Research Article | Open Access
New Knowledge of Social Realities and a new method for change in Late Colonial Maharashtra
Santosh Pandhari Suradkar
Pages: 3779-3792
Abstract
Mahatma Jotirao Govindrao Phule was born into Mali caste (gardener) in 1827. Phule spent his whole life in Pune city, which was dominated by Brahmanical cultural, religious and political glory. Originally, Jotirao’s family known as Gorhays came from Katgun village in Satara district of Maharashtra. Although he started his schooling in Gavhathi local school, he had to leave the school in order to help his father in family farming. Two of his neighbours were impressed by Jotirao’s intelligence and his thirst for knowledge. One was a Muslim teacher, and another was a Christian gentleman who persuaded his father Govindrao to allow him to study in a secondary school. In his childhood, he came in contact with Muslim friends, and due to their criticism of the Hindu religion and caste distinction, and also due to missionaries’ work, he became aware of Hindu religion and caste system.
Keywords
Mahatma Jotirao Govindrao Phule was born into Mali caste (gardener) in 1827.