Great Minds
The people whose words still guide us
Life stories, birthdays, the national days that honour them, and their quotes, in one place.
Leaders and reformers of India
- Mahatma GandhiFather of the NationBorn 2 October · Gandhi Jayanti
- Dr B. R. AmbedkarChief architect of the Constitution of IndiaBorn 14 April · Ambedkar Jayanti
- Jawaharlal NehruIndia's first Prime MinisterBorn 14 November · Children's Day
- Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelThe Iron Man of IndiaBorn 31 October · National Unity Day
- Netaji Subhas Chandra BoseLeader of the Indian National ArmyBorn 23 January · Parakram Diwas
- Bhagat SinghRevolutionary and martyr of the freedom struggleBorn 28 September · Shaheed Diwas
- Dr Sarvepalli RadhakrishnanPhilosopher, teacher and second President of IndiaBorn 5 September · Teachers' Day
- Lal Bahadur ShastriIndia's second Prime MinisterBorn 2 October
- Savitribai PhulePioneer of women's education in IndiaBorn 3 January
- Chhatrapati Shivaji MaharajFounder of the Maratha kingdomBorn 19 February · Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti
- Ratan TataIndustrialist and philanthropistBorn 28 December
Spiritual teachers
Scientists and writers
- A. P. J. Abdul KalamMissile Man of India and the People's PresidentBorn 15 October · World Students' Day
- Rabindranath TagorePoet, composer and Nobel laureateBorn 7 May · Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti
- Sir C. V. RamanPhysicist and Nobel laureateBorn 7 November · National Science Day
- Kalpana ChawlaFirst woman of Indian origin in spaceBorn 17 March
- Sarojini NaiduThe Nightingale of IndiaBorn 13 February
Voices from around the world
- Albert EinsteinPhysicist who reshaped our idea of space and timeBorn 14 March
- Nelson MandelaAnti-apartheid leader and first President of democratic South AfricaBorn 18 July
- Martin Luther King Jr.Leader of the American civil rights movementBorn 15 January
- Abraham Lincoln16th President of the United StatesBorn 12 February
- Helen KellerAuthor and campaigner for people with disabilitiesBorn 27 June