Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, who is also popularly known as Veer Savarkar, was one of those unique personalities in Indian history who continue to shine with admiration and debate. He was born in 1883 in a Marathi Brahmin family in Nashik Bhagur, Maharashtra. The term “Hindutva” is often heard, as this “Hindutva” term was written by Veer Savarkar in his pamphlet in 1920. He grew up with a strong sense of patriotism and a restless urge to break free from British rule. From a young age, he wasn’t the kind to stay silent in the face of injustice.
भारत माता के सच्चे सपूत वीर सावरकर जी को उनकी जन्म-जयंती पर आदरपूर्ण श्रद्धांजलि। विदेशी हुकूमत की कठोर से कठोर यातनाएं भी मातृभूमि के प्रति उनके समर्पण भाव को डिगा नहीं पाईं। आजादी के आंदोलन में उनके अदम्य साहस और संघर्ष की गाथा को कृतज्ञ राष्ट्र कभी भुला नहीं सकता। देश के लिए… pic.twitter.com/3OsxSN905I
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 28, 2025
What makes Savarkar stand out isn't just his revolutionary activities but his contributions as a poet, a writer, a historian, and a political thinker. He spent many years in terrible imprisonment in the Andaman Cellular Jail, but he never gave up on his dream of a free India. At the same time, his views on nationalism and religion, particularly his idea of Hindutva, have been deeply influential and controversial.
Veer Savarkar was never an easy figure to categorise. He was bold, fiercely independent in thought, and often ahead of his time. Whether one agrees with his ideology or not, there’s no denying that he left a strong mark on India's journey toward independence.
When was Vinayak Damodar Savarkar born?
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was born on 28 May, 1883. On his 142nd birth anniversary, many union leaders also wished him.
External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, posted on X by saying,
Pay tribute to the great freedom fighter Veer Savarkar on his Jayanti.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) May 28, 2025
His legacy of courage, patriotism, and commitment to the nation will motivate generations to come.
In this article, let’s discover 10 lesser-known facts about Vinayak Damodar Savarkar or Veer Savarkar.
Discover 10 Lesser-Known Facts about Vinayak Damodar Savarkar | |
|---|---|
| S.No. | Key Events in the Life of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar |
| 1. | During his teenage years, Savarkar founded a group called ‘Mitra Mela’, aiming to cultivate patriotic and revolutionary sentiments among the youth. |
| 2. | Deeply influenced by Lokmanya Tilak’s call for boycotting British products and promoting Swadeshi, he burnt foreign-made goods publicly during Dussehra in 1905. |
| 3. | Savarkar advocated rational thinking and atheism, urging people to care for cows but not worship them, as he considered such practices superstitious. |
| 4. | In 1909, he was arrested for alleged involvement in planning an armed uprising against the Morley-Minto Reforms. He even attempted a daring escape by jumping into the sea but was recaptured. |
| 5. | After being sentenced to 50 years in the Cellular Jail at Port Blair in 1911, he was accused by some of betrayal for sending clemency petitions, though others argue he only sought freedom for his fellow revolutionaries. |
| 6. | He was released in 1924 but had to agree to stay away from political activities for five years as a condition of his release. |
| 7. | The British authorities banned eight of his works, including The Indian War of Independence 1857 and his Marathi biography of Mazzini, considering them inflammatory. |
| 8. | In his influential book ‘Hindutva’, he put forward the idea of a distinct Hindu nation, which later influenced the 1937 resolution of the Hindu Mahasabha supporting the two-nation theory. |
| 9. | After Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, Savarkar was named in the chargesheet but was acquitted due to insufficient evidence linking him to the conspiracy. |
| 10. | In 1966, feeling that his mission was complete after India’s independence, Savarkar began a hunger strike on February 1 and passed away on February 26, 1966. Years later, in 2002, Port Blair airport was renamed Veer Savarkar International Airport in his honour. |
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’s Books to Read | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S.No. | Title | Author | Publisher | Year |
| 1 | The Indian War of Independence – 1857 | V.D. Savarkar | — | 1909 |
| 2 | Swatantryaveer Savarkar: A Handbook on India’s Revolutionary Struggle | V.D. Savarkar | Maharashtra Prantik Hindu Sabha, Pune | 1909 |
| 3 | Letters from the Andamans | V.D. Savarkar | — | 1912 |
| 4 | Essentials of Hindutva | V.D. Savarkar | — | 1923 |
| 5 | Who is a Hindu? | V.D. Savarkar | S.P. Gokhale, Pune | 1923 |
| 6 | Hindu Rashtra Darshan | V.D. Savarkar | — | 1949 |
| 7 | Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History | V.D. Savarkar | — | 1963 |
| 8 | Collected Works of Veer Savarkar (Samagra Savarkar Wangmaya) | — | Maharashtra Prantik Hindu Sabha, Pune | 1963-1965 |
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