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            Do you know that Shakespeare’s death is observed on the same day he was born? The great writer died on 23rd April 1616. However, there is still no clarity regarding the date of his birth. Some church documents say that he was born in Stratford-upon-Avon and baptized on 26th April 1564. As was the custom then, children would be baptized on the third day of their birth; and therefore, Shakespeare’s birth is speculated to be on April 23rd. Shakespeare’s father, John Shakespeare, was a glove-maker. He was also an alderman, a member of the municipal council. His mother, Mary Arden, was the daughter of a wealthy landowning farmer. They had eight children and William was the third and eldest surviving member among the siblings.

            Shakespeare is popularly known as the ‘Bard of Avon’ because he hails from Avon. A bard is a wandering poet, who travels around reciting poems.

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            Probably no writer would have caught the imagination of men and wielded as much influence and impact on writers, scholars and the common folk alike as Shakespeare. There would be hardly anyone who has not had at least some scant acquaintance with his plays or characters that are popular across cultures and have been adapted in various art forms and genres of literature. Shakespeare’s characters such as Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, Falstaff, Shylock, lago or King Lear have in other names, forms and contexts appeared before us. Such is his influence that we would have used at least one expression from his plays or poems by the time we talked in English for a minute or two!

            The great English playwright and poet has produced several works, including about 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and several other poems, that have stood the test of time. His plays have been translated into all major living languages in the world today. They have been performed more times than the plays of any other writer.

            Theatre during Shakespeare’s time was a monotonous and rigid display of art and was sometimes too academic to suit the taste of the common folk. Shakespeare did not faithfully adhere to the classical norms of drama. His attention was on creating interesting characters. His plays were emotionally intense and insightful. People laughed, wept and were enraged at his protagonists, fools and villains.

            To the Elizabethans of the 16th century, Shakespeare opened a world of passionate romance, hot-blooded rivalry, cold-blooded betrayal and obsessive jealousy.

            Shakespeare made huge contributions to the evolution of the English language too. His plays standardized the language and provided it with new words and phrases. It is said that about 1,700 words were first used in English by Shakespeare!

Paul Revere (1735-1818) is famous for his ride on horseback during the American Revolution to warn Massachusetts colonists of the approach of British troops.

    Paul Revere’s father, a Hugue not refugee, who had settled in Boston, Massachusetts, taught his son the art of silversmithing. Revere became a great artist in silver but, in his need to support his family he also sold spectacles, replaced missing teeth and made surgical instruments.

    He was a fervent patriot, cut many copper plates for anti British propaganda and was a leader of the Boston Tea Party in 1773, when a group of citizens disguised as Indians threw a cargo of tea into the sea as a protest against the British tax on it.

      In 1775, when the American Revolution broke out, Revere constructed a powder mill to supply the colonial troops. He enlisted in the army and in 1776 was a lieutenant-colonel, in command of Castle William, at Boston.

    But his most famous exploit took place the year before when, as principal express rider for Boston’s committee of Safety, he warned Middlesex County, on April 18, that British troops were leaving Boston to seize military stores at Lexington and Concord. His exploit has been immortalized in the poem Paul Revere’s ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882).

     After the colonists’ victory, Revere set up a rolling mill for the manufacture of sheet copper in Massachusetts, and became rich.

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            Butterflies and moths were first classified by the great Swedish botanist Carl von Linne (1707-78), generally known as Carolus Linnaeus. His method, which applied to plants and all living things, was the binomial system. This meant the each insect was given two scientific and internationally recognized names: the first is a generic name denoting the genus or group to which the subject belongs; the second is a specific epithet indicating the species within the group.

            Similarly we all have surnames and forenames. But, in the case of the Linnaean system, Latin or Greek words are used to ensure uniformity regardless of the expert‘s native language. The first or generic name is spelt with a capital letter, but the second name usually begins with a small one.

               Linnaeus published more than 180 scientific works, some of the most important ones after he left Sweden for Holland, where he studied medicine. After visiting England and France he returned to Sweden, where he was given the chair of botany at Uppsala University.

               George Washington is called the founder of the United States of America. He is revered by all Americans as the father of the nation. He had a quality which was much more vital than any other gifts and that was his strength of character. A man of conviction, he was a fearless and determined person who believed in carrying out his duty. And thus his fellow Americans considered him their leader. After his death it was said of him that ‘he was first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen’.

