B. R. Ambedkar

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Marathi: डॉ.भीमराव रामजी आंबेडकर [bʱiːmraːw raːmʥiː aːmbeːɽkər]; 14 April 1891 — 6 December 1956), also known as Babasaheb, was an Indian jurist, political leader, Buddhist activist, philosopher, thinker, anthropologist, historian, orator, prolific writer, economist, scholar, editor, revolutionary and a revivalist for Buddhism in India. He was also the chief architect of the Indian Constitution. Born into a poor Mahar, then Untouchable, family, Ambedkar spent his whole life fighting against social discrimination, the system of Chaturvarna — the categorization of Hindu society into four varnas — and the Hindu caste system. He is also credited with providing a spark for the conversion of hundreds of thousands of Dalits with his Ambedkar(ite) Buddhism. Ambedkar has been honoured with the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award.

Overcoming numerous social and financial obstacles, Ambedkar became one of the first "Outcast" to obtain a college education in India. Eventually earning law degrees and multiple doctorates for his study and research in law, economics and political science from Columbia University and the London School of Economics, Ambedkar returned home as a famous scholar and practiced law for a few years before publishing journals advocating political rights and social freedom for India's untouchables. He is regarded as a Bodhisattva by Indian Buddhists even though he never claimed himself to be a Bodhisattva.^[1]

Early life and Education

‎Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar seen as a very young man^[2]

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born in the British-founded town and military cantonment of Mhow in the Central Provinces (now in Madhya Pradesh).^[3] He was the 14th and last child of Ramji Maloji Sakpal and Bhimabai.^[4] His family was of Marathi background from the town of Ambavade in the Ratnagiri district of modern-day Maharashtra. They belonged to the Hindu, Mahar caste, who were treated as untouchables and subjected to intense socio-economic discrimination. Ambedkar's ancestors had for long been in the employment of the army of the British East India Company, and his father Ramji Sakpal served in the Indian Army at the Mhow cantonment. He had received a degree of formal education in Marathi and English, and encouraged his children to learn and work hard at school.

Belonging to the Kabir Panth, Ramji Sakpal encouraged his children to read the Hindu classics. He used his position in the army to lobby for his children to study at the government school, as they faced resistance owing to their caste. Although able to attend school, Ambedkar and other untouchable children were segregated and given no attention or assistance by the teachers. They were not allowed to sit inside the class. Even if they needed to drink water somebody from a higher caste would have to pour that water from a height as they were not allowed to touch either the water or the vessel that contained it. This task was usually performed for the young Ambedkar by the school peon, and if the peon was not available then he had to go without water, Ambedkar states this situation as "No peon, No Water".^[5] Ramji Sakpal retired in 1894 and the family moved to Satara two years later. Shortly after their move, Ambedkar's mother died. The children were cared for by their paternal aunt, and lived in difficult circumstances. Only three sons — Balaram, Anandrao and Bhimrao — and two daughters — Manjula and Tulasa — of the Ambedkars would go on to survive them. Of his brothers and sisters, only Ambedkar succeeded in passing his examinations and graduating to a higher school. Bhimrao Sakpal Ambavadekar the surname comes from his native village 'Ambavade' in Ratnagiri District.^[6] His Bhramin teacher Madahev Ambedkar who was so much fond of him, has changed his surname from 'Ambavadekar' to his own surname 'Ambedkar' in school records.^[6]

Ramji Sakpal remarried in 1898, and the family moved to Mumbai (then Bombay), where Ambedkar became the first untouchable student at the Government High School near Elphinstone Road.^[7] Although excelling in his studies, Ambedkar was increasingly disturbed by the segregation and discrimination that he faced. In 1907, he passed his matriculation examination and entered the University of Bombay, becoming one of the first persons of untouchable origin to enter a college in India. This success provoked celebrations in his community, and after a public ceremony he was presented with a biography of the Buddha by his teacher Krishnaji Arjun Keluskar also known as Dada Keluskar, a Maratha caste scholar. Ambedkar's marriage had been arranged the previous year as per Hindu custom, to Ramabai, a nine-year old girl from Dapoli.^[7] In 1908, he entered Elphinstone College and obtained a scholarship of twenty five rupees a month from the Gayakwad ruler of Baroda, Sahyaji Rao III. By 1912, he obtained his degree in economics and political science from Bombay University, and prepared to take up employment with the Baroda state government. His wife gave birth to his first son, Yashwant, in the same year. Ambedkar had just moved his young family and started work, when he dashed back to Mumbai to see his ailing father, who died on February 2, 1913.

In 1913 he received Baroda State Scholarship of 11.50 British pounds a month for three years to join the Political Department of the Columbia University as a Post Graduate Student. In New York he stayed at Livingston Hall with his friend Naval Bhathena, a Parsi; the two remained friends for life. He used to sit for hours studying in Low Library. Young Graduate Student passed his M.A. exam in June, 1913, majoring in Economics, with Sociology, History, Philosophy, and Anthropology as other subjects of study; he presented a Thesis,"Ancient Indian Commerce". In 1916 he offered another M.A. thesis, "National Dividend of India-A Historic and Analytical Study". On May 9, he read his paper Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development" before a seminar conducted by the anthropologist prof. Alexander Goldenweiser. In October 1916 he was admitted to Gray's Inn for Law, and to the London School of Economics and Political Science for Economics where he started work on a Doctoral thesis. In 1917 June he was obliged to go back to India as the term of his scholarship from Baroda ended, however he was given permission to return and submit his thesis within four years. He sent his precious and much-loved collection of books back on a steamer, but it was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarien.

Fight against untouchability

As he was educated by the Borada State, he was bound to serve the State. He was appointed as Military Secretary to the Gaikwar of Baroda, which he had to quit within short time, this fiasco was described by Ambedkar in his autobiography "Waiting for a Visa" he states that "This scene of a dozen Parsis armed with sticks line before me in a menacing mood, and myself standing before them with a terrified look imploring for mercy, is a scene which so long a period as eighteen years had not succeeded in fading away. I can even vividly recall it-- and I never recall it without tears in my eyes. It was then for the first time that I learnt that a person who is an untouchable to a Hindu is also an untouchable to a Parsi".^[5] Then after he tried to find ways to make a living for his growing family. He worked as private tutor, as an accountant, investment consulting business, but it failed when his clients learned that he was an untouchables. In 1918 he became Professor of Political Economy in the Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics in Bombay. Even though he was successful with the students, but other professors objected to his sharing the same drinking-water jug that they all used.

As a leading Indian scholar, Ambedkar had been invited to testify before the Southborough Committee, which was preparing the Government of India Act 1919. At this hearing, Ambedkar argued for creating separate electorates and reservations for untouchables and other religious communities. In 1920, he began the publication of the weekly Mooknayak (Leader of the Silent) in Mumbai with the help of Shahu I (1884-1922), Maharaja of Kolhapur. Ambedkar used this journal to criticize orthodox Hindu politicians and a perceived reluctance of the Indian political community to fight caste discrimination. His speech at a Depressed Classes Conference in Kolhapur impressed the local state ruler Shahu IV, who described Ambedkar as the future national leader and shocked orthodox society by dining with Ambekdar. Having resigned from his teaching position, in July he returned to London, relying on his own savings, supplemented by loans from the Maharaja of Kolhapur and his friend Naval Bhathena. He returned to the London School of Economics, and to Gray's Inn to read for the Bar. He lived in poverty, and studied constantly in the British Museum. In 1922 through unremitting hard work, Ambedkar once again overfulfilled all expectations: he completed a thesis for a M.Sc. (Econonics) degree at London School of Economics, and was called to the bar, and submitted a Ph.D. thesis in economics to the University of London.Ambedkar established a successful legal practice, and also organised the Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha to promote education and socio-economic uplifting of the depressed classes.

By 1927 Dr. Ambedkar decided to launch active movements against untouchability. He began with public movements and marches to open up and share public drinking water resources, also he began a struggle for the right to enter Hindu temples. He led a satyagraha in Mahad to fight for the right of the untouchable community to draw water from the main water tank of the town.

He was appointed to the Bombay Presidency Committee to work with the all-European Simon Commission in 1925. This commission had sparked great protests across India, and while its report was ignored by most Indians, Ambedkar himself wrote a separate set of recommendations for future constitutional reformers.

Poona Pact

By now Ambedkar had become one of the most prominent untouchable political figures of the time. He had grown increasingly critical of mainstream Indian political parties for their perceived lack of emphasis for the elimination of the caste system. Ambedkar criticized the Indian National Congress and its leader Mohandas Gandhi, whom he accused of reducing the untouchable community to a figure of pathos. Ambedkar was also dissatisfied with the failures of British rule, and advocated a political identity for untouchables separate from both the Congress and the British. At a Depressed Classes Conference on August 8, 1930 Ambedkar outlined his political vision, insisting that the safety of the Depressed Classes hinged on their being independent of the Government and the Congress both:

We must shape our course ourselves and by ourselves... Political power cannot be a panacea for the ills of the Depressed Classes. Their salvation lies in their social elevation. They must cleanse their evil habits. They must improve their bad ways of living.... They must be educated.... There is a great necessity to disturb their pathetic contentment and to instill into them that divine discontent which is the spring of all elevation.^[4]

. Ambedkar's political work had made him very unpopular with orthodox Hindus, as well as with many Congress politicians who had earlier condemned untouchability. This was largely because these "liberal" politicians usually stopped short of advocating full equality for untouchables.

In 1932, M. C. Rajah concluded a pact with two right-wingers in the Indian National Congress, Dr. B. S. Moonje ^[8][9] and Jadhav. According to this pact, Moonje offered reserved seats to scheduled castes in return for Rajah's support. This demand prompted Ambedkar to make an official demand for Separate Electorate System on an all-India basis. Ambedkar's prominence and popular support amongst the untouchable community had increased, and he was invited to attend the Second Round Table Conference in London in 1932.Gandhi fiercely opposed separate electorate for untouchables, but accepted separate electorate for all other minority groups like Muslims,sikhs...etc. Gandhi feared that separate electorates for untouchables would divide Hindu society for future generations.

When the British agreed with Ambedkar and announced the awarding of separate electorates, Gandhi began a fast-unto-death while imprisoned in the Yerwada Central Jail of Pune in 1932 against the separate electorate for untouchables only. , Gandhi asked for the political unity of Hindus. Gandhi's fast provoked great public support across India, and orthodox Hindu leaders, Congress politicians and activists such as Madan Mohan Malaviya and Palwankar Baloo organized joint meetings with Ambedkar and his supporters at Yeravada. Fearing a communal reprisal and killings of untouchables in the event of Gandhi's death, Ambedkar agreed under massive coercion from the supporters of Gandhi . This agreement, which saw Gandhi end his fast, while dropping the demand for separate electorates that was promised through the British Communal Award prior to Ambedkar's meeting with Gandhi. Ambedkar was to later criticise this fast of Gandhi as a gimmick to deny political rights to the untouchables and increase the coercion he had faced to give up the demand for separate electorates.

Political career

In 1935, Ambedkar was appointed principal of the Government Law College, Mumbai, a position he held for two years. Settling in Mumbai, Ambedkar oversaw the construction of a house, and stocked his personal library with more than 50,000 books.^[10] His wife Ramabai died after a long illness in the same year. It had been her long-standing wish to go on a pilgrimage to Pandharpur, but Ambedkar had refused to let her go, telling her that he would create a new Pandharpur for her instead of Hinduism's Pandharpur which treated them as untouchables. Speaking at the Yeola Conversion Conference on October 13 near Nasik, Ambedkar announced his intention to convert to a different religion and exhorted his followers to leave Hinduism.^[10] He would repeat his message at numerous public meetings across India

