With the Government of India now celebrating April 14 as “Equality Day,” the world is marking the celebration of Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar’s life and contributions. However, it was his Dalit communities that kept his memory alive long before the official recognition, and this is evidenced by the simple but powerful celebration held in 1928.
This year on April 14, both within the borders of India and across the world, from Delhi to London and from Bhopal to Toronto, diverse cities resonated with songs, lectures, processions, and tributes in honor of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar – the principal architect of the Indian Constitution and a valiant fighter against caste discrimination. The day is officially marked as “Equality Day,” a day termed by the Government of India which is now celebrated internationally. However, state proclamations are not the basis of the day; a grassroots initiative led by Dalits almost a century ago serves as the motive.
A Major Milestone: 1928
In Pune, Ambedkar Jayanti was first commemorated on April 14, 1928. This feat was achieved by Bhausaheb Ranpise, who was dedicated dalit movement leader and social worker. During this period, his commemoration was already rising as one of the foremost voices of the subjugated people. But there were no formal observance of his birthday.
Ranpise, at that time the President of Khadki Patra Division Darit Mandal took the step to celebrate Babasaheb’s life in a manner that was simultaneously devotional and iconic. The image of Ambedkar was placed within an elephant’s cage, and a procession of
Dr Ambedkar’s followers small bust significant gathered. The procession passed through crucial areas of the city like Prabhat Film Company. This powerful symbolic act marked the plunge into a socio-political culture that would transcend the life of Ranpise and persist for many years.
Community Memory And Celebration
In Khadki, the Dalits began celebrating Babasaheb’s birthday commemoratively Ambedkar Jayanti annually from 1928. Gradually, Ranpise put these scattered attempts together and created a more structural framework by forming a formal Dalit Mandal that would celebrate these events on a larger scale.
Dalit communities sustained the legacy of Ambedkar Jayanti year after year with processions, bhajans, speeches, and nurturing younger audiences to embrace Babasaheb’s teachings. Beyond joyful gatherings, the celebrations were defiant, proud, and attempts to reclaim identity, culture, and heritage in a world where Dalit people had their voices muted far too often.
For many years, it was the Dalit communities who actively celebrated Ambedkar Jayanti. They held processions, sung bhajans, organized speeches, and passed down the teachings of Babasaheb to the younger generations. This celebration was more than just a celebration; it was an act of defiance, cultural pride, and resistance in a country that tried to silence the Dalit community.
A Living Legacy
Now that state bodies and the world commends the celebration of Ambedkar Jayanti, it is fitting to reflect on the origins of the memorialization. The marches which utilized to occur in the small backstreets, with buzzing elephants and crude idols now have overrun the world’s stages, but their essence still resides on the streets of Khadki, in the tunes recited by countless Dalits, and in the remembrance of a community that chose not to erase their history.
Nobody handed out Ambedkar Jayanti to the masses, Ambedkar Jayanti was constructed from a grassroots effort.
