Sarala Devi Chaudhurani
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Sarala Devi Chaudhurani (born Sarala Ghosal; 9 September 1872 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian educationist and political activist, who founded Bharat Stree Mahamandal in
Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...
in 1910. This was the first national-level women's organization in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. One of the primary goals of the organization was to promote
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. The organization opened several offices in
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(then part of unpartitioned India), Allahabad,
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,
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,
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,
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, and
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to improve the situation of women all over India.


Biography


Early life

Sarala was born in Jorasanko, Kolkata on 9 September 1872 to a well known Bengali intellectual family. Her father Janakinath Ghosal was one of the first secretaries of the Bengal Congress. Her mother Swarnakumari Devi, a noted author, was the daughter of
Debendranath Tagore Debendranath Tagore (15 May 1817 – 19 January 1905; birth name: Debendronath Thakur) was an Indian philosopher and religious reformer, active in the Brahmo Samaj (earlier called Bhramho Sabha) ("Society of Brahma", also translated as ''Socie ...
, an eminent Brahmo leader and sister of poet
Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...
. Her older sister, Hironmoyee, was an author and founder of a widow's home. Sarla Devi's family was a follower of Brahmoism, a religion founded by
Ram Mohan Roy Raja Ram Mohan Roy (22 May 1772 – 27 September 1833) was an Indian reformer and writer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj, a socio-religious reform movement in the Indian subcontinen ...
and later developed by Sarala's grandfather Debendranath Tagore. In 1890, she earned her BA in English literature from
Bethune College Bethune College is a women's college located on Bidhan Sarani in Kolkata, India, and affiliated to the University of Calcutta. It is the oldest women's college in India. It was established as a girls' school in 1849, and as a college in 1879. ...
. She was awarded the college's first Padmavati Gold Medal for being the top female candidate in her BA examinations. She was one of the few women of her time to participate in the
Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...
. During anti partition agitation she spread the gospel of nationalism in Punjab and maintained secret revolutionary society.


Career

Upon completing her education, Sarala went to Mysore State and joined the Maharani Girls' School as a school teacher. A year later, she returned home and started writing for ''Bharati'', a Bengali journal, while also beginning her political activities. From 1895 to 1899, she edited ''Bharati'' jointly with her mother and sister, and then on her own from 1899 to 1907, with the goal of propagating patriotism and to raise up the literary standard of the journal. In 1904, she started the Lakshmi Bhandar (women's store) in Kolkata to popularize native handicrafts produced by women. In 1910, she founded the Bharat Stree Mahamandal (All India Women's Organization), which is regarded by many historians as the first All-Indian organization for women. With several branches around the country, it promoted education and vocational training for women without consideration of class, caste and religion.


Personal life

In 1905, Sarala Devi married Rambhuj Dutt Chaudhary (1866–1923), a lawyer, journalist, nationalist leader and follower of
Arya Samaj Arya Samaj () is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda Saraswati founded the samaj in the 1870s. Arya Samaj was the first Hindu ...
, the Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati. After her marriage, she moved to
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. There, she helped her husband edit the nationalist
Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
weekly ''Hindusthan'', which was later converted into an English periodical. When her husband was arrested for his involvement in
Non-cooperation movement Non-cooperation movement may refer to: * Non-cooperation movement (1919–1922), during the Indian independence movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi against British rule * Non-cooperation movement (1971), a movement in East Pakistan * Non-cooperatio ...
,
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...
visited her home in
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
as a guest. Gandhi quoted her poems and writings in his speeches, and in Young India and other journals. In February 1920, ''Young India'' published several letters concerned with her membership of ''Lahore Purdah Club''. After Sarala's husband was arrested for his part in Rowlatt satyagraha, Una O'Dwyer (wife of Michael O'Dwyer) wanted her to resign her membership. She travelled with Gandhi all over India. When apart, they frequently exchanged letters, and mutually admired each other. In one of the letter to Sarala, Gandhi wrote : Her only son, Dipak, married Gandhi's granddaughter Radha.


Later life

After her husband's death in 1923, Sarala Devi returned to Kolkata, and resumed editing responsibilities for ''Bharati'' from 1924 to 1926. She established a girls' school, Siksha Sadan in Kolkata in 1930. She retired from public life in 1935 and indulged in religion, accepting Bijoy Krishna Chattopadhyaya(1875-1945), of Howrah, also known as Howrah's Thakur (God of Howrah)as her spiritual teacher. She recorded the sermons of her Guru (spiritual teacher) by writing the same when they were orally delivered and such sermons were published in several volumes with the title 'Veda Vani' (Voice of the Vedas). In her autobiography titled 'Jeevaner Jhara Pata', at the end, there is a mention of the name of her spiritual teacher by her as well as by the publisher. Also Veda Vani has been mentioned. The name of the spiritual leader mentioned there is Bijoy Krishna Deva Sharma instead of Bijoy Krishna Chattopadhyaya, as 'Deva Sharma' is a common title of the Brahmins. She died on 18 August 1945 in Kolkata. Her autobiography ''Jivaner Jhara Pata '' was serialized in ''Desh'', a Bengali literary magazine, during the later period of her life, in 1942–1943. It was later translated into English by Sikata Banerjee as The Scattered Leaves of My Life (2011).


Family tree


References


Further reading

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chaudhurani, Sarala Devi Indian feminists Indian women's rights activists 1945 deaths 1872 births Bengali Hindus Bengali educators People from the Bengal Presidency Bethune College alumni University of Calcutta alumni 20th-century Indian educational theorists Indian women scientists Indian educators Indian social reformers Indian social workers Indian activists Indian autobiographers Indian academics Indian women academics Founders of Indian schools and colleges Indian women activists Indian political scientists Indian reformers Swadeshi activists Indian political writers Writers from British India 20th-century Indian women educational theorists