               George Washington was born on 22nd February, 1732. His father Augustine Washington was a naval captain who died when George was only 12 years old. He did not receive much education during his childhood. In the Virginian society of those days it was considered more important to learn riding well and to acquire knowledge of farming and estate management. He learned enough arithmetic for his routine work to manage the estate, which he inherited from his father.

               Physically strong and already trained in riding, shooting etc; Washington was made a Lieutenant Colonel in the Virginia militia and sent on an expedition against the French, who were building forts on the Chio River. Later, when General Braddock was sent to fight the French, George was made his aide. Unfortunately Braddock was killed, George, however, showed great courage during the fighting and at the age of twenty three he was made Commander-in-Chief of all the Virginia forces.

               Washington was willing to sacrifice anything for the cause of American defence. When war broke out in 1776 Washington was elected unanimously to lead the army of the 13 colonies to fight the British. The war continued for several years. In 1781 the British surrendered. This was the greatest achievement of Washington.

               In 1789 Washington was unanimously elected as the first President of the United States. The new capital of USA was named after the first President — George Washington. He served two terms as President and refused a third term.

               He died on 14th December in 1799. His birthday is a National holiday in USA. 

            The birthday of Gandhiji is celebrated in India as Gandhi Jayanti that is on 2nd October. It is one of the national holidays of the country.

            This day is also celebrated internationally as the Day of Non-Violence by the UN. Gandhiji was a man who believed in the power of universal brotherhood and harmony.

            Gandhi Jayanti is marked by prayer services and tributes all over India, and at Gandhiji's memorial in New Delhi where he was cremated.

            Popular activities include prayer meetings, commemorative ceremonies in different cities by colleges, local government institutions and socio-political institutions.

            Schools celebrate the day of complete cleaning and conduct various competitions on Gandhiji and Gandhian philosophies.

            The day of Gandhiji’s assassination, 30th January is observed as the Martyrs’ Day. 

          The Gandhi Peace Award is an award and cash prize presented annually since 1960. The Gandhi Peace Award was conceived by Promoting Enduring Peace’s founder, Yale professor Jerome Davis. Its main purpose is to promote international peace and goodwill. It is named in honour of Mahatma Gandhi. The award is presented to peace heroes. The award is also intended to recognise individuals for having made significant contributions, through cooperative and non-violent means in the true spirit of Gandhi. It recognizes the struggle to achieve a sustainable world civilization founded on enduring international peace.

          The Award consists of a medallion and a certificate with an inscription summing up the recipient’s work. The medallion features Gandhi’s profile and his words “Love Ever Suffers/Never Revenges Itself” cast in bronze. Some notable winners are Medea Benjamin, U Thant, Bill McKibben, Amy Goodman etc.

 

          The International Gandhi Peace Prize, named after Mahatma Gandhi, is awarded annually by the Government of India.

          The Government of India launched this prize in 1995, on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. This is an annual award given to individuals and institutions. This award is open to all individuals, regardless of their nationality, creed or race.

          A jury consisting of the Prime Minister of India, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, the Chief Justice of India, and two other eminent persons decides the awardee each year. The awardee gets an amount of 1 crore in cash, a plaque, and a citation.

          The first recipient of the award was Julius Nyerere, who was a political leader of Tanzania. Nelson Mandela received this award in the year 2000. 

            There are numerous documentaries and feature films centred on Gandhiji’s life. There are films that also have Gandhiji as a character. One such example is the film ‘Sardar’, where it fundamentally highlights how both Patel and Gandhiji together strived for Independence. 

            Jahnu Barua’s Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara (I did not kill Gandhi), places contemporary society as a backdrop with its vanishing memory of Gandhi’s values. This film was released in 2005.

            Besides, there were many documentaries based on Gandhiji. One such famous documentary was ‘Mahatma: ‘Life of Gandhi’. The documentary was released by Vithalbhai Jhaveri in 1968.

            Another celebrated documentary on Gandhiji is ‘Mahatma Gandhi: 20th Century Prophet’. It is directed by Stanley Neal, and written by Quentin Reynolds. It features the life of the Mahatma. 

             The Making of the Mahatma, Shyam Benegal’s film, portrays Gandhiji’s transformation from an introverted lawyer to a freedom fighter.

             This film was about Gandhi’s experiments with truth and non-violence in colonial South Africa and was produced by India and South Africa jointly.

             It was based on the book ‘Apprenticeship of a Mahatma’ by Fatima Meer, and was directed by one of India’s most respected directors, Shyam Benegal.

