Every time, a person from the Indian subcontinent hears the utterance of the word ‘Veer’ (meaning brave in Hindi/Sanskrit and in many other Indian languages), one is inspired to do selfless service to one’s motherland/fatherland. This is the significance of the word ‘Veer’. There are only a few people who earn the sobriquet ‘Veer’. They are the most deserving ones. Vinayak Damodar Savarkar became known as ‘Veer’ Vinayak Damodar Savarkar after an incidence of bravery in his childhood. Savarkar was indeed one of the bravest men in world history and the greatest patriot that the world has ever produced. The proof of this has been given by none other than the former poet and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In his own words of poetry in Hindi, Vajpayee said – ‘सावरकर माने तेज, सावरकर माने त्याग, सावरकर माने तप।’ (Savarkar means Speed, Savarkar means Sacrifice and Savarkar means Meditation).
One can understand the paramount significance of Veer Savarkar from the above lines.
Savarkar was born on May 28, 1883, in Bhagur village near Nasik in erstwhile Bombay presidency in British-ruled Bharat, which is in the current state of Maharashtra in India. Bharat Mata was not free at that time. She was in cruel chains under British colonial rule. The British had plundered Bharat in many ways, especially – morally, mentally, spiritually, culturally and materially.
Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was born to Damodar and Radhabai Savarkar in a Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin Hindu family. He lost his mother at the young age of eight or nine to an epidemic, which was raging at the time in his native place. He lost his father, too, in the next couple of years. He was born with three siblings – Ganesh, Narayan and Maina. His elder brother, Ganesh Savarkar, was also known as Babarao Savarkar. In fact, all three brothers later became famous freedom fighters and were often lodged in different jails during the same as well as different periods of time. His entire family was tremendously patriotic. Savarkar was an extrovert and extremely patriotic from a young age. He organised a group of friends and called it ‘Mitra Mela’. In fact, he took an oath at the young age of 15 (in 1898) that he would free his motherland from British rule. The two major influences on the life of Savarkar were his brothers and Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. His mother used to tell him stories from the epic Ramayana and Maharaja Chhatrapati Shivaji, the great Hindu Maratha ruler when Savarkar was a child. In other words, Savarkar became aware of his religion and nation from early times.
He appeared for his matric exam in 1901, joined Fergusson College in Pune in 1902 and became a regular writer for ‘Aryan’. One of his well-known articles was ‘Saptapadi’. ‘Saptapadi’ is about the seven stages of the evolution of a nation as envisaged by Savarkar. He had an intellectual bent of mind and read Indian as well as world history and Indian and Western literature. He read the works of Bhavabhuti, Kalidasa, Shakespeare and Milton. In 1904, the name of ‘Mitra Mela’ founded by Savarkar was changed to ‘Abhinav Bharat’. Abhinav Bharat was a group of Bharatiya revolutionaries to free India. This society of 100 select members was inspired by Young Italy of Mazzini. Mazzini was an Italian leader who was an inspiration to Savarkar. In 1905, British Governor-General, Lord Curzon, partitioned Bengal. The partition was opposed by the people of Bharat. In the same year, Savarkar protested against the partition by making a bonfire of foreign goods in Pune under the influence of Bal Gangadhar Tilak. This practice of burning foreign goods on a bonfire was later adopted by even Gandhiji, who had initially criticised the practice as being ‘violent’ while being in South Africa. Unfortunately, Savarkar was rusticated from Fergusson college on account of all these ‘anti-national’ activities. The truth was that he was one of those, who was suffering, sacrificing and sincerely working for the emancipation of Bharat. He was a stupendous patriot and hard-core nationalist. Soon, Savarkar came to side with the extremists’ freedom fighters more and more. He was often on the side of Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Bipin Chandra Pal and not on the side of liberals like Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Savarkar was allowed to take his B.A. degree much later with the help of Shyamji Krishna Verma.
