Savitri Bai Phule and Contemporary India
Savitri Bai Phule was born on 3 January 1831 in Naya Gaon (Bombay Presidency). Which is 50 kilometers away from Pune city. Savitri Bai Phule remained struggling and striving throughout her life to remove the flaws of the unequal society. His contribution in the field of education is a milestone which fulfills the objectives of Renaissance.
The value of Renaissance ends the conservatism spread in the society and establishes a new society, as we see the social and political revolution in the 18th-19th century becoming a new society. The identity of the 19th century is known as the promotion of new inventions, progressive and democratic values. The innovators and pioneers of social change of the 19th century were fully convinced that the coming era would bring good news for humanity. The value streams of the French Revolution had affected the whole world and India was also not untouched by this. Struggle and change were being witnessed in India as well and human energy and talent was on the way to dignify humanity in India too. The most important step for this work was taken by Savitri Bai Phule. Savitri Bai Phule believed that only the power of reasoning would create a progressive society in India, only then a country like India which is bound by superstitions and beliefs would be free. Savitri Bai Phule’s writings and style of work dealt a heavy blow to the hierarchical structure and played an important role in ending cultural supremacy. Their struggle is an investment in promoting a better humanism that will move India out of the medieval system and into a new modern society.
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Their struggle is an inspiration for generations to come. She established the first women’s school which inspired women’s identity and their rights. Equality, freedom, brotherhood and humanity always remained a source of inspiration for him. At a time when women were seen as an asset, Savitri Bai Phule’s promotion of these values is in itself an inspiration for generations to come. Savitri Bai Phule became the voice of the marginalized people of the society and became a strong voice to end the double exploitation of women in the patriarchal society. Savitri Bai Phule has always been an advocate of secular education and she believed that the place of education is important in removing the distortions in the society. His struggle and passion played an important role in establishing secular education in India, which was later considered by Lord Macaulay (1854) as an important aspect of India’s education system.
Savitri Bai Phule a revolutionary social education which started for the rights of Shudra and Atishudra women. Along with this, he also opened a school for Mahar and Mangga castes. The relevance of Savitri Bai Phule in today’s times is evident from the fact that she promoted vocational training and practical education to realize the vision of a free man. His revolutionary thinking also believed that schools should be coordinated with industrial unit and school education so that children learn new dimensions and become self-reliant. Savitri Bai Phule believed that education promotes human creativity, due to which man discovers new dimensions.
He promoted social movement to eliminate the flaws of the caste system and at the same time Savitri Bai Phule fought for the protection of pregnant women and for the protection of exploited widows, which makes him stand in the category of a saint. In 1863 AD, Savitri Bai Phule opened Matrishshu Griha to save from feticide. He also formed the Satya Shodhak Samaj, which played an important role in ending the dowry system. His movement strived for the abolition of widow remarriage and child marriage. His life and struggle is a source of inspiration. He himself adopted the child of a Brahmin widow, nurtured it and got it inter-caste married. Savitri Bai Phule and Jyotirao Phule dedicated their whole life for the rights of women, farmers and backward classes. In the process of ending gender inequality and caste inequality, he had to face many scrutiny due to the conservative society, this strengthened his determination. The work and saga of Savitri Bai Phule are inspiring starting points for the public life of the modern Indian woman.
Savitri Bai Phule and Mahatma Phule turned their struggle into a movement which proved to be a millstone in promoting equality and brotherhood. His whole life was dedicated to the marginalized people. He wanted to remove the evils of the society by making education and knowledge the basis of the society. Despite many difficulties in his life, he kept moving forward in his struggle. Some people of the conservative society used to comment on the working style of Savitri Bai Phule, some people used to throw stones and cow dung at her. For this reason, Savitri Bai Phule used to carry two sarees when she used to go to school so that she could change her saree after going to school. Parmanand, who was his well-wisher, wrote a letter to the Maharaja of Baroda (Sambhaji Rao Gaikwad) and informed about the work of Savitri Bai Phule and Mahatma Phule. He wrote that Savitri Bai deserves more inspiration than Jyotirao. After the death of Jyotirao, his wife Savitri Bai Phule lit the funeral pyre, this work happened for the first time in the history of India when a woman lit the funeral pyre of her husband. Savitri Bai Phule also died on March 10, 1897 in Pune while rescuing the plague victims.
Both these couple bravely faced the difficulties and took the fight of humanity forward step by step. The fight of Savitri Bai Phule was against all authoritarianism and social evils in the caste system. His contribution is inspiring even today and is relevant in contemporary India.
