Savitribai Phule was a revolutionary social reformer who dedicated her life to educate girls and bring about gender equality in the face of resistance from the conservative Indian society. Phule, who was illiterate till her marriage, went on to become a teacher, a feat considered first by an Indian woman. With her husband, she established schools for girls in Maharashtra.
Anand Kumar is an Indian educator who teaches mathematics. He is renowned for his educational program called Super 30, which selects 30 economically underprivileged candidates and trains them for IIT-JEE, potentially giving them an opportunity to get into the Indian Institutes of Technology. His life and career inspired the film Super 30, in which Anand Kumar's character was played by Hrithik Roshan.
Dhondo Keshav Karve was an Indian social reformer who worked for women's welfare in India. A pioneer in supporting widows' education, Karve also promoted widow remarriage. He also walked the talk by marrying a widow. Karve is credited with founding SNDT Women's University, India's first women's university. In 1958, he was honored with India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.
![Nitin Nohria Nitin Nohria](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/nitin-nohria.jpg)
![Vir Singh Vir Singh](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/bhai-vir-singh-1.jpg)
Bhai Vir Singh was an Indian poet, scholar, and theologian. He was a prominent figure of the Sikh revival movement and made significant contributions to the renewal of Punjabi literary tradition. The son of a physician, he received both traditional indigenous training as well as modern English education. He was one of the founders of the Punjab & Sind Bank.
![Ebrahim Alkazi Ebrahim Alkazi](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/ebrahim-alkazi-1.jpg)
Ebrahim Alkazi was an Indian drama teacher and theatre director. Alkazi is credited with directing more than 50 plays, including popular productions like Tughlaq, Ashadh Ka Ek Din, and Andha Yug. A noted art collector, Alkazi is also credited with founding the Art Heritage Gallery. In 2010, Ebrahim Alkazi was honored with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award.
![Yash Pal Yash Pal](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/yash-pal-1.jpg)
![Mrs YGP Mrs YGP](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/mrs-ygp-108179-1.jpg)
![Balasaraswati Balasaraswati](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/t-balasaraswati-1.jpg)
T. Balasaraswati was an Indian dancer best remembered for her contribution to the popular classical dance form, Bharatanatyam. Balasaraswati is credited with popularizing the dance form throughout India and in different parts of the world. In 1977, she was honored with India's second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan. In 1981, she received the prestigious Sangeetha Kalasikhamani award.
![Vilayat Inayat Khan Vilayat Inayat Khan](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/vilayat-inayat-khan-120250-1.jpg)
![Shah Ismail Dehlvi Shah Ismail Dehlvi](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/shah-ismail-dehlvi-1.jpg)
Apart from being the grandson of famous Islamic scholar Shah Waliullah Dehlawi, Shah Ismail Dehlvi was also associated with the jihad of Syed Ahmad Barelvi. He was part of the Tariqah-i-Muhammadiyah, a movement, meant to cleanse Islam from Hindu practices, and was later killed in a battle with Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
![Rupa Goswami Rupa Goswami](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/rupa-goswami-1.jpg)
Along with his brother Sanatana Goswami, Rupa Goswami had arrived in Vrindavan as a servant of spiritual leader Lord Chaitanya, who is considered an incarnation of Lord Krishna. A Gaudiya Vaishnava philosopher, he wrote on the science of rasa-tattva. His followers are known as Rupanugas.
![Meena Alexander Meena Alexander](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/meena-alexander-1.jpg)
Indian-born poet Meena Alexander spent most of her childhood in Sudan, owing to her father’s job. She then acquired a PhD in English from the U.K. and moved to the U.S., where she wrote and taught. Known for works such as Illiterate Heart, Meena experimented with themes such as migration.
![Geeta Iyengar Geeta Iyengar](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/geeta-iyengar.jpg)
![Rama Tirtha Rama Tirtha](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/rama-tirtha-1.jpg)
Rama Tirtha, also known as Ram Soami, was a 20th-century religious leader who propagated the Hindu philosophy of Vedanta. Initially a math professor, he developed an interest in Advaita Vedanta after meeting Indian monk Swami Vivekananda. He eventually left his family to turn into an ascetic and later drowned in the Ganges.
