Page 159 - DENG105_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_II

Elective English–II

Notes Sarojini Naidu had participated freely in social and political activities and delivers lectures
frequently in various places. Some were thrilled to hear that this had led her to comparative
sterility of poetic accomplishment for many years past and disapprove of her seeking fresh
fields and pastures new. But, her contributions towards the evolution of a higher social and
political life in India are valuable in themselves though they have certainly had the result. Her
public utterances on various platforms are all characterised by an intense patriotism and a
desire for national upheaval.
Sarojini was a very good orator. In her closing address to the 40th Indian National Congress,
she said, “as long as I have life, as long as blood flows through this arm of mine, I shall not
leave the cause of freedom… I am only a woman, only a poet. But as a woman, I give to you
the weapons of faith and courage and the shield of fortitude. And as a poet, I fling out the
banner of song and sound, the bugle call to battle. How shall I kindle the flame which shall
waken you men from slavery…” (1982, p.20). On Sarojini’s The Sceptred Flute, Joseph Auslander
wrote, “… it

Notes Sarojini Naidu, also known by the sobriquet The Nightingale of India, was a
child prodigy, Indian independence activist and poet. Naidu was one of the framers
of the Indian Constitution. Naidu is the second Indian woman to become the
President of the Indian National Congress and the first woman to become the
Governor of Uttar Pradesh state. Her birthday is celebrated as Women’s Day in
India.

Early Life

She was born in Hyderabad to Bengali Hindu Kulin Brahmin family to Agorenath Chattopadhyay
and Barada Sundari Devi on 13th February 1879. Her father was a doctor of science from
Edinburgh University, settled in Hyderabad state, where he founded and administered the
Hyderabad College, which later became the Nizam’s College in Hyderabad. Her mother was
a poetess and used to write poetry in Bengali. Sarojini Naidu was the eldest among the eight
siblings. One of her brothers Birendranath was a revolutionary and her other brother, Harindranath
was a poet, dramatist, and actor.

Did u know? She was known as Nightingale of India.

Career
Indian Freedom Fighter
Sarojini Naidu joined the Indian national movement in the wake of partition of Bengal in 1905.
She came into contact with Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Rabindranath Tagore, Muhammad Ali
Jinnah, Annie Besant, C. P. Ramaswami Iyer, Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.
During 1915-1918, she travelled to different regions in India delivering lectures on social
welfare, women empowerment and nationalism. She awakened the women of India and brought
them out of the kitchen. She also helped to establish the Women’s Indian Association (WIA)
in 1917. She was sent to London along with Annie Besant, President of WIA, to present the
case for the women’s vote to the Joint Select Committee.

154 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY