Category Archives: Politics

J. Jayalalithaa

By Notable Brahmins Posted in Actors, Politics

jayaram jayalalithaa brahmin“I am human like everyone else, I do experience emotions and I wouldn’t be normal if I didn’t experience feelings of anger or any other emotion. But, when you are a leader, you learn to control your emotions. You learn not to show them openly. You have to.

Jayaram Jayalalithaa, a prominent political leader, and six times CM of Tamil Nadu, was born in a Tamil Iyengar Brahmin family in 1948. Breaking conventional norms, she was a path breaker in many ways and her story to fame and politics and nothing less than inspiring. Amma, as she was popularly known, was not brought up traditionally and had a childhood filled with struggles.

At a young age of two, her father died, putting the family through financial woes. At the behest of her mother, she joined the film industry at a very young age of 15, although she wanted to pursue further studies. A trained dancer, she worked across 140 films in Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu languages. She even won Filmfare awards for her outstanding performances. Despite starting her career in films, she entered politics in 1982 as a member of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). She served as a Rajya Sabha Member from 1984 to 1989. After the death of M. G. Ramachandran (MGR), the founder of AIADMK, she assumed the position of the leader of the party, although initially it was split with MGR’s wife.

“I have come here as the representative of the weaker sections of our society, the toiling masses, the crores of humble workers, farmers, poor agricultural labourers and women, to give oral manifestation to their feelings, aspirations and legitimate desires and make them known to the rest of the country.”

Although she was a Brahmin by birth, she worked equally for other castes and Dalits. With an unbeatable charisma, her political career was full of laurels with her followers going gaga over her work. She was a part of controversies too, with corruption charges and illegal property charges. However, during his tenure as CM, authorities managed to hunt down the notorious bandit Veerappan. Such was his popularity, that within a range of fourteen years, she became CM for 6 times. She introduced the “Cradle Baby Scheme”, a move to prevent female feticide.

Her life story has been adapted into many works of art, including series and movies, the latest being the movie Thalaivii, starring Kangana Ranaut. Her transformation from a young girl full of dreams to a great political leader is definitely an offbeat story.

“It’s not true that when you are in politics you grow a thick skin. It never happens. If you are sensitive, you stay sensitive till the end of your life. If you are hyper sensitive like I am, you feel the pain magnified…and then to have to face slander and the terrible distorted image that has been created of me in the media – because that’s not me!”

Birth Score – 3/5
Pride Score – 4/5
An impressive 7/10 Notable Brahmin Score.

Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan

By Notable Brahmins Posted in Education, Politics

Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan brahmin“Teachers should be the best minds in the country”

Born in a middle-class Tamil Brahmin family, Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan is a name known for his multi-faceted career across different domains as a philosopher, professor, and politician. After his education in Vellore, he started his college education in 1904 at Madras Christian University.

From 1921 to 1932, he worked as a Professor of Philosophy at King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science at the University of Calcutta. He also worked as a Spalding professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at the University of Oxford. Deeply loved by his students, his carriage was once pulled by them, when he was traveling to Mysore railway station from the University. Interestingly, he was nominated 11 times for the Nobel Peace Prize and 16 times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He also worked as the chancellor of the University of Delhi, from 1953 to 1962.

“A life of joy and happiness is possible only on the basis of knowledge and science.”

A man of dynamic talents, his political career was equally illustrious. He was elected as the Vice President in 1952 and also served as the President of India from 1962 to 1967. After attaining presidency, he was once asked by his students to allow them to celebrate his birthday on September 5. He instead requested his students to dedicate this day to teachers to honour their contribution in honing the next generation.

Speaking of the recognition he received, he was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1954. He was also responsible for defending Hinduism against Western beliefs, which was full of misconceptions against this faith system. Backed with his education in Philosophy and knowledge about Upanishads and Bhagvad Gita, he took efforts to spread the right teachings about Hinduism. In 1975, just before his death, he was honoured with the Templeton Prize, which he received for conveying “A universal reality of God that embraced love and wisdom for all people”. He donated the prize money to Oxford University.

A true gem of India, Dr. Radharishnan’s philosophies remain relevant even during modern times.

“The worst sinner has a future, even as the greatest saint has had a past. No one is so good or bad as he imagines.”

Birth Score – 4/5

Pride Score – 5/5

A quite impressive 9/10 Notable Brahmin Score.

Dr. Subramanyam Jaishankar

By Notable Brahmins Posted in Politics

Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar brahmin“We are going to work together to find common ground and narrow differences.”

Our current Minister of External Affairs, Dr. Subramanyam Jaishankar has recently come into news due to the Afghanistan crisis in which he arranged for the evacuation of Indian diplomats stuck there. However, before assuming official duties as a minister, S. Jaishankar has had an illustrious career as an Indian diplomat serving across different parts of the globe on various assignments.

“Globalisation is under stress due to new and emerging geo-political and geo-economic faultlines.”

Born in New Delhi in a Brahmin family, he has graduated from University of Delhi and undertook his Masters in Political Science and Ph.D in International Relations From JNU, Delhi. His career as a diplomat was quite dynamic, with various assignments of different nature being handled by him.

