her death. Her health started deteriorating on 15 February, and she was suggested to take some rest by the medics. Bloodletting was performed when her situation continued to worsen at the beginning of March. She died, and her last rituals were performed during the funeral. Her death was an unhappy occasion for several Indians. She died two years after the Independence, but her dreams of free India were achieved and glimpsed by her, which makes every Indian feel proud and say that hard work does pay off.

Naidu became an inspiration for several women who never spoke up for themselves and worried about the harsh realities of society. She encouraged the women to contribute a major hand in serving their country, cutting all the boundaries that come as an obstacle in their clear path. Her poems on Indian soldiers and their sacrifices are evident of her patriotism and undying love for her country. She described in detail her about free India in her several poems. She was quite enthusiastic about taking part in every movement or activity that supported the interests of India and worked for a free India. With her self-esteem and confidence, she didn’t allow herself to put off her ambitions or halt them. What she did made her worthy of known today and mentioned in every conversation about freedom fighters. Her name is known to every household, child, adult, and personality today.

Short Summary

1^st Governor of United Province

• In-office: 15 August 1947- 2 March 1949
• Succeeded by: Hormasji Peroshaw Mody
• Preceded by: Position Established

President of the Indian National Congress

• In-office: 1925-1926
• Preceded by: Mahatma Gandhi
• Succeeded by: S. Srinivasa Iyengar

Personal Details

Born

• Sarojini Chattopadhyay
• 13 February 1879
• Hyderabad
• Hyderabad State
• British India
• Father- Aghorenath Chattopadhyay
• Mother: Varada Sundari Devi

Died

Age- 70

Date: 2 March 1949

Place: Lucknow, United Provinces, Dominion of India

• Nationality- Indian
• Political Party: Indian National Congress
• Husband: Govindaraju Naidu (1898-1949)

Relative

1. Suhasini (Sister)
2. Virendranath (Brother)
3. Harindranath (Brother)

Children

• Padmaja Naidu
• Jayasurya Naidu
• Leelamani Naidu
• Randheer Naidu
• Nilawar Naidu

Alma mater

1. King’s College- London (1895-1898)
2. Girton College- Cambridge
3. University of Madras

Occupation

• Poet
• Political Activist
• Nickname: Bharat Ki bulbul

Literature Journey

• Language: English
• Subject: Indian Nationalism
• Genre: lyric poetry
• Notable Works: The Golden Threshold, “In the Bazaars of Hyderabad”

Institutions in the name of Sarojini Naidu

• Sarojini Naidu Medical College
• Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication
• Sarojini Naidu College for Women

Popularly Known

• Bharat Kokila

Publications

• The Royal Tombs of Golconda
• The Snake Charmer
• The Queen’s Rival
• Ecstasy
• The Indian Fantasy
• The Feather of the Dawn (1961)
• The Broken Wing (1917)
• Mohammad Jinnah: An Ambassador of Unity (1916)
• The Bird of Time (1912)
• The Golden Threshold (1905)

Political Ideology

• Non-Violence
• Right Wing

Movement and Associations

• Indian National Movement
• Indian Independence Movement
• Quit India Movement
• Salt Satyagraha

Some Intriguing Facts about Sarojini Naidu

• Nizam of Hyderabad gave a scholarship at the age of 16 and went to study at London King’s College. Nobel Laureates like Edmond Gausse and Arthur Simon suggested she should concentrate on Indian themes for writing. She became an impeccable poet in the 20^th century by exhibiting emotions, feelings, and experiences through poems.
• Naidu fell in love with Padipati Govindarajulu, a physician and a non- Brahmin. She showed courage by expressing his feelings to Padiapati and married at the age of 19 in 1898.
• Her political journey began in 1905; she became an active member of the Indian National Movement. She toured different places and regions and delivered a speech on women’s empowerment, social welfare, and nationalism. She founded the Women’s Indian Association in 1917.
• British Colonial Government had recognized her with a Kaisar-i- Hind Medal for noble work during the plague epidemic in India. She joined Quit India Movement; British Government had detained her and was in jail.
• She was a fierce supporter of the father of the Nation “Gandhiji”. She had supported every decision and Ideology which would help India to achieve the Independence from British misrule. She was also referred to as Mahatma Gandhi’s “Mickey Mouse”.
• She died due to cardiac arrest at the Government House in Lucknow on 2 March 1949.

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