In India, 13 February is celebrated every year as National Women’s Day. National Women’s Day is celebrated every year in India on 13 February in honor of prominent freedom fighter and poet Sarojini Naidu. Famous as ‘Nightingale of India’ and ‘Bharat Kokila’, Sarojini Naidu was born on 13 February 1879. National Women’s Day has been started in the country from 13 February 2014 to commemorate the 135th birth anniversary of Sarojini Naidu. Today is Sarojini Naidu’s 142nd birth anniversary.
Sarojini Naidu was a famous poetess of India and one of the best national leaders of India. She was always ahead in the Indian freedom struggle and appeared with Gandhiji.
Sarojini Naidu was born on 13 February 1879. Her mother was Varada Sundari and father Aghornath Chattopadhyay, who was the founding chemical scientist of Nizam College. Sarojini Naidu’s father wanted his daughter to become a scientist but that could not happen. Sarojini Naidu loved poems and could never abandon this love.
Sarojini Naidu gave an example of her grip on the English language at the age of 13 by writing a long poem called ‘Jheel Ki Rani’ of 1300 posts and a detailed play of about 2000 lines. Sarojini Naidu was called the sorceress of words. She was a polyglot. She used to deliver her speech in English, Hindi, Bengali or Gujarati language by region.
Sarojini Naidu’s first collection of poems was published in ‘The Golden Threshold’ (1905), which is still very popular among readers even today.
Sarojini met Naidu in London in 1914. After this, there was a revolutionary change in her life and she too jumped into the freedom struggle. During the Dandi March, Sarojini Naidu was also among those who walked in the front row with Gandhiji. She followed Gandhiji’s thoughts and path throughout her life. Not only was she an important contributor to the freedom struggle, she also did many things to eradicate casteism and gender discrimination in Indian society.
In 1925, Sarojini stood from Kanpur to become the President of the Indian National Congress and became the first woman President to win. In 1928, Sarojini came from USA and accepted Gandhiji’s nonviolent things and conveyed it to the people. In 1930, Sarojini played the main role in Gandhi’s Salt Satyagraha in Gujarat. When Gandhiji was arrested in 1930, it was Sarojini who worked in the place of Gandhiji and took command. His main role was in Gandhiji’s Quit India Movement in 1942, she was also jailed along with Gandhiji for 21 months.
Sarojini Naidu died on March 02, 1949 in Lucknow. Today Sarojini Naidu is the face of women empowerment in Indian society with which everyone is familiar.