Savarkar decided to go to London to study law under the influence of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and received a scholarship from Shyamji Krishna Verma of India House. He attended Gray’s Inn Law college in London and became a barrister. Veer Savarkar founded Free India Society in London, which was yet another group of revolutionaries fighting for Bharat’s freedom from outside Bharat. Savarkar began reading Indian and world history extensively while in London. In 1909, his book ‘Indian War of Independence 1857’ was published. Till then, the British had dismissed ‘the first Bharatiya freedom struggle for independence’ as a ‘mere mutiny’. Bhikhaji Cama helped to publish the landmark book in the Netherlands, France and Germany after ‘not-at-all-great’ Britain banned the book for inspiring the Indian freedom struggle. The book was considered a kind of ‘essential reading material’ by freedom fighters. It later inspired freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh and others. Veer Savarkar was one of the earliest freedom fighters to set the revolutionary trend in the freedom struggle.
On July 1, 1909, Madan Lal Dhingra shot at a British official, Wyllie Curzon, at a public meeting. Dhingra was considered to be a keen follower and friend of Savarkar. He was hanged by the British. Savarkar was heartbroken by the death of his friend and comrade, Madan Lal Dhingra. He was melancholic and composed some poems as a tribute to Dhingra. Savarkar was arrested on May 13, 1910. Meanwhile in India, Ganesh Savarkar had organised protests against Morley Minto reforms in 1919. He was taken to Yerwada Central Jail in Pune. On July 18, 1910, he tried to escape from the British by jumping off a ship and swimming to French shores. He was illegally captured by the British on French soil and sentenced to two life imprisonments in the dreaded Andaman and Nicobar Cellular Jail (Kaala Paani). The British imperialists were very cunning and cruel rulers, those who didn’t like any Indian freedom fighter to survive to return to struggle for India’s independence. Thus, they handed over two life imprisonment sentences (2*25 years) amounting to 50 years to Veer Savarkar at the dreaded Kaala Paani. During that time, Savarkar, along with other political prisoners, were tortured in multiple horrendous ways of morbid physical and mental kinds over a period of many years. Many political prisoners committed suicide, unable to bear the physical and mental torture by the English Jail authorities, who displayed special debased animalistic pleasure in torturing hapless and weakened Indian freedom fighters in their horrendous prisons. This explains as to why the worth-of-emulation model freedom fighters, who were subject to extreme suffering, took to writing the so-called mercy petitions.
Mercy Petitions
The British imperialists were tricksters, mass murderers and devils by nature. Naturally, they used different measures (both ethical and unethical) to maintain supremacy over their Indian subjects and Indian political prisoners. Mercy petitions were one such weapon wielded by the British imperialists. Very often, there were mercy petitions prepared and kept ready by the British officials presiding over Indian jails, who would be waiting for their opportunity to prey upon vulnerable Indian freedom fighters by making the latter undergo extreme mental and physical torture at different levels and in different ways. Then, they would get the signature of the political prisoner in the latter’s deepest moments of desperation and despondency. Veer Savarkar was thus, just a victim of bloody British imperialists’ treachery, deceit, criminality, cruelty, inhumanity and gross human rights violations of the highest level.
These petitions were sent by Indian political prisoners, who were being shattered into smithereens at all levels and made incapacitated, leaving them no option but to put their signatures on the miserable mercy petitions. Some political prisoners chose to serve ‘Bharat Mata’ by dying for her, like Sukhdev, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Azad. Savarkar chose to serve Mother India by deciding to keep himself alive as he possessed staggering abilities- especially intellectual ones.
On May 2, 1921, the Savarkar brothers were moved to a jail in Ratnagiri, where they were continued to be tortured under horrendous conditions, pushing Savarkar to the extreme limits of mental and physical pain and later to Yerwada Central Jail. He was released on January 6, 1924, under stringent restrictions by the British ruling dispensation in India amidst mounting pressure from the general Indian public and the Indian National Congress (INC) after 13 years of absolute and horrendous misery. He was ordered not to leave the Ratnagiri district and to refrain from political activities for the next five years by the British.
However, V.D. Savarkar did not waste the years after his return to Ratnagiri. He organised many religious functions and convened many Mahar conferences. He was against the caste system and especially against the practice of untouchability, which he found very evil. Savarkar became the president of the Hindu Mahasabha in 1937 and remained its president till 1943. The Hindu Mahasabha protested against Gandhiji holding consultations with Jinnah in 1941.
Personal Life
Veer Savarkar was married to Yamunabai. His children were Vishwas, Prabhakar and Prabhat Chiplunkar.
