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Home / IAS Preparation / Savitribai Phule

Savitri Bai Phule- Know About Early Life, Social Reforms And Important Facts!

Last Updated on Dec 04, 2023
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Savitri Bai Phule was a Maharashtra-based social reformer and educator. She and her husband, Jyotirao Phule, contributed a significant part in promoting women’s rights in India. In 1848, they established one of the earliest modern girls’ schools in Pune. She wanted to reduce caste and gender prejudice and unfair treatment of people. Savitribai Phule is one of the most important topics for the UPSC Civil Services Examination. You can also enroll and start preparing for History topics through Testbook’s flagship UPSC History Optional Coaching Program.

सावित्री बाई फुले के बारे में हिंदी में भी पढ़ें!

Savitribai Phule and Jyotirao Phule

Savitri Bai Phule: Personal & Family Life
  • Savitribai Phule was born in the Satara District of Maharashtra on January 3, 1831.
  • She belonged to the Mali Community and was the youngest daughter of Lakshmi and Khandoji Nevase Patil.
  • At the age of nine, she married Jyotirao Phule, who was 13.
  • No children were born to Savitribai and Jyotirao.
  • Yashawantrao, a son born to a Brahmin widow, is claimed to have been adopted by them.
  • When Yashwantrao was going to marry, no one would give him a bride as he was born to a widow.
  • As a result, Savitribai arranged his marriage to a worker in her organization and it was an inter-caste marriage.

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Educational Career of Savitri Bai Phule
  • Savitri Bai was uneducated and never went to school till she was unmarried.
  • She and Sagunabai Kshirsagar, Jyotirao’s cousin sisters, were educated at their house by Jyotirao.
  • After finishing school, Savitri Bai enrolled in two teacher-training programmes. The first of which was at an institution in Ahmednagar which was managed by an American missionary named Cynthia Farrar while the second was at a Normal School in Pune.
  • Savitribai may have been the first Indian woman teacher and headmistress who trained for that work.

Savitri Bai Phule: Pioneer of Women’s Education
  • Public education was uncommon in the nineteenth century, with only a few missionary establishments that were “open to all.”
  • Jyotirao Phule, then 21 years old, and Savitri, then 17 years old, founded a women’s school in 1848 at Bhide Wada, Pune. It was the country’s first women’s school which was founded by Indians.
  • When she started educating girls in Maharwada, Pune many people opposed her.
  • As she had completed the teacher’s training course, the orthodox group’s allegations that women cannot teach were countered.
  • She became the first female educator in India in 1848.
  • Savitribai along with Jyotirao Phule established three schools in Pune by the end of 1851 with roughly 150 female students.
  • Their teaching methods were thought to be superior to those of government schools, and the number of girls enrolled in Phule’s schools rapidly outnumbered the number of boys enrolled in other official schools.
  • Jyotiba and Savitri Bai had to leave their family home in 1849 as their family opposed them.
  • The education of women was considered evil at that time, so their actions were deemed anti-social by their families.
  • Savitribai met Fatima Begum Sheikh while staying with a friend’s family, Usman Sheikh. Fatima Sheikh and Savitribai both attended Normal School in Pune and graduated together. Fatima Sheikh became India’s first Muslim female teacher.
  • Jyotiba and Savitri Bai Phule founded two Educational Trusts in the 1850s.
  • These were the Native Female School, Pune, and The Society for Promoting the Education of Mahars, Mangs, and Etceteras, both of which grew to include a number of schools in Pune.

Savitri Bai Phule: Social Reformer of Pune
  • Savitribai established the Mahila Seva Mandal in 1852 to promote women’s rights.
  • The purpose was to raise women’s awareness of their human rights, and other social issues.
  • A successful barbers’ strike was organised by Savitribai in Mumbai and Pune to protest the practice of shaving widows’ heads after they became widows.
  • She convened a women’s gathering, inviting ladies of all castes to attend and all of them to sit on the same mattress, to eliminate caste discrimination.
  • She campaigned against child marriage while also advocating for widow remarriage.
  • In 1863, they established a home in their own house to avoid infanticide and to care for pregnant, exploited Brahman widows and their infants.
  • In 1873, she performed the first Satyashodhak Marriage, which entailed no dowry, and it was without Brahmin priests and had no Brahminical ceremonies.
  • In 1890, her husband Jyotirao died and she defied societal conventions by lighting the pyre of his husband’s funeral.
  • Even after the death of Jyotirao, she didn’t stop and she continued the work of the Satya Shodhak Samaj.
  • She led the annual session of Satya Shodhak Samaj in Saswad in 1893.

