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Tushar Arun Gandhi (born 17 January 1960) is an Indian author and son of
Arun Manilal Gandhi Arun Manilal Gandhi (born April 14, 1934) is an Indian-American author, socio-political activist and son of Manilal Gandhi, thus a grandson of nationalist leader Mahatma Gandhi. Although he has followed in the footsteps of his grandfather as an ac ...
, thus great-grandson of
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
. In March 2005, he led the 75th anniversary re-enactment of the Dandi March. From 2007 to 2012, he was the Goodwill Ambassador of the CISRI-ISP Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition.


Early life

Tushar Arun Gandhi was born on 17 January 1960, in
Shegaon Shegaon is a city and municipal council in the Buldhana district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Shegaon has become a pilgrimage centre due to the influence of Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj, who is considered a saint by Hindus. Transportatio ...
,
Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the second-most populous state in India and the second-most populous country subdi ...
, to Arun and Surnanda Gandhi. His father was an actor and his mother was a researcher. Tushar was raised in the Mumbai suburb of Santacruz. He studied at Adarsh Vinay Mandir, a local Gujarati-medium school. He holds a diploma in printing from the Government Institute of Printing Technology, Mumbai.


Personal life

Gandhi resides in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...
. In 1985, he married Sonal Desai. Together, they had 2 children. A son Vivan Gandhi and daughter Kasturi Gandhi. Kasturi was so named after
Kasturba Gandhi Kasturbai Mohandas Gandhi (, born Kasturbai Gokuldas Kapadia; 11 April 1869 – 22 February 1944) was an Indian political activist. She married Mohandas Gandhi, more commonly known as Mahatma Gandhi, in 1883. With her husband and her eldest so ...
.


Career

Tushar Gandhi is best known for having established in 1998 in
Vadodara Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capita ...
, Gujarat the Mahatma Gandhi Foundation. It is now located in Mumbai (and he is still its President). Since 1996 he has served as President of the Lok Seva Trust, an NGO which a nephew of Mahatma Gandhi had establish in central Bombay in the mid-1950s for the welfare to textile-mill labourers. In 2000, Tushar portrayed himself in a fictional Tamil - Hindi movie directed by Kamal Hassan, "
Hey Ram ''Hey Ram'' is a 2000 Indian period crime drama film written, directed and produced by Kamal Haasan, who also stars. It was simultaneously made in Tamil and Hindi languages. Shah Rukh Khan plays a supporting role, making his debut in Tamil ci ...
". In 2001, Tushar Gandhi negotiated with American marketing firm CMG Worldwide the use of the Mahatma’s image in an advertisement (aimed at university students) for a credit card company. This perceived betrayal of
Gandhian The followers of Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest figure of the Indian independence movement, are called Gandhians. Gandhi's legacy includes a wide range of ideas ranging from his dream of ideal India (or ''Rama Rajya)'', economics, environmentalis ...
ideals was followed by a public outcry causing him to cancel the deal. In 2009, he did likewise in a semi-fictional movie, "
Road to Sangam ''Road to Sangam'' is a 2010 Bollywood film written and directed by Amit Rai. The film features Bollywood actors Paresh Rawal, Om Puri and Pawan Malhotra. ''Road to Sangam'' is a simple story of a God fearing, devout Muslim mechanic named Hasmat ...
," based on an episode in his own life. A nonfiction book by him, ''Let's Kill Gandhi'', was published in 2007 and became for a few weeks a best seller in India. Tushar in his book ''Let’s Kill Gandhi'', blamed
Brahmins Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
in general for assassinating Mahatma Gandhi. Some critics claimed that the book defamed all Brahmins. Tushar has said he was misquoted and his claims relate only to "a certain group of Brahmins from Pune howere continuously attempting on the life of my great grandfather", rather than to Brahmins in general. In 2008 he was appointed Chairman of the Australian Indian Rural Development Foundation (AIRDF). He is trustee a
Maharashtra Gandhi Smarak Nidhi
since 2014. In 2018 he played a significant role in petitioning successfully the Supreme Court of India to direct the states and Union Territories to comply with its orders to curb cow-vigilante lynch mobs. In 2019 he became a Director of the Gandhi Research Foundation in
Jalgaon Jalgaon () is a city in Maharashtra, India. The city is located in North Maharashtra, and serves as the administrative headquarters of its namesake district, the Jalgaon district. Jalgaon is colloquially known as the “''Banana City of Ind ...
, Maharashtra.


References


External links


Official website of Tushar Gandhi





Being Mahatma’s descendants brings bouquets and brickbats

Tushar Gandhi on Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gandhi, Tushar 1960 births Living people Tushar Gandhians Mithibai College alumni Indian National Congress politicians