The Non-Brahmin Movements in India

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The earliest leader of the non-Brahman movement.
Jyotiba and his wife Savitribai Phule devoted their lives for the uplift of the depressed classes and women
Jyotiba Phule was believed to be the first Hindu to start and orphanage for the unfortunate children.
He opened the first school for “untouchables” in 1852 in Poona.
He launched the Satyashodak Samaj (Truth-Seekers Society) in 1873.
Phule opposed child marriage and supported widow remarriage, which was prohibited particularly among high-caste Hindus.
Jyotiba opened orphanages and homes for widows.
Unlike many contemporary nationalists he welcomed British rule and missionary activities on the ground that British rule enabled lower castes to challenge the supremacy of Brahmins.
His work, Gulamgiri (Slavery) is an important text that summarized many of his radical ideas.
Jothiba Phule decided to construct a common bathing tank outside his house.
He also wished to dine with all, regardless of their caste.
He was given the title of ‘Mahatma‘ by another social reformer Vithalrao Krishnaji Vandekar.

Sri Narayana Guru established the Sri Narayana Guru Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam in 1902 to work for the uplift of the depressed classes

He established a grand temple at Aruvipuram and dedicated it to all.
His movement inspired a radical transformation of Kerala society, especially among the Ezhavas.
Thinkers and writers such as Kumaran Asan and Dr. Palpu were influenced by his ideas and carried forward the movement.

Ayyankali was born in 1863 at Venganoor in Thiruvananthapuram.
The discrimination he faced as a child turned him into a leader of an anti-caste movement and who later fought for basic rights including access to public spaces and entry to schools.
Inspired by Sree Narayana Guru, Ayyankali founded the Sadhu Jana Paripalana Sangam (Association for the Protection of the Poor) in 1907 which campaigned and raised funds to educate the lower caste Pulaya people.
He wore the cloth of High Caste and ride Bullock cart as a protest.

She was given the title of “Pandita” and “Saraswati” for her deep knowledge of Sanskrit.
After the death of their parents she and her brother went to Calcutta and two years later her brother died.
In 1880 she married a Bengali belonging to a family of lower social status.
After the death of her husband two years later she returned to Poona and started the Arya Mahila Samaj with the help of leaders like Ranade and Bhandarkar.
Ramabai started the Sharada Sadan (shelter for homeless) for the destitute widows with the help of Ranade and Bhandarkar.
But soon she was accused of converting Hindu women to Christianity and hence had to shift her activities to Khedgoan near Poona.
She established a Mukti Sadan (freedom house) in Poona and vocational training was given to women.

Kandukuri Veeresalingam Pantulu was the earliest champion in South India of women’s emancipation.
He published a journal Viveka Vardhani.
He opened his first girls’ school in 1874 and made widow remarriage and female education the key points of his programme for social reform.

In Bombay presidency, M.G. Ranade and B.M. Malabari carried on the movement for the upliftment of women.
In 1869, Ranade joined the Widow Remarriage Association and encouraged widow remarriage and female education and opposed child marriage.
In 1887, he started the National Social Conference, which became a pre-eminent institution for social reform.
In 1884, B.M. Malabari, a journalist, started a movement for the abolition of child marriage.
He published pamphlets on this subject and appealed to the government to take action.

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