In 1936, Ambedkar founded the Independent Labour Party, which won 15 seats in the 1937 elections to the Central Legislative Assembly. He published his book The Annihilation of Caste in the same year, based on the thesis he had written in New York. Attaining immense popular success, Ambedkar's work strongly criticized Hindu orthodox religious leaders and the caste system in general. Ambedkar served on the Defence Advisory Committee and the Viceroy's Executive Council as minister for labour. With What Congress and Gandhi Have Done to the Untouchables, Ambedkar intensified his attacks on Gandhi and the Congress, hypocrisy.^[11] In his work Who Were the Shudras?, Ambedkar attempted to explain the formation of the Shudras i.e. the lowest caste in hierarchy of Hindu caste system. He also emphasised how Shudras are separate from Untouchables. Ambedkar oversaw the transformation of his political party into the All India Scheduled Castes Federation, although it performed poorly in the elections held in 1946 for the Constituent Assembly of India. In writing a sequel to Who Were the Shudras? in 1948, Ambedkar lambasted Hinduism in the The Untouchables: A Thesis on the Origins of Untouchability:

The Hindu Civilisation.... is a diabolical contrivance to suppress and enslave humanity. Its proper name would be infamy. What else can be said of a civilisation which has produced a mass of people... who are treated as an entity beyond human intercourse and whose mere touch is enough to cause pollution?

^[11]

Pakistan or The Partition of India

Between 1941 and 1945, he published a number of books and pamphlets, including Thoughts on Pakistan, in which he criticized the Muslim League's demand for a separate Muslim state of Pakistan but considered its concession if Muslims demanded so as expedient.^[12]

In the above book Ambedkar wrote a sub-chapter titled If Muslims truly and deeply desire Pakistan, their choice ought to be accepted. He wrote that if the Muslims are bent on Pakistan, then it must be conceded to them. He asked whether Muslims in the army could be trusted to defend India. In the event of Muslims invading India or in the case of a Muslim rebellion, with whom would the Indian Muslims in the army side? He concluded that, in the interests of the safety of India, Pakistan should be acceded to, should the Muslims demand it. According to Ambedkar, the Hindu assumption that though Hindus and Muslims were two nations, they could live together under one state, was but a empty sermon, a mad project, to which no sane man would agree.^[12]

Ambedkar was also critical of Islam and its practices in South Asia. While justifying the Partition of India, he condemned the practice of child marriage in Muslim society, as well as the mistreatment of women. He said,

No words can adequately express the great and many evils of polygamy and concubinage, and especially as a source of misery to a Muslim woman. Take the caste system. Everybody infers that Islam must be free from slavery and caste.[While slavery existed], much of its support was derived from Islam and Islamic countries. While the prescriptions by the Prophet regarding the just and humane treatment of slaves contained in the Koran are praiseworthy, there is nothing whatever in Islam that lends support to the abolition of this curse. But if slavery has gone, caste among Musalmans [Muslims] has remained.^[12]

He wrote that Muslim society is "even more full of social evils than Hindu Society is" and criticized Muslims for sugarcoating their sectarian caste system with euphemisms like "brotherhood". He also criticized the discrimination against the Arzal classes among Muslims who were regarded as "degraded", as well as the oppression of women in Muslim society through the oppressive purdah system. He alleged that while Purdah was also practiced by Hindus, only among Muslims was it sanctioned by religion. He criticized their fanaticism regarding Islam on the grounds that their literalist interpretations of Islamic doctrine made their society very rigid and impermeable to change. He further wrote that Indian Muslims have failed to reform their society unlike Muslims in other countries like Turkey.^[12]

In a "communal malaise", both groups [Hindus and Muslims] ignore the urgent claims of social justice.^[12]

Father of India's constitution

"Ambedkar at his desk" (an art piece) at Ambedkar Museum in Pune

Upon India's independence on August 15, 1947, the new Congress-led government invited Ambedkar to serve as the nation's first law minister, which he accepted. On August 29, Ambedkar was appointed Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee, charged by the Assembly to write free India's new Constitution. Ambedkar won great praise from his colleagues and contemporary observers for his drafting work. In this task Ambedkar's study of sangha practice among early Buddhists and his extensive reading in Buddhist scriptures were to come to his aid. Sangha practice incorporated voting by ballot, rules of debate and precedence and the use of agendas, committees and proposals to conduct business. Sangha practice itself was modelled on the oligarchic system of governance followed by tribal republics of ancient India such as the Shakyas and the Lichchavis. Thus, although Ambedkar used Western models to give his Constitution shape, its spirit was Indian and, indeed, tribal.

