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| '''Kamala Kaul Nehru''' ({{audio|Kamla Nehru.ogg|pronunciation}}; 1 August 1899 – 28 February 1936) was a freedom fighter, wife of ] (leader of the ]), the first Prime Minister of ] and the mother of ] |
'''Kamala Kaul Nehru''' ({{audio|Kamla Nehru.ogg|pronunciation}}; 1 August 1899 – 28 February 1936) was a freedom fighter, wife of ] (leader of the ]), the first Prime Minister of ] and the mother of ]. | ||
| ==Early life== | ==Early life== | ||
| ::The information which is summarized in this section has been taken from the book "Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi" written by Katherine Frank. | |||
| {{unreferenced section|date=March 2014}} | |||
| Kamala Nehru was born on 1 August 1899 and brought up in a traditional ] middle-class family of ]. Rajpati and Jawaharmal Kaul were Kamala Nehru's parents. Kamala, their eldest child, had two brothers, Chand Bahadur Kaul and the botanist, ], and a sister, Swaroop Kathju. All her schooling had been at home, under the guidance of a Pandit and a Maulvi, and she did not know a word of English. | |||
| Kamala Nehru was born on 1 August 1899, the eldest child of Jawahar Mull Kaul and his wife Rajpati Kaul. The family belonged to the ] community, but had been settled in ] for several generations. Kamala had two brothers named Chand Bahadur Kaul and ] (a botanist), and a sister named Swaroop Kathju (or Katju). | |||
| Kamala and her siblings were raised in a traditional environment and with Indian values. She and her sister were schooled entirely at home, mostly under the guidance of a Pandit (Hindu priest) belonging to the ], who taught them to read and write Hindi, and also elementary mathematics. That era was a period of transition from traditional education to the new English education, and while the boys attended an English school, their father also wanted them to learn ] and a little ], which used to be the languages of superior education in his own childhood. Therefore, a Maulvi (Muslim cleric) was engaged to come and give home tuitions in ], and Kamala learnt to read and write ], although not with any great proficiency. Due to this traditional education and upbringing, Kamala did not know a single word of English at the time of her wedding. | |||
| ==Marriage== | ==Marriage== | ||
| ::The information which is summarized in this section has been taken from the book "Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi" written by Katherine Frank. | |||
| Kamala married ] at the age of 17. Her husband went to a trip in the Himalayas shortly after their marriage.<ref name=windsor/> In his autobiography, Jawaharlal Nehru, referring to his wife, stated "I almost overlooked her."<ref name=windsor>{{cite news|title=From years 1916 to 1964...The man and the times|url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tzA_AAAAIBAJ&sjid=81AMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4355,5162968&dq=kamala+nehru&hl=en|accessdate=19 January 2013|newspaper=The Windsor Star|date=27 May 1964}}</ref> Kamala gave birth to a girl child in November 1917, ], who later succeeded her father as prime minister and head of the Congress party. Kamala gave birth to a boy in November 1924, but he lived for only a week.<ref name=windsor/> | |||
| ⚫ | ]]] | ||
| In keeping with Indian custom, Kamala was married while yet a teenager to a man of her own community, in a match arranged by their parents. This was ], the future first ]. They were married in 1916, and he was at that time a recent law graduate, known only as the son of the wealthy lawyer ]. Immediately after the wedding, the entire family (including two of Nehru's cousins and a number of more distant relatives) went on a holiday to ], the region from which their distant ancestors had emigrated many generations ago. This was hardly a honeymoon for the newly-weds, because Jawaharlal left his bride and his parents in ] and went away for three weeks on a trekking trip with his cousins. However, the idea of a honeymoon was unknown in India at that time, and nobody thought the arrangements unusual. | |||
| Indeed, the idea of a vacation in the hills was a novel one in Indian society at that time, and had been borrowed by Motilal from the colonial British custom of escaping the heat of the plains in the summer and spending those months in the hills. The Nehru family had become extremely Anglicized within the space of one single generation. Motilal, who had grown up entirely in a traditional Indian environment, had taken to English manners, customs and language with as much gusto as he had taken to whiskey, cigars and that ], meat. Upon his insistence, his children had been raised by Irish nannies and Scottish governesses, spoke English to everyone except their servants, were fluent in French, dressed as did the English, and ate mostly "]" food, invariably using fork and knife. | |||
| ⚫ | ]]] | ||