Savarkar’s Views on Hindu Society
Savarkar said that there were seven shackles that were keeping the Hindu society in chains. They include Vedoktabandi, which means keeping the Sacred Vedas in chains. Savarkar believed that the knowledge regarding the Vedas was universal. According to him, this knowledge about the Vedas cannot be restricted to any one caste. He strongly believed that whosoever has the aptitude, discipline and desire should be allowed to study the Vedas. He also believed that there should be no Vyavasaaybandi or that no one should be forced to join any profession. In 1922, Gandhiji had written – “hereditary occupation for maintaining societal order cannot be shaken.” Savarkar believed that a human should be free to choose their profession based on their talent, merit and nature. Savarkar was also against the evil practice of untouchability and believed that the practice was a sin. Let us understand this ‘deviance’ from the ‘kind and compassionate’ Gandhiji who advised Shudras to move away to maintain peace and ‘brotherhood’ when there was a fight between the Shudra and Savarna communities. The ancient practice of not letting Hindus travel overseas was not appreciated by Savarkar as he considered it a backward practice. He believed that Europe’s naval traditions were what made them strong. We must not forget that the Cholas of ancient Tamil Nadu were great naval powers in ancient Bharat. He also did not like the practice of Shuddibandi, meaning the practice of not letting an individual to reconvert back into the mother religion (Gharwapsi). Savarkar believed that everyone should be allowed to return to their root religion. He also opposed Rotibandi. In other words, Savarkar favoured inter-caste dining. He was also against Betibandi and believed that there should be inter-caste marriages within the Hindu religion.
Thus, Savarkar contributed in multiple ways –
First and foremost, he was a freedom fighter and patriot incomparable. His travails as a freedom fighter cannot be forgotten. His bravery in the face of excessive physical and mental torture should never be underestimated.
Second, he was a grand litterateur. Savarkar was a poet, novelist, short story writer and playwright. He worked to purify the Marathi language. One of his more famous songs is ‘Sagaraprantalamala’, which was written after his close associate, Madan Lal Dhingra (whom many claim that he had influenced greatly) was sent to the gallows in London after Dhingra murdered Wylie. Dhingra’s death along with other circumstances weakened Savarkar’s overall health. It was during the aftermath of all this that he sang ‘Sagara’. In fact, he, being a literary genius, sang as he composed the song. The song was immortalised by Hridaynath’s music and sung by the famous Mangeshkar siblings (Usha, Lata, Asha and Hriday). In my personal opinion as a poet, I find the poem passionately patriotic. In Cellular Jail, Savarkar wrote another poem ‘Jayostute’ (Victory to you) in Marathi. ‘Jayostute’ deserves to be our national anthem as this was written by our freedom fighter, Veer Savarkar in the most tumultuous of sufferings undergone by a genuine patriot. There are no doubts or suspicions regarding the circumstances under which this song has been composed. In ‘Jayostute’, Savarkar sang paeans to the Goddess of Freedom.
Savarkar composed his first poem when he was 11. He wrote ‘Swadeshichaphatka’ when he was still in school. He wrote poems throughout his entire adult life. He wrote hundreds of poems on the walls of his Cell in A&N Islands. It is estimated that he wrote up to 6000 poems on the walls. His famous plays were ‘Usshap’, ‘Sanyastakhadga’ and ‘Uttarkriya’.
His contribution to Marathi literature is immense. He composed pawadas (ballads). One of his famous poems is ‘Raarakaaspahun’. His other famous poems include ‘Sagara’ and ‘Jayostute’. He also wrote poems opposing the cruel practice of untouchability.
Third, he was also a very good historian, who had read countless books of history and who had keenly observed the independence movement in India. He wrote – Joseph Mazzini, the biography of the Italian revolutionary, 1857 Che Swatantra Samar (First Independence Struggle 1857), Shikhancha Itihas – The History of the Sikhs, Mazi Janmathep (narrating his ordeals at Kaala Paani), Kale Pani and many others. His other well-known books were ‘Hindu-Pad-Padshaahi’ on Maratha history and ‘Six Glorious Epochs.’