Savitribai & Jyotirao Phule Founded Satya Shodhak Samaj (Truth Seekers Society)

  • On September 24, 1873, Jyotiba Phule along with Savitribai formed the Satyashodhak Samaj in Pune, Maharashtra which means Truth-seekers’ Society.
  • It advocated for educational opportunities as well as increased social and political rights for underprivileged groups in Maharashtra.
  • The main focal point was the upliftment of women, Shudras, and Dalits.
  • Savitribai became Satyashodhak Samaj’s female section leader.
  • During the 1930s, the Samaj was disbanded when its leaders joined the Indian National Congress.

Famous Poetry & Books by Savitri Bai Phule
  • Savitribai Phule was the first Indian woman whose poems were recognised by the British India Empire.
  • She was also the first Dalit woman as she belonged to the Mali community to achieve this achievement.
  • She is known as the “Mother of Modern Poetry,” and she emphasized the importance of English and education in her poems.
  • She published her assertive works Kavya Phule in 1854 and Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar in 1892, both in Marathi.
  • Savitribai Phule argued against women’s exploitation in her poem ‘Should they be Called Humans?‘
  • She wrote the inspiring line in her poem, ‘Rise, to learn and act‘.

Achievements Of Savitri Bai Phule 
  • On September 24, 1873, Savitribai & Jyotirao Phule formed a social reform group in Pune (Satyashodhak Samaj).
  • She became the chairman of Satyashodak Samaj after Jyotirao Phule died in 1890.
  • She was the first to initiate a ‘Satyashodhak’ marriage in which no-dowry was promoted.
  • In 1852, she founded the Mahila Seva Mandal to promote awareness of women’s rights.
  • Savitribai later became the head of the Women’s Section of Society.
  • Pune’s Bhide Wada, India’s first girls’ school, was founded by Phule in 1848.
  • Savitribai Phule was one of the first women in Modern India to publish several literary works in Marathi.
  • In 1854, “Kavya Phule ” and in 1892 “Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar ”, her poems were released.
  • Savitribai and her adopted son, Yashwant, established a clinic to heal those who had been afflicted by the worldwide bubonic plague.
  • The clinic was built on the outskirts of Pune, in an infection-free zone.
  • Savitribai died a heroic death while attempting to save Pandurang Babaji Gaekwad’s son who was infected by the plague.
  • She carried him to the hospital on her back as no one was available to carry him.
  • She contracted the Plague during this time and died on March 10, 1897.
  • Savitribai is India’s one of the first modern feminists.

Legacy of Savitri Bai Phule
  • The Savitribai Phule’s ideology had a significant impact on India’s intellectual and feminist movement, particularly in terms of Non-Brahman, Dalit and women politics.
  • Phule’s teachings of universal rights and equality, as well as her arguments against brahmin dominance of social, religious, and political life, influenced the Non-Brahman Movement greatly.
  • Her teachings influenced the Dalit and women’s educational movement into the early twentieth century, which was distinct from the Non-Brahman Movement.
  • Along with B. R. Ambedkar, Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule have become a symbol for the backward people.
  • On the Jayanti of Savitribai, women in local branches organize the Human Rights Campaign.
  • In 1983, the Pune City Corporation erected a memorial for Savitribai Phule and India Post also issued a stamp in honour of Phule in 1998.
  • The 3rd of January, Savitribai’s birthday, is observed as Balika Din which means ‘Girl Child Day’ throughout Maharashtra.
  • In her honour, The University of Pune was renamed to ‘Savitribai Phule University‘ in 2015.