             ‘The Making of the Mahatma’ premiered in November at New York’s Guild Theatre. The film deliberately lacks the panoramic proportions and epic scale of Attenborough’s “Gandhi”.

               The film documents Gandhi’s 21 years in South Africa, from age 19, and the changes which came over this Anglicized, London-trained advocate as he encountered the racial discrimination and bias of the colonists in South Africa.

               Rajit Kapur gives a solid performance as Gandhi, and Pallavi Joshi portrays his wife Kasturba. The Hindi title is ‘Gandhi se Mahatma Tak’. 

          ‘Gandhi’, released in 1982, was directed by Richard Attenborough and is the story of the life of Mahatma Gandhi. It is an epic movie, covering Gandhiji’s life from his days as a struggling lawyer in South Africa, fighting against racism, to becoming the leader of the non-violence movement that won India freedom from British rule.

          ‘Gandhi’ is without doubt, one of the finest biographical epics ever made. The film shows that Gandhi was not just a simple, humble man in a loincloth, but a shrewd, practical man as well. Ben Kingsley’s portrayal of Mohandas K. Gandhi is amazing.

          The film won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. ‘Gandhi’ is not just an outstanding film. Its importance lies in the fact that it brings a deeper message to its viewers-that peace, justice, and equality for all people can best be achieved through non-violent means. 

            Mahatma Gandhi’s autobiography, ‘The Story of My Experiments with Truth’ is indeed a great work written with a mighty pen that was his life.

            It was not first published in book form, and appeared in weekly installments, in his journal ‘Navjivan’ from 1925 to 1929.

            This was written originally in Gujarati, and later translated to English by his notable disciple, Mahadev Desai.

            It has chapters on his childhood, experiences in England, and in South Africa. It records the events of his life from his childhood till 1921. He melted the hearts of thousands of people with his story about his principles of Satyagraha. He regarded it as a tale of experiments with life, and with truth.

            In the present era of chaos and falsehoods, this work stands out as a symbolic representation of truth and order. He talked about his own philosophy of life that stood the test of time. 

 

 

              Gandhiji was a good writer and a voracious reader. Gandhiji wrote many articles on various topics from hygiene to the development of villages. But he wrote only three books.

               Most prominent among them are Gandhiji’s autobiography ‘The Story of My Experiments with Truth’, which covers Gandhiji’s life from his early childhood to 1921. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                  The second book was ‘Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule’. This was written in 1909. In this book, Gandhiji expresses his views on various subjects such as Swaraj, modern civilization, mechanization etc. The book was originally written in Gujarati, and it was banned by the British. Gandhiji later translated it into English, but the translated version was not banned by the British. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                       The third book was ‘The Key to Health’ which was written by Gandhiji while he was in the Aga Khan Palace at Pune during 1942-1944. The book was written in Gujarati, and later translated to English by Dr. Sushila Nayyar under Gandhiji’s own guidance.

 

            Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was one of the most influential independence activists during India’s freedom struggle. He was also a noted writer, poet, and journalist.

            He was a prominent political leader of the Indian National Congress, and was elected as Congress president in 1923 and 1940.

            He was elected as the president of the special session of the Congress in Delhi in 1923. Maulana Azad was arrested in 1930 for the violation of the salt laws as part of Gandhiji’s salt Satyagraha. He was put in Meerut jail for a year and a half.

            Maulana Azad became the President of the Congress in 1940, and remained in the post till 1946. Maulana Azad started a weekly called AlBalagh with the same mission of propagating Indian nationalism based on Hindu-Muslim unity. Azad was a staunch opponent of partition, and supported a confederation of autonomous provinces having common defence and economy.

                Like Gandhiji, partition hurt him greatly, and shattered his dream of a unified nation. Azad was the first education minister of Independent India. 

          Rabindranath Tagore played a significant role in our freedom movement. He wrote the national anthem for our country.

          Even though Gandhiji and Tagore had differences over various matters, their patriotism connected them.

          Tagore was the one who first addressed Gandhiji as the Mahatma, which means great soul. Gandhiji called Tagore, Gurudev. Tagore and Gandhiji met for the first time on March 6, 1915.

          Gandhiji changed the system of the Congress and introduced new methods such as the non-cooperation movement and civil disobedience. Rabindranath Tagore had some differences of opinion regarding these movements, and he opposed the burning of foreign clothes. In spite of his differences with Gandhiji, Tagore respected Gandhiji for his great influence on the life of Indians.