Fourth, he was also a proponent of Hindutva philosophy. His book of 1922, ‘The Essence of Hindutva’ revolutionised the nation. He wrote the book in Ratnagiri jail. ‘Hindutva’, as defined by Veer Savarkar, is – ‘Everyone, who considers this land, from the river Sindhu till the sea as his or her fatherland/motherland and holy land is a Hindu.’ His book, ‘Hindutva: Who is a Hindu?’ is yet another remarkable book.
Fifth, he worked to abolish the evil practice of untouchability. He believed that the Caste system should be done away with, to bring greater unity among the Hindus.
Sixth, he called for a single unifying language to unite India. He wished that there should be one common link language in India.
Seventh, he inspired countless freedom fighters like Madan Lal Dhingra, Chandrasekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and S.C. Bose. British Officer JP Saunders was assassinated by Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru and Sukhdev and all three freedom fighters were hanged.
Eighth, everyone appreciated the valour and greatness of Veer Savarkar including the likes of Rash Behari Bose – the founder of the Indian National Army, Subhas Chandra Bose – the successor of R.C. Bose and the legal luminary and champion of the socially depressed classes, B.R. Ambedkar.
Ninth, Savarkar helped to design the first Indian national flag, which Madam Cama unfurled at the World Socialist Conference in Stuttgart, Germany.
Banned Books
Eight works of Savarkar were banned by the British government, including ‘Mazzini’, the biography of the Italian patriot who fought for Italy’s unification and independence. Mazzini was a great inspiration to Savarkar. Savarkar was influenced by both Indian freedom fighters and freedom fighters from outside Bharat, too. He respected heroes from other nations but was devoted to Bharat. He greatly admired Chhatrapati Shivaji. His drama ‘Usshaap’ was banned. His brother ran a magazine called ‘Shraddhanand’, which was also banned by the British.
A visit to Kaala Paani must be made compulsory for all Indians as this will instil the spirit of patriotism in the people of Bharat. Educational institutions must take their students to Kaala Paani for field trips. This will ensure that both school and college students are aware of the sufferings and sacrifices of India’s freedom fighters. Likewise, it will be a wonderful initiative on behalf of parents if they could take their children to the various cells in Cellular Jail in the Andamans so that they are able to envisage the sufferings of our freedom fighters.
Savarkar was not a very religious person but a highly spiritual one. He was more of an atheist. Nevertheless, he was most closely connected with the coining and propagation of the ‘Hindutva’ ideology. Savarkar smoked and drank more so after his return from the Andaman Islands dreaded ‘Kaala Paani’. It is most likely his extreme physical and mental torture as well as denial of home bliss during his incarceration that might have led him to choose means to feel free and happy. He was also a non-vegetarian from his youth. He ate fish, prawn and meat dishes too. In this, he differed from Gandhiji, who was a pure vegetarian. Savarkar found it ridiculous that anyone who did not consume ‘animal protein’ would be able to stand up against the might of the British imperialists. But we must remember that bad habits do not one a bad person. Savarkar was not a bad person. In fact, he was a good, great and brave person save for his minor shortcomings. It is absurd to expect perfection in a human being. Savarkar’s life was almost blemishless. Here was a man who had fought for the freedom of his motherland and his religion. Here was a man, who wanted to promote unity in his country by bringing a common language to unite. This is actually a very good idea. English is the main language used in England, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. French is the language of France. German is the language of Germany. Italian is the language of Italy. Korean is the language of Korea. Japanese is the language of Japan. Mandarin Chinese is the widely spoken language in China. A common language is useful to connect the people of a region or land. It is time to adopt a common language for communication in Bharat as well. We can continue to give importance to our vernacular languages and mother tongue. Nevertheless, we should be taught one common language other than English in our educational institutions. That other language may be Kashmiri, Tamil or Telugu or Hindu or Sanskrit or any other Bharatiya language. The visionary National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 appears to envisage these lines.
