Savitribai Phule Being Taught by Jyotirao Phule

Savitribai’s most prized possession was a book given to her by a Christian missionary. Impressed by her enthusiasm to learn, Jyotirao taught Savitribai to read and write. Savitribai undertook teachers’ training at Ahmednagar and in Pune. She became a qualified teacher after she passed her 4th examination in 1847.

Savitribai Phule was a trailblazer in providing education for girls and for ostracized portions of society. She became the first female teacher in India (1848) and opened a school for girls with her husband, Jyotirao Phule. She went on to establish a shelter (1864) for destitute women and played a crucial role in grooming Jyotirao Phule’s pioneering institution, Satyashodhak Samaj, (1873) that fought for equality of all classes.

Her life is heralded as a beacon of women’s rights in India. She is often referred to as the mother of Indian feminism.