Modern Reform Movements

The 19th-century reform movements challenged caste, sati, child marriage, illiteracy. They laid the intellectual foundation for the national movement. NDA tests founders, key Acts, and the reform organisations.

Early Reformers (1820s-1870s)

Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833):

• "Father of Indian Renaissance."
• Founded Brahmo Samaj (1828) in Calcutta — monotheistic Hindu reform.
• Campaigned with Bentinck to abolish Sati — Sati Abolition Act, 1829.
• Advocated English-medium scientific education over traditional Sanskrit/Persian.
• Wrote Tuhfat-ul-Muwahhidin (against polytheism, in Persian).

Henry Vivian Derozio (1809-31):

• Anglo-Indian poet, professor at Hindu College Calcutta.
• Led Young Bengal Movement — radical questioning of Hindu orthodoxy.

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (1820-91):

• Sanskrit scholar; principal of Sanskrit College Calcutta.
• Championed widow remarriage — Hindu Widow Remarriage Act, 1856.
• Promoted female education; founded many schools.

Debendranath Tagore (1817-1905) and Keshab Chandra Sen (1838-84) — later leaders of Brahmo Samaj.

Arya Samaj and Allied Movements

Arya Samaj (1875, Mumbai):

• Founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati (1824-83).
• "Back to the Vedas" — rejected later Hindu accretions (idolatry, caste rigidity, child marriage, polytheism).
• Promoted Suddhi (reconversion to Hinduism) and Hindu unity.
• Dayanand's text: Satyarth Prakash.
• Started DAV (Dayanand Anglo-Vedic) schools and colleges.

Prarthana Samaj (1867, Bombay): Maharashtrian counterpart of Brahmo Samaj. Atmaram Pandurang, Mahadev Govind Ranade.

Ramakrishna and Theosophical Movements

Ramakrishna Paramhansa (1836-86): Bengali mystic. Advocated harmony of all religions.

Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902):

• Disciple of Ramakrishna.
• Founded Ramakrishna Mission in 1897.
• Famous address at World Parliament of Religions, Chicago (1893).
• Emphasised practical Vedanta — service to fellow man as service to God.

Theosophical Society:

• Founded 1875 in New York by Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott.
• Indian headquarters at Adyar, Madras (1882).
• Annie Besant (Indian National Congress president 1917) was major figure — founded Central Hindu College Banaras (later BHU).

Muslim and Other Reform Movements

• Sir Syed Ahmad Khan (1817-98): Aligarh Movement. Founded MAO College Aligarh (1875, became AMU 1920). Wanted Muslim community to embrace modern English education.
• Wahhabi/Deobandi Movement: Conservative Islamic reform. Deoband seminary 1866.
• Aligarh Movement vs. Deobandi Movement — two contrasting Muslim responses to British rule.
• Singh Sabha Movement (1873) — Sikh reform.
• Jyotiba Phule (1827-90): Maharashtrian anti-caste reformer. Founded Satyashodhak Samaj (1873). Wife Savitribai Phule started first girls' school in India.
• Periyar E.V. Ramaswamy (1879-1973): Self-Respect Movement, anti-Brahmin movement in Tamil Nadu. Dravidar Kazhagam.
• B.R. Ambedkar (1891-1956): Anti-caste leader. Founded Bahishkrit Hitkarini Sabha (1924). Mahad Satyagraha (1927). Eventually drafted India's Constitution.

Key Reform Acts

Act	Year	Key person
Sati Abolition	1829	Lord William Bentinck, Ram Mohan Roy
Female Infanticide Prevention	1804, 1870	Various
Hindu Widow Remarriage	1856	Vidyasagar, Lord Dalhousie
Age of Consent Act	1891	BG Tilak opposed; Behramji Malabari pushed it through
Child Marriage Restraint Act (Sarda Act)	1929	Harbilas Sarda

NDA PYQ Examples

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Raja Ram Mohan Roy called the Father of the Indian Renaissance?

His advocacy of Western education, monotheism (Brahmo Samaj), abolition of sati, and his bridging of Indian and European thought made him the central figure of the Bengal Renaissance — the intellectual revival of 19th-century India.

Who started the first girls' school in India?

Savitribai Phule, along with her husband Jyotiba Phule, opened a school for girls in Bhide Wada, Pune in 1848. She is regarded as India's first woman teacher.

What was the Brahmo Samaj?

A monotheistic Hindu reform society founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in 1828. Rejected idol worship, polytheism, caste discrimination. Advocated women's education, end of sati and child marriage. Continued by Debendranath Tagore and Keshab Chandra Sen.

Who founded the Aligarh Movement?

Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. He established the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh in 1875, which became Aligarh Muslim University in 1920. He urged Muslims to embrace modern English-medium education.

What did Jyotiba Phule do?

Anti-caste reformer in Maharashtra. Founded Satyashodhak Samaj (Society of Seekers of Truth) in 1873. Opened the first school for shudras and untouchables in 1851. His book Gulamgiri (Slavery, 1873) compared caste oppression to American slavery.

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