On this Day in History

Sujalaam, suphalaam, malayaja shiitalaam, Shasya-shyamalaam, maataram Shubhra-jyotsnaa-pulakita-yaminiim, Phulla-kusumita drumadala-shobhiniim, Suhasiniim sumadhura-bhashiniim, Sukhadaam varadaam, maataram (I bow to thee, Mother, richly-watered, richly-fruited, cool with the winds of the south, dark with the crops of the harvests, the Mother!) (first stanza of Vande Mataram; based on original translation by Aurobindo Ghose) Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, an influential figure of the Bengali renaissance and... Read More →

Popularly known as Shivaputra Siddharamayya Komkalimath, Kumar Gandharva was a Hindustani classical singer and globally recognised for his unique vocal style. Born on 8 April 1924, he refused to be bound by the tradition of any gharana and hence was bestowed upon the title Kumar Gandharva when he was a child prodigy. The term “Gandharva” refers to a musical spirit... Read More →

Pandit Ravi Shankar, one of the greatest sitar players of post-Independence India and the country’s best-known classical musician in the West, was born on 7 April 1920. He did more than any other person to popularise Indian classical music in the West.  Born Ravindra Shankar Chowdhury in Benares (Varanasi) to a family of Bengali Brahmins originally from East Bengal (now... Read More →

Shankar Abaji Bhise, an Indian scientist has developed about 200 inventions, for about 40 of which he took patents. He died on 7 April 1935. Some of his popular inventions include Bhise type caster, Rotary multiple type-caster, Automatic weighing and packing machine for railways, Shella or Rola soap, An automatic machine capable of composing 3000 characters per minute, Automatic bicycle... Read More →

Suchitra Sen, a superstar of Bengali cinema who became a recluse for over three decades after she quit acting, was born Rama Dasgupta on 6 April 1931 in East Bengal (now Bangladesh). Her father, Karunamoy Dasgupta, was the headmaster of a school in what is now the Pabna district of Bangladesh. She was the fifth child of Karunamoy and his... Read More →

Popularly known as BTR, Bhalchandra Trimbak Ranadive was an Indian communist politician and trade union leader. He left for his heavenly abode on 6 April 1990. After completing his studies in 1927, BTR obtained an M.A. degree with distinction. Later, in the year 1928, he joined the Communist Party of India and also became a major leader of the All... Read More →

Babu Jagjivan Ram, a Union Minister, freedom fighter and Dalit leader, was born on 5 April 1908 in Chandwa village, present-day Bhojpur district of Bihar to a Dalit family. His father, Shobhi Ram, was in the British army but later resigned, bought farmland in Chandwa, and settled there. Jagjivan Ram was sent to the village school but soon after, his... Read More →

The Battle of Kohima, a turning point in the Second World War that halted Japan’s advance into Asia, started on 4 April 1944. Sometimes called the “Stalingrad of the East”, it ended on 22 June 1944 with the defeat and retreat of Japanese forces. The twin victories of British and Indian forces in Imphal-Kohima over the Japanese in Northeast India... Read More →

Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, who as the 8th Chief of Army Staff led the Indian Army to a decisive victory against Pakistan in the 1971 war, was born on 3 April 1914 in Amritsar (British Punjab) in a Parsi family. His parents, Hormusji, a doctor, and Heerabai had moved from Gujarat to Punjab. Manekshaw went to school in Punjab and... Read More →

“When he batted, a strange light was seen for the first time on English fields, a light of the East. The leg-glance was Ranji’s own stroke. He is today a legend. We can feel the spell yet, we can go back in our minds to hot days in an England of forgotten peace and plenty, during which Ranji did not... Read More →