May 22, 2018
Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s 246th Birthday
This Doodle’s Key Themes
Today Google is celebrating Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s 246th Birthday. Roy was born in the Bengal Presidency of British controlled India in 1772. He was born to a family of great privilege in the Brahman class. As a young man he traveled throughout the region and learned English, Arabic, Persian, and Sanskrit, in addition to the local languages of Bengali and Hindi. His multicultural education taught him to draw from different religions and philosophies to adapt his own ideologies. Roy was very much a free thinker and often championed rights for India’s lower classes. In his fight for a more contemporary society, Roy called for an end to India's Caste system.
Also, Roy consistently advocated for women's rights at a time when they had very few. In fact, he is often remembered for his role in abolishing Sati, a ceremonial funeral practice, and his promotion of a more advanced and just society. It is because of Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s transformative and progressive thinking that many consider him to be the Father of modern India.
Doodle illustrated by Beena Mistry.
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