There are some people who spew venom about him. They don’t understand the personality who was convicted indirectly for the murder of A.T.M. Jackson, the Collector of Nasik. Jackson was supposedly sympathetic towards Indian aspirations. They fail to realise that Savarkar was a very intelligent man. He knew that the British who ruled India were cruel, cunning and pretentious. He knew that the British officials only pretended to be sympathetic to Indian aspirations and even if they were really sympathetic, it was insufficient to get rid of our British imperialist masters from Indian soil. He knew that we Indians would need to pick up the cudgels against each and every British official in British-ruled India. He knew that they were foreigners, who had zero justification to rule India. The British Isles are small islands in some obscure part of this world with little natural resources including limited human resources. How dare they try to dominate the world with their few men and resources? There are times, places and situations when those practising the language of deceit, cruelty, cunning, pretentiousness and venom need to receive answers in the same language. Savarkar understood all this.
Many valuable books have been written including two volumes on Savarkar by author and historian, Vikram Sampath and books on Savarkar by S.G. Suryah. Ashutosh Deshmukh wrote ‘Braveheart Savarkar’.
There was a slogan coined by Savarkar – “One Country, One God, One Caste, One Mind, brothers… all of us without a difference.” The important point to note is that he wanted all Indian people to realise that we are brothers and sisters without differences of land, religion, or caste. Nevertheless, it is important to respect different identities.
It is to be remembered that from times immemorial, the polity of a place has not been kept distinct from the religion of the place. In other words, polity and religion were not mutually exclusive like nowadays. The fundamental flaw is that in Modern India, we have separated politics from religion. The ‘King’ was always considered a ‘divine being’ since ancient times in Bharat. One is of the opinion that we must return to our roots in this aspect and the distinction between politics and religion must be wiped out. Bharat should have a state religion like say, Vatican City which has Catholic Christianity as the state religion or like Saudi Arabia, which has Islam as its country’s religion. In a similar manner, ‘India’ should resume its former name, ‘Bharat’ and make Hinduism the state religion of Bharat as the whole world is aware that Hinduism is the ancient religion of Bharat from times immemorial. All other religions made their appearance in Bharat only a while ago. It is only right and just for Hinduism to become the state religion in India. Other religions may remain as communities. This is the lasting way for establishing communal harmony in India. Hinduism is the legitimate religion of Bharat.
The beloved child of ‘Bharat Mata’, Veer Savarkar, passed away on February 26, 1966, at the age of 82 after a long-drawn fast. Savarkar had to endure much suffering, cruelty, injustice, loss of domestic bliss, and development of health issues and coping mechanisms due to his long years under torturous conditions in the dreaded Cellular Jail at the Andaman Islands.
So, if anyone has any problem with calling Savarkar a patriot or who calls him a coward -one is quite tempted to bless such an individual with some years in incarceration like Savarkar and see how they cope with life! Sometimes, empathy needs to be taught to the traitors of ‘Bharat Mata’.
The most shocking revelation is that it was Jawaharlal Nehru who signed a mercy bond to escape prison after spending a mere two weeks in Nabha prison in 1923. He had been sentenced to two years imprisonment for defying an order barring entry into the Princely State of Nabha. He got out of jail with the influence of his famous lawyer father, Motilal Nehru. Now tell me, who is the real coward? Who is the real traitor? Who is the shameless person, who could not bear ill-treatment for two weeks?
Compare this with the Great Veer Damodar Savarkar, who was brutalised for more than 13 years, first in the Andaman Jail and then in Ratnagiri jail. ‘Bharat Mata’ knows the real patriot. ‘Bharat Mata’ knows the real coward. It is time for all Indian people to realise the truth and put an end to any kind of slander against Veer Savarkar.
There is a portrait of Veer Savarkar in India’s Parliament. It was unveiled by then Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in the presence of the then President of India, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Veer Savarkar has been celebrated by none other than our present Prime Minister, Narendra Damodardas Modi. The tremendous services of the Central government have ensured that the present dispensation is highly likely to continue into a third term.
Even former Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, recognised and honoured the legacy of the great patriot Veer Savarkar by issuing a commemorative stamp in 1970. She also donated a sum of Rs 11,000 from her personal account to Savarkar Trust. She also ordered the Films Division of India to produce a documentary film on the life of the ‘Great Revolutionary’ Veer Savarkar, which she personally cleared in 1983.
Thus, the contributions of Savarkar in his lifetime cannot be replicated easily. There are only few great achievers in this mortal sphere like Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.
Dr S Padmapriya, PhD, is an Author, Thinker, Scholar, and Educator. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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