Mohandas Gandhi was a leader for Indian civil rights and the face of India’s push for independence from British control. In South Africa, he developed the methods of peaceful resistance that continue to influence people today. Gandhi was assassinated in 1948, the victim of religious violence following India’s independence.
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"Mahatma: Life of Gandhi, 1869–1948" — the definitive biographical documentary, produced by the Gandhi National Memorial Fund.
From Porbandar to New Delhi — the milestones that shaped a movement.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is born on the northwest coast of India. His parents, though not educated, are well-off enough to provide him a good education.
At age 13, Gandhi marries 14-year-old Kasturbai in an arranged marriage, following regional custom. They go on to have four children.
Gandhi begins studies at University College London, studying Indian law and joining the Vegetarian Society — he avoids meat and alcohol for life.
After completing his studies, Gandhi starts a law practice in Bombay — but, too shy to speak in court, he takes other legal jobs instead.
Gandhi agrees to help a Muslim Indian law firm with a lawsuit. Barred from a first-class train carriage due to his race, the trip becomes a turning point that leads him to devote his life to equality and justice.
Learning of a bill that would deny Indians the right to vote, Gandhi agrees to stay and fight it — he ends up remaining in South Africa for 20 years.
Gandhi writes about the discrimination Indians face in South Africa. The British government begins to view him as a troublemaker.
Gandhi begins studies at University College London, studying Indian law and joining the Vegetarian Society — he avoids meat and alcohol for life.
After completing his studies, Gandhi starts a law practice in Bombay — but, too shy to speak in court, he takes other legal jobs instead.
When the Transvaal government demands Indians register or face deportation, Gandhi asks Indians to peacefully resist — beginning seven years of protest.
Gandhi is arrested for refusing to register with the government. In prison, he reads Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience," deepening his commitment to peaceful resistance.
Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore first calls Gandhi "Mahatma" — meaning "Great Soul." Gandhi himself is uneasy with the title, believing all souls equal.
Having returned to India as a hero in 1915, Gandhi leads the movement for independence, publishing the declaration for the Indian National Congress.
Protesting Britain's salt monopoly, Gandhi leads a 240-mile march to the Arabian Sea. Tens of thousands join; 60,000 are arrested, including Gandhi.
Gandhi calls it "the noblest act of the British nation" — but the joy is short-lived as violence between Hindus and Muslims claims hundreds of thousands of lives.
Gandhi is shot by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu nationalist. Godse believed the killing would divide the nation — instead, the mourning that followed brought unity and peace.