· Ambassador to the Czech Republic between 2000 and 2004.
· High Commissioner to Singapore between 2007 and 2009
· Ambassador to China between 2009 and 2013
· Ambassador to United States between 2013 and 15
· Foreign Secretary between 2015 and 2018

He has worked in diplomatic assignments in various Embassies at Colombo, Tokyo, Budapest and Moscow. Besides, he was also appointed as the Foreign Secretary of India in 2015. He even had a brief stint in the corporate world when he served in the capacity of President at Tata Sons, Global Corporate Affairs. Another feather on his cap is that he was awarded the Padma Shri in 2019. He even played a crucial role in the management of Sino-Indian border dispute and working on the Indo-US nuclear agreement.

He recently penned a book “The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World”, which describes his opinion on India’s foreign policy and strategies. Married to Kyoko Jaishankar of Japanese origin, he speaks multiple languages and truly has an illustrious career to his credit. In future, his role will be of paramount importance as India sets to boost its global footprints and strengthen its position.

“Beyond the traditional areas of cooperation, we have entered the digital age with its own opportunities. The area of fintech needs to be explored.”

Birth Score – 4/5
Pride Score – 4/5
An impressive 8/10 Notable Brahmin Score.

Dr. Subramanian Swamy

By Notable Brahmins Posted in Economists, Politics

dr subramanian swamy brahmin“The world has come around to the view that democracy is essential for full human development. And only education and skill development can make this possible.” 

A highly revered member of the parliament, Dr. Subramanian Swamy is a noted name in Indian politics. Born as a Tamil Brahmin in Chennai, Tamil Nadu in 1938, his father was a statistical adviser to Government of India, and mother a homemaker. Following his father’s footsteps, he completed his Masters in Statistics and studied for his post graduation at Harvard University in Economics under a scholarship program.

After completion of his education, he joined the Harvard as an assistant professor in Economics. In 1969, he moved to IIT Delhi to serve as a professor of Mathematical Economics. His political career began when he was elected as a member of Lok Sabha. He served as the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry & Law and Justice during the leadership of Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar. Till date, he has travelled across 17 countries and was a part of the Indian Parliamentary Delegation to 100th Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference, Moscow, September, 1998. One of the illustrious moments in his political career was his role in exposing the 2G Scam when Dr. Manmohan Singh served as the Prime Minister. Under his petition, the then telecom minister A. Raja was acquitted by the CBI.

Besides, he founded the Janata Party, which he presided till 2013, until the party was joined with Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). Recently, he published the book, Himalayan Challenge: India, China and the Quest for Peace’, wherein he has described his opinion on how India’s foreign policy should be, especially regarding the Indo-China border disputes. Interestingly, he learnt the native language of China within just 3 months when he was challenged to do so. Also, he knows multiple regional languages of India.

Married to Roxanna Swamy while studying in Harvard, his wife was instrumental in imparting knowledge about the legal field. He is blessed with two daughters who also have noteworthy accomplishments in the field of politics and journalism.

Known for his intellect regarding foreign policies, Swamy is one of highly educated, multi-talented and transparent politicians in India. His net worth is estimated to be INR 1.75 crores. He still works tirelessly donning various hats, as a politician and educator.

“India has always come out of crises renewed and on a higher growth path.”
Birth Score – 4/5

Pride Score – 4/5

An impressive 8/10 Notable Brahmin Score.

Lal Bahadur Shastri

By Notable Brahmins Posted in India's Freedom Struggle, Politics

lal bahadur shastri brahmin“We believe in the dignity of man as an individual, whatever his race, color or creed, and his right to better, fuller, and richer life.”

Born during the pre-independence era in a Brahmin family of Varanasi, Shri Lal Bahadur Shashtri was a notable leader of India. A firm believer and staunch follower of Mahatma Gandhi’s principles, the seeds of India’s freedom struggle were imbibed in his mind at a tender age of eleven. He joined the Non-cooperation Movement called out by Gandhiji when he was just 16 years old. In 1930, he joined the Salt Satyagraha movement, which led to his imprisonment for almost two years.

He served as the Prime Minister of India from June 9, 1964 to January 11, 1966, with an illustrious career in politics. His slogan “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan” was an acknowledgement to the significant contribution made by the soldiers and farmers of India, the pillars on which the country’s security and economic growth stood. Soft spoken, humble, yet firm and responsible; his work in both pre- and post independent India speaks volumes of his character and integrity.

Before serving as the prime minister, Shastri had made major changes as a Transport Minister too. He introduced and provided for female drivers and conductors. Besides, as a Home Minister, he was instrumental in setting up the first committee for prevention of corruption. He was actively involved in ending the dowry and caste system. He was also accredited to the success of White Revolution for boosting milk production in the country.
“The basic idea of governance, as I see it, is to hold the society together so that it can develop and march towards certain goals.”
His career as a Prime Minister was unfortunately cut short due to his death at Tashkent, Uzbekistan (then a part of Soviet Union) in 1966. Although official records say that he died due to an heart attack, his death remains shrouded in mystery, given the unusual circumstances, with many conspiracies claiming that it was a deliberate attempt.
Posthumously, he was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1966. Many charitable and educational institutes are named after him in recognition of his national services. The Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award is a prestigious award given to individuals who have achieved excellence in their profession, business, or social work.
Yet, in his thirty years of tenure of service to our country, he remains undoubtedly the leader with highest morals with a contribution that will keep us indebted forever.
“I am not as simple as I look.”

 

Birth Score – 4/5

 

Pride Score – 5/5
An impressive 9/10 Notable Brahmin Score.