Important Facts of Savitri Bai Phule
  • Savitribai Phule was born in Satara District of Maharashtra on January 3, 1831, and died on March 10, 1897, due to plague.
  • She belonged to the Mali Community and was the daughter of Lakshmi and Khandoji Nevase Patil.
  • At the age of nine, she was married to thirteen year old Jyotirao Phule.
  • They had no children, so they adopted a son born to a Brahmin widow named Yashwant Rao.
  • She was uneducated and never went to school till she was unmarried and after marriage, she was educated by Jyotirao.
  • After finishing school, she enrolled in teacher-training programmes.
  • Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai founded the country’s first women’s school in 1848 at Bhide Wada, Pune.
  • It was the country’s first women’s school which was founded by Indians.
  • She became the first female educator in India in 1848.
  • They established three schools in Pune by the end of 1851 with roughly 150 female students.
  • Both had to leave their family home in 1849 as their family opposed them.
  • Jyotiba and Savitri Bai Phule founded Educational Trusts in the 1850s.
  • She established the Mahila Seva Mandal in 1852 to promote women’s rights.
  • In 1873, they formed the Satyashodhak Samaj or Truth-seekers’ Society in Pune, Maharashtra.
  • She performed the first Satyashodhak marriage, which entailed no dowry, and it was without Brahmin priests and had no Brahminical ceremonies.
  • In 1890, her husband died but she defied societal conventions and lit the pyre of his husband’s funeral.
  • Savitribai Phule was the first Indian woman whose poems were recognised by the British-India Empire.
  • She is known as the “Mother of Modern Poetry,”.
  • She published various works such as Kavya Phule in 1854 and Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar in 1892 in Marathi.

Some Frequently Asked Questions on Savitri Bai Phule

 

Q1.Who is Savitri Bai Phule?
Savitribai Phule was a poet, teacher, and social activist from Maharashtra. In Maharashtra and throughout India, Savitribai Phule paved the way for the education of girls and marginalized groups in society. 
Together with her husband, Jyotirao Phule, she founded a school for girls, making her the first female teacher in India in 1848. She later founded a home for impoverished women in 1864 and was instrumental in forming Jyotirao Phule's ground-breaking Satyashodhak Samaj in 1873, which advocated for class equality. 
Her life is hailed throughout India as a shining example of women's rights. She is commonly referred to as Indian feminism's mother. 


Q2.How Did Savitri Bai Phule Die?
Poet and social reformer Savitribai Phule played a significant role in the Indian independence struggle. Sadly, on March 10, 1897, she lost her life to the plague and passed away at the early age of 64. When the bubonic plague first surfaced in the vicinity of Nallasopara in 1897, Savitribai and her adoptive son, Yashwant, built a clinic to assist those afflicted. 
Patients were personally escorted to the clinic by Savitribai Phule's son for treatment. She became ill herself while tending to the sufferers and left for the heavenly abode. 


Q3.How to Pronounce Savitri Bai Phule?

Savitribai Phule is pronounced somewhat differently in Marathi than it is in Hindi since it is a Marathi name. The pronunciation of Savitribai Phule is as follows:
Savitribai - Sav-i-tree-bai
Phule - Phoo-lay

In Savitribai, the "ai" sound is a prolonged, drawn-out "eye" sound. Phule's "oo" sound is a rounded, brief sound.
Here's an extensive breakdown of how to pronounce the word "Savitribai Phule":
1. Say "s" as "sun" and make a lengthy "ee" sound.
2. Pronounce "tri" like "tree".
3. Pronounce "bai" as "bad" and "ai" as "eye."
4. Pronounce "p" like "pen" and
5. Pronounce "hu" with a short, rounded "oo" similar to "took."
6. Pronounce "l" like "lap" and "e" as "rest."

 

UPSC Practice Question

  1. How was Satyshodhak Samaj different from the Socio-Religious Reform Movements of the 19th Century? How did Satyashodhak Samaj spread awareness in the Society, Comment? 

We hope that all your doubts regarding the Savitribai Phule will be cleared after going through this article. You can download the Testbook App now to check out various other topics relevant to the UPSC IAS Exam.

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Savitri Bai Phule FAQs

Savitribai Phule was the first female teacher in India. She started to teach in the Year 1848 and established various schools, especially for girls' education in Maharashtra.

Savitribai Phule is famous for her fight for girls' education and the empowerment of Dalits. She was the first female teacher in India and also was the co-founder of Satyashodhak Samaj, a social reform group in Pune. She founded the Mahila Seva Mandal to promote awareness of women's rights and also opened India's first girls' school, Bhide Wada in Pune.

Jyotirao Phule was the husband of Savitribai Phule. At the age of nine, she married a 13-year-old Jyotirao.

. Savitribai gave various slogans like, "We shall overcome and success will be ours in the future, the future belongs to us" was one. The other one was "Rise, to learn and act."

The American missionary who trained the Savitribai Phule was Cynthia Farrar. After finishing school, she enrolled in two teacher-training programmes. The one was managed by an American missionary named Cynthia Farrar in Ahmednagar and the second was at a Normal School in Pune.
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