Granville Austin has described the Indian Constitution drafted by Dr Ambedkar as 'first and foremost a social document.' ... 'The majority of India's constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by establishing conditions necessary for its achievement.'

The text prepared by Ambedkar provided constitutional guarantees and protections for a wide range of civil liberties for individual citizens, including freedom of religion, the abolition of untouchability and the outlawing of all forms of discrimination Ambedkar argued for extensive economic and social rights for women, and also won the Assembly's support for introducing a system of reservations of jobs in the civil services, schools and colleges for members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, a system akin to affirmative action. India's lawmakers hoped to eradicate the socio-economic inequalities and lack of opportunities for India's depressed classes through this measure, which had been originally envisioned as temporary on a need basis. The Constitution was adopted on November 26, 1949 by the Constituent Assembly.

Ambedkar resigned from the cabinet in 1951 following the stalling in parliament of his draft of the Hindu Code Bill, which sought to expound gender equality in the laws of inheritance, marriage and the economy. Although supported by Prime Minister Nehru, the cabinet and many other Congress leaders, it received criticism from a large number of members of parliament. Ambedkar independently contested an election in 1952 to the lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha, but was defeated. He was appointed to the upper house, of parliament, the Rajya Sabha in March 1952 and would remain a member until his death.

Conversion to Buddhism

Diksha Bhumi, Nagpur ; Stupa at the site where Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, with his followers embraced Buddhism

In the 1950s, Ambedkar turned his attention to Buddhism and travelled to Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) to attend a convention of Buddhist scholars and monks. While dedicating a new Buddhist vihara near Pune, Ambedkar announced that he was writing a book on Buddhism, and that as soon as it was finished, he planned to make a formal conversion to Buddhism.^[13] Ambedkar twice visited Burma in 1954; the second time in order to attend the third conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists in Rangoon. In 1955, he founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha, or the Buddhist Society of India. He completed his final work, The Buddha and His Dhamma, in 1956. It was published posthumously.

After meetings with the Sri Lankan Buddhist monk Hammalawa Saddhatissa,^[14] Ambedkar organised a formal public ceremony for himself and his supporters in Nagpur on October 14, 1956. Accepting the Three Refuges and Five Precepts from a Buddhist monk in the traditional manner, Ambedkar completed his own conversion. He then proceeded to convert an estimated 500,000 of his supporters who were gathered around him.^[13] Taking the 22 Vows. He then traveled to Kathmandu in Nepal to attend the Fourth World Buddhist Conference. His work on The Buddha or Karl Marx and "Revolution and counter-revolution in ancient India" (which was necessary for understanding his book "The Buddha and his dhamma")remained incomplete.

Death

Bust of Dr. Ambedkar at Ambedkar Museum in Pune

Since 1948, Ambedkar had been suffering from diabetes. He was bed-ridden from June to October in 1954 owing to clinical depression and failing eyesight.^[13] He had been increasingly embittered by political issues, which took a toll on his health. His health worsened as he furiously worked through 1955. Just three days after completing his final manuscript The Buddha and His Dhamma, it is said that Ambedkar died in his sleep on December 6, 1956 at his home in Delhi.

Since the Caste Hindus denied the cremation at Dadar crematorium, A Buddhist-style cremation was organised for him at Chowpatty beach on December 7, attended by hundreds of thousands of supporters, activists and admirers. A conversion program was supposed to be organised on 16 December 1956. So, those who had attended cremation function also got converted to buddhism at same place.

Ambedkar was survived by his second wife Savita Ambedkar and converted to Buddhism with him. His wife's name before marriage was Sharda Kabir. Savita Ambedkar died as a Buddhist in 2002. Ambedkar's grandson, Prakash Yaswant Ambedkar leads the Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangha and has served in both houses of the Indian Parliament.