![K. S. Chandrasekharan K. S. Chandrasekharan](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/k-s-chandrasekharan-122746-1.jpg)
![Akhlaq Mohammed Khan Akhlaq Mohammed Khan](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/akhlaq-mohammed-khan-117069-1.jpg)
![Dignāga Dignāga](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/dignga-1.jpg)
Founder of Buddhist epistemology and reasoning, Dignāga is best known for his magnum opus, Compendium of the Means of True Knowledge (Pramāṇa-samuccaya). Composed in highly elliptical verse format, the treaty laid the foundation of Buddhist logic, influencing Buddhist scholars in India and Tibet for centuries to come, also exerting great influence on Hindu thinkers of the Nyaya School
![Akhilesh Das Akhilesh Das](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/akhilesh-das-1.jpg)
The son of former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh in India, Akhilesh Das was not just a qualified lawyer but also boasted of a PhD in management. A talented badminton player, he had also headed the Badminton Association of India. He had also represented the Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party.
![V. S. Srinivasa Sastri V. S. Srinivasa Sastri](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/v-s-srinivasa-sastri-1.jpg)
Known for his mastery over English, Indian orator V. S. Srinivasa Sastri was also a noted independence activist, politician and writer. A close follower of Gopal Krishna Gokhale and a friend of Mahatma Karamchand Gandhi, he took part in various international delegations and was seen as too sympathetic to British rule in India by many nationalistic leaders, including Jawaharlal Nehru.
![Śāntirakṣita Śāntirakṣita](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/no-profile-img.jpg)
Śāntaraksita was an Indian Buddhist philosopher of the Madhyamaka School. An influential and important philosopher, Śāntaraksita is credited with founding Tibet's first Buddhist monastery, Samye. Śāntaraksita influenced several generations of philosophers; among his notable students were Dharmamitra, Haribhadra, and Kamalaśīla.
![Abdul Bari Abdul Bari](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/abdul-bari-1.jpg)
Indian academic and labor leader Abdul Bari is remembered for his involvement in the freedom struggle, his historic deal with the Tatas, and his efforts to curb slavery and other social ills. He was shot dead while on his way home while serving as the Bihar Provincial Congress Committee president.
![Moggaliputta-Tissa Moggaliputta-Tissa](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/no-profile-img.jpg)
![Surendranath Dasgupta Surendranath Dasgupta](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/surendranath-dasgupta-1.jpg)
Surendranath Dasgupta was an Indian scholar, teacher, and writer. An influential scholar, Dasgupta is best remembered for his book A History of Indian Philosophy, which is among his most-read works. He also served as a professor in popular institutions like Chittagong College and Presidency College.
![Raghavan N. Iyer Raghavan N. Iyer](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/no-profile-img.jpg)
![Vajrabodhi Vajrabodhi](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/vajrabodhi-1.jpg)
![Mayadhar Raut Mayadhar Raut](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/mayadhar-raut-67416-1.jpg)
Mayadhar Raut is an Indian dancer, choreographer, and teacher. An exponent of Odissi, Raut played a key role in giving the dance form its classical status. A revered teacher, Mayadhar Raut has taught at various institutions including Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra. He has won many prestigious awards like the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and the Padma Shri Award.
![Ram Gopal Ram Gopal](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/ram-gopal-1.jpg)
![Jitendra Nath Pande Jitendra Nath Pande](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/jitendra-nath-pande-1.jpg)
Jitendra Nath Pande was an Indian pulmonologist remembered for his association with the All India Institute of Medical Studies where he worked as a professor, apart from serving as the Head of Medicine. He was also associated with Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science & Research where he worked as a senior consultant. Pande was awarded the Padma Shri in 2021.
![John Mason John Mason](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/john-mason.jpg)