| The diffident and very Indian Kamala was thrown into this ultra-modern and highly westernized environment at the age of sixteen, to shift for herself and adjust as she could. She lived, as did all of India in those days, in a joint family with her husband's family. His parents were nice to her, especially her mother-in-law, who was herself of traditional disposition and did not like the extreme westernization which Motilal had imposed on the family. The case was very different with Motilal's daughters, two extremely Anglicized and high-faulting ladies of Kamala's own age, who subjected her to sniffy contempt, sneering and cutting remarks throughout the rest of her life. These girls ("]" and "]"), who spent an inordinate amount of their time in their parents' home (despite being married themselves, with homes of their own), looked down upon Kamala for being ''desi'' (a "country" girl), gauche and awkward, without European refinement, speaking little English (even later in life) and no French; very much a social inferior. | |||
| Unfortunately, Kamala's husband (our future Prime Minister) was not sympathetic or understanding of her murmured complaints; he was as culturally distant from her as his sisters were. Also, he had little to say to her, not only because he spoke Hindi as badly as she spoke English, but also because he felt that they were not intellectual equals. This was In fact true, and it was not, in those days, a great problem: she ran the house, he built a glorious career for himself, she shared in that public glory, and her child inherited everything. Yet, there was some regret on both sides. In his autobiography, Jawaharlal Nehru says in reference to his wife, "I almost overlooked her."<ref name=windsor>{{cite news|title=From years 1916 to 1964...The man and the times|url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tzA_AAAAIBAJ&sjid=81AMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4355,5162968&dq=kamala+nehru&hl=en|accessdate=19 January 2013|newspaper=The Windsor Star|date=27 May 1964}}</ref> For all this, Jawaharlal remained faithful to his wife as long as she lived. There was of course no question of an Indian wife being anything but entirely chaste. Their marriage soon fell into a workable groove: it was all about doing ones duty to each other and to family; being civil; keeping up appearances; and raising the children. | |||
| Of the children, there were very few by the standards of the day. In November 1917, Kamala gave birth to a daughter, who they named ]. She would later succeed her father as prime minister of India. In November 1924, Kamala gave birth to a son, but but he lived for only a week.<ref name=windsor/> There were no further pregnancies, and Indira was to be their only child. | |||
| ==Contribution to the Indian Independence Movement== | ==Contribution to the Indian Independence Movement== | ||
Revision as of 11:28, 16 June 2015
| Kamala | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1899-08-01)1 August 1899 Delhi, India |
| Died | 28 February 1936(1936-02-28) (aged 36) Lausanne, Switzerland |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Spouse | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Children | Indira Gandhi |
Kamala Kaul Nehru (pronunciation; 1 August 1899 – 28 February 1936) was a freedom fighter, wife of Jawaharlal Nehru (leader of the Indian National Congress), the first Prime Minister of India and the mother of Indira Gandhi.
Early life
- The information which is summarized in this section has been taken from the book "Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi" written by Katherine Frank.
Kamala Nehru was born on 1 August 1899, the eldest child of Jawahar Mull Kaul and his wife Rajpati Kaul. The family belonged to the Kashmiri Brahmin community, but had been settled in old Delhi for several generations. Kamala had two brothers named Chand Bahadur Kaul and Kailash Nath Kaul (a botanist), and a sister named Swaroop Kathju (or Katju).
Kamala and her siblings were raised in a traditional environment and with Indian values. She and her sister were schooled entirely at home, mostly under the guidance of a Pandit (Hindu priest) belonging to the Arya Samaj, who taught them to read and write Hindi, and also elementary mathematics. That era was a period of transition from traditional education to the new English education, and while the boys attended an English school, their father also wanted them to learn Urdu and a little Persian, which used to be the languages of superior education in his own childhood. Therefore, a Maulvi (Muslim cleric) was engaged to come and give home tuitions in Urdu, and Kamala learnt to read and write Urdu, although not with any great proficiency. Due to this traditional education and upbringing, Kamala did not know a single word of English at the time of her wedding.
Marriage
- The information which is summarized in this section has been taken from the book "Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi" written by Katherine Frank.
In keeping with Indian custom, Kamala was married while yet a teenager to a man of her own community, in a match arranged by their parents. This was Jawaharlal Nehru, the future first Prime Minister of India. They were married in 1916, and he was at that time a recent law graduate, known only as the son of the wealthy lawyer Motilal Nehru. Immediately after the wedding, the entire family (including two of Nehru's cousins and a number of more distant relatives) went on a holiday to Kashmir, the region from which their distant ancestors had emigrated many generations ago. This was hardly a honeymoon for the newly-weds, because Jawaharlal left his bride and his parents in Srinagar and went away for three weeks on a trekking trip with his cousins. However, the idea of a honeymoon was unknown in India at that time, and nobody thought the arrangements unusual.