A number of unfinished typescripts and handwritten drafts were found among Ambedkar's notes and papers and gradually made available. Among these were Waiting for a Visa, which probably dates from 1935–36 and is an autobiographical work, and the Untouchables, or the Children of India's Ghetto, which refers to the census of 1951.^[13]

A memorial for Ambedkar was established in his Delhi house at 26 Alipur Road. His birthdate is celebrated as a public holiday known as Ambedkar Jayanti or Bhim Jayanti. He was posthumously awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 1990. Many public institutions are named in his honour, such as the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University in Hyderabad, Dr BR Ambedkar University in SrikakulamAndhra Pradesh, B. R. Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur Dr.B.R.Ambedkar National Institute of Technology,Jalandhar the other being Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport in Nagpur, which was otherwise known as Sonegaon Airport. A large official portrait of Ambedkar is on display in the Indian Parliament building. On the anniversary of his birth (14 April) and death (6 December) and on Dhamma Chakra Pravartan Din, 14th Oct at Nagpur, at least half a million people gather to pay homage to him at his memorial in Mumbai. Thousands of bookshops are set up, and books are sold. His message to his followers was " Educate!!!, Agitate!!!, Organize!!!".

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, writings and speeches

The Education Department, Government of Maharastra(Bombay) Published the Collection of Dr.B.R.Ambedkar's writings and speeches in different volumes.^[15]

Criticism and legacy

Ambedkar's legacy as a socio-political reformer, had a deep effect on modern India. In post-Independence India his socio-political thought has acquired respect across the political spectrum. His initiatives have influenced various spheres of life and transformed the way India today looks at socio-economic policies, education and affirmative action through socio-economic and legal incentives. His reputation as a scholar led to his appointment as free India's first law minister, and chairman of the committee responsible to draft a constitution. He passionately believed in the freedom of the individual and criticised equally both orthodox casteist Hindu society. His condemnation of Hinduism and its foundation of caste system, made him controversial, although his conversion to Buddhism sparked a revival in interest in Buddhist philosophy in India and abroad.

Ambedkar condemned Gandhi's support for the caste system and perpetuating untouchability. Dr.Ambedkar warned people,"Don’t call Gandhi a saint. He is a seasoned politician. When everything else fails, Gandhi will resort to intrigue.” "Don’t fall under Gandhi’s spell, he’s not God... Mahatmas have come and Mahatmas have gone but untouchables have remained untouchables.”

Ambedkar's political philosophy has given rise to a large number of Dalit political parties, publications and workers' unions that remain active across India, especially in Maharashtra. His promotion of the Dalit Buddhist movement has rejuvenated interest in Buddhist philosophy in many parts of India. Mass conversion ceremonies have been organized by Dalit activists in modern times, emulating Ambedkar's Nagpur ceremony of 1956.

Some scholars, including some from the affected castes, took the view that the British were more even-handed between castes, and that continuance of British rule would have helped to eradicate many evil practices. This political opinion was shared by quite a number of social activists including Jyotirao Phule.

Some, in modern India, question the continued institution of reservations initiated by Ambedkar as outdated and anti-meritocratic. However, such arguments have always been dismissed by the Dalit masses. They express that the opposition of Caste-based reservations in India, primarily comes from the antagonism rooted in the Hindu society towards the Dalits. And, that the Caste-based reservations in India, in fact,have become the uplifting of Dalits in the post-colonial period.

Outside India, at the end of the 1990s, some Hungarian Romani people drew parallels between their own situation and the situation of the Dalits in India. Inspired by Ambedkar's approach, they started to convert to Buddhism.^[17]

In popular culture

Dr. Ambedkar's very name became a sign of victory of the down-trodden and long-exploited. Jai Bhim, i.e. Victory to Bhim has become a greeting phrase of the Buddhists all over in India.^[18]

Several movies, plays, and literary forms are made based on his life and teachings. Jabbar Patel directed the English-language movie (also dubbed in Hindi and other Indian languages) Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar ^[19] about the life of Ambedkar, released in 2000, starring the Indian actor Mammootty as Ambedkar. Sponsored by India's National Film Development Corporation and the Ministry of Social Justice, the film was released after a long and controversial gestation period. Mammootty won the National Film Award for Best Actor for the role of Ambedkar, which he portrayed in this film.

Dr. David Blundell, professor of anthropology at UCLA and Historical Ethnographer, has established [1] a long-term project - a series of films and events that are intended to stimulate interest and knowledge about the social and welfare conditions in India. Arising Light is a film on the life on Dr B. R. Ambedkar and social welfare in India.

Ambedkar Aur Gandhi, directed by Arvind Gaur and written by Rajesh Kumar, play tracks two prominent personalities of history — Mahatma Gandhi and Bhimraao Ambedkar.^[20]

Movies based on Ambedkar's Life

• Jabbar Patel's Award-Winning Movie Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar
• Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar Movie Trailer at YouTube
• Arising Light Trailer at YouTube

Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Samajik Parivarthan Sthal is constructed at lucknow by BSP Supremo Behanji Mayawati under the regime of BSP. The Chaitya(Sanctum sanctorum/Central Building) consists of monuments showing the Babasaheb Biography and Quotes by Babasaheb.

Notes and references

• Books
• Michael, S.M. (1999). Untouchable, Dalits in Modern India. Lynne Rienner Publishers. ISBN 9781555876975. 

Further reading

External links & Writings

• Join Us: Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar collections of Photos, Videos, Writings and other information
• Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar - Writings in Regional languages
• Symbiosis Ambedkar Memorial & Museum, Pune
• BAMCEF: The All India Backward (SC, ST, OBC) And Minority Communities Employees Federation
• Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and His People
• Jabbar Patel's Award-Winning Movie Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar
• Full Buddha And His Dhamma Book written by Dr. B R Ambedkar Online
• Ambedkar Center for Justice and Peace
• Dr. Ambedkar International Mission
• Bharat Ratna Baba Saheb
• Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar in Columbia University
• Ambedkar's statue at Columbia University
• University of Heidelberg
• "The Buddha and His Dhamma" with unpublished preface
• Article on Ambedkar's Neo-Buddhism by Edmund Weber www.marsinfotech.in *Short Movie on Life of Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar
• Dr. AMBEDKAR AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE
• Audio Lectures on Dr. Ambedkar
• Babasaheb Ambedkar devotional song in Marathi at YouTube
• Babasaheb Ambedkar devotional song in Hindi at YouTube
• WHAT CONGRESS AND GANDHI HAVE DONE TO THE UNTOUCHABLES
• Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Ancient India
• Small Holdings in India and their Remedies
• Untouchables or the Children of India's Ghetto
• THOUGHTS ON LINGUISTIC STATES
• NOTES ON HISTORY OF INDIA
• PAKISTAN OR THE PARTITION OF INDIA
• WHO WERE THE SHUDRAS ?
• THE UNTOUCHABLES WHO WERE THEY AND WHY THEY BECAME UNTOUCHABLES ?
• THE UNTOUCHABLES AND THE PAX BRITANNICA
• Philosophy of Hinduism
• RIDDLES IN HINDUISM
• RANADE, GANDHI AND JINNAH
• THE PRESENT PROBLEM IN INDIAN CURRENCY-I
• THE PRESENT PROBLEM IN INDIAN CURRENCY- II
• Dr. Ambedkar in Rationalism, Humanism and Atheism in Twentieth Century Indian Thought
• https://www.manase.org/en/maharashtra.php?mid=68&smid=23&pmid=1&id=857
• Works by Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (public domain in Canada)