Indeed, the idea of a vacation in the hills was a novel one in Indian society at that time, and had been borrowed by Motilal from the colonial British custom of escaping the heat of the plains in the summer and spending those months in the hills. The Nehru family had become extremely Anglicized within the space of one single generation. Motilal, who had grown up entirely in a traditional Indian environment, had taken to English manners, customs and language with as much gusto as he had taken to whiskey, cigars and that greatest of Brahminical taboos, meat. Upon his insistence, his children had been raised by Irish nannies and Scottish governesses, spoke English to everyone except their servants, were fluent in French, dressed as did the English, and ate mostly "continental" food, invariably using fork and knife.
The diffident and very Indian Kamala was thrown into this ultra-modern and highly westernized environment at the age of sixteen, to shift for herself and adjust as she could. She lived, as did all of India in those days, in a joint family with her husband's family. His parents were nice to her, especially her mother-in-law, who was herself of traditional disposition and did not like the extreme westernization which Motilal had imposed on the family. The case was very different with Motilal's daughters, two extremely Anglicized and high-faulting ladies of Kamala's own age, who subjected her to sniffy contempt, sneering and cutting remarks throughout the rest of her life. These girls ("Nan" and "Betty"), who spent an inordinate amount of their time in their parents' home (despite being married themselves, with homes of their own), looked down upon Kamala for being desi (a "country" girl), gauche and awkward, without European refinement, speaking little English (even later in life) and no French; very much a social inferior.
Unfortunately, Kamala's husband (our future Prime Minister) was not sympathetic or understanding of her murmured complaints; he was as culturally distant from her as his sisters were. Also, he had little to say to her, not only because he spoke Hindi as badly as she spoke English, but also because he felt that they were not intellectual equals. This was In fact true, and it was not, in those days, a great problem: she ran the house, he built a glorious career for himself, she shared in that public glory, and her child inherited everything. Yet, there was some regret on both sides. In his autobiography, Jawaharlal Nehru says in reference to his wife, "I almost overlooked her." For all this, Jawaharlal remained faithful to his wife as long as she lived. There was of course no question of an Indian wife being anything but entirely chaste. Their marriage soon fell into a workable groove: it was all about doing ones duty to each other and to family; being civil; keeping up appearances; and raising the children.
Of the children, there were very few by the standards of the day. In November 1917, Kamala gave birth to a daughter, who they named Indira. She would later succeed her father as prime minister of India. In November 1924, Kamala gave birth to a son, but but he lived for only a week. There were no further pregnancies, and Indira was to be their only child.
Contribution to the Indian Independence Movement
Kamala was involved with the Nehrus in the national movement, that she emerged into the forefront. In the Non Cooperation movement of 1921, she organized groups of women in Allahabad and picketed shops selling foreign cloth and liquor. When her husband was arrested to prevent him delivering a "seditious" public speech, she went in his place to read it out. The British soon realized the threat that Kamala Nehru posed to them and how popular she had become with women's groups all over India. She was thus arrested on two occasions for involvement in Independence struggle activities.
Friends
Kamala Nehru spent some time at Gandhi's ashram with Kasturba Gandhi where she built a close friendship with Prabhavati Devi.
Death and legacy
Kamala died from tuberculosis in Lausanne, Switzerland on 28 February 1936, with her daughter and her mother-in-law by her side. Kamala was cremated at the Lausanne Crematorium. A number of institutions in India, such as Kamala Nehru Memorial Hospital & Regional Cancer Centre , Kamala Nehru College, University of Delhi, Kamala Nehru Degree Evening college (Bangalore), Kamala Nehru Park, Kamla Nehru Institute of Technology (Sultanpur), Kamala Nehru Polytechnic (Hyderabad) are named after her.
See also
References
- ^ "From years 1916 to 1964...The man and the times". The Windsor Star. 27 May 1964. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
- "Kamala Nehru Biography". Iloveindia. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
- Use dmy dates from January 2013
- 1899 births
- 1936 deaths
- Spouses of Prime Ministers of India
- Deaths from tuberculosis
- Indian Hindus
- Kashmiri people
- People from Allahabad
- Nehru–Gandhi family
- Infectious disease deaths in Switzerland
- People from Delhi
- Indian independence activists from Uttar Pradesh
- Prisoners and detainees of British India
- People on Indian postage stamps