Indian independence movement History Colonisation · East India Company · British India · French India · Portuguese India · Plassey · Buxar · Anglo-Mysore Wars · Anglo-Maratha Wars (First · Second · Third) · Polygar War · Vellore Mutiny · First Anglo-Sikh War · Second Anglo-Sikh War · Rebellion of 1857 · British Raj  · more Philosophies and ideologies Indian nationalism · Swaraj · Hindu nationalism · Gandhism · Satyagraha · Indian Muslim nationalism · Swadeshi · Socialism · Khilafat Movement Events and movements Partition of Bengal · Revolutionaries · Delhi-Lahore Conspiracy · The Indian Sociologist · The Sedetious conspiracy · Champaran and Kheda · Rowlatt Committee · Rowlatt Bills · Jallianwala Bagh Massacre · Non-Cooperation · Qissa Khwani bazaar massacre · Flag Satyagraha · Bardoli · 1928 Protests · Nehru Report · Purna Swaraj · Salt Satyagraha · Round table conferences · Act of 1935 · Legion Freies Indien · Cripps' mission · Quit India · Indian National Army · Tiger Legion · Bombay Mutiny · Coup d'État de Yanaon · Provisional Government of India Organisations Indian National Congress · All-India Muslim League · Anushilan Samiti · Jugantar · Arya Samaj · Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh · India House · Berlin Committee · Ghadar · Home Rule · Khaksar Tehrik · Khudai Khidmatgar · Hindustan Republican Association · Swaraj Party · Indian Independence League · All India Kisan Sabha · Azad Hind · more Social reformers Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi · Rahul Sankrityayan · Mahatma Jyotirao Phule · Gopal Ganesh Agarkar · Shahu Maharaj · Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar · Dhondo Keshav Karve · Vitthal Ramji Shinde · Mahadev Govind Ranade · Swami Dayananda Saraswati · Ramakrishna  · Swami Vivekananda · Swami Sahajanand Saraswati · Vakkom Moulavi · Vinoba Bhave · Baba Amte · Ram Mohan Roy · Gopal Hari Deshmukh Indian independence activists Puli Thevar · Yashwantrao Holkar · Rahul Sankrityayan · Swami Sahajanand Saraswati · Tipu Sultan · Veerapandiya Kattabomman · Sangolli Rayanna · Baba Ram Singh · Mangal Pandey · Veer Kunwar Singh · Rae Ahmed Nawaz Khan Kharal‎ · Rani of Jhansi · Bahadur Shah Zafar · Swami Dayanand Saraswati · Bal Gangadhar Tilak · Gopal Krishna Gokhale · Dadabhai Naoroji · Bhikaiji Cama · Shyamji Krishna Varma · Annie Besant · Har Dayal · Subramanya Bharathi · Lala Lajpat Rai · Bipin Chandra Pal · Rash Behari Bose · Chittaranjan Das · Bidhan Chandra Roy · Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan · Maulana Azad · Ashfaqullah Khan · Ram Prasad Bismil · Chandrasekhar Azad · Rajaji · Bhagat Singh · Sarojini Naidu · Purushottam Das Tandon · Alluri Sitaramaraju · M. Ali Jinnah · Sardar Patel · Vakkom Majeed · Subhash Chandra Bose · Jawaharlal Nehru · Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi · Allama Mashriqi · Akkamma Cherian · Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai · Kotwal Dhan Singh Gurjar · more British leaders Robert Clive · James Outram · Dalhousie · Irwin · Linlithgow · Wavell · Stafford Cripps · Mountbatten · more Independence Simla Conference  · Cabinet Mission · Indian Independence Act · Partition of India · Political integration · Constitution · Republic of India

Bharat Ratna laureates Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1954) · C. Rajagopalachari (1954) · C. V. Raman (1954) · Bhagwan Das (1955) · Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya (1955) · Jawaharlal Nehru (1955) · Govind Ballabh Pant (1957) · Dhondo Keshav Karve (1958) · Bidhan Chandra Roy (1961) · Purushottam Das Tandon (1961) · Dr. Rajendra Prasad (1962) · Dr. Zakir Hussain (1963) · Pandurang Vaman Kane (1963) · Lal Bahadur Shastri (1966) · Indira Gandhi (1971) · V. V. Giri (1975) · K. Kamaraj (1976) · Mother Teresa (1980) · Acharya Vinoba Bhave (1983) · Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1987) · M. G. Ramachandran (1988) · B. R. Ambedkar (1990) · Nelson Mandela (1990) · Rajiv Gandhi (1991) · Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1991) · Morarji Desai (1991) · Abul Kalam Azad (1992) · J. R. D. Tata (1992) · Satyajit Ray (1992) · A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1997) · Gulzarilal Nanda (1997) · Aruna Asaf Ali (1997) · M. S. Subbulakshmi (1998) · Chidambaram Subramaniam (1998) · Jayaprakash Narayan (1998) · Ravi Shankar (1999) · Amartya Sen (1999) · Gopinath Bordoloi (1999) · Lata Mangeshkar (2001) · Bismillah Khan (2001) · Bhimsen Joshi (2008)