Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (1903-1998) was a force of nature: a social reformer, freedom fighter, and patron of the arts and crafts.
Growing up in a household buzzing with freedom fighters and intellectuals, she caught the revolutionary bug early. Her family, thankfully, also valued her brainpower and opinions, which definitely helped shape her future.
At the tender age of 14, she got married, which was the norm then, and became a widow two years later, which definitely wasn't in the plan. But did that stop her? Absolutely not! Instead, she turned her focus to education and met a rather dashing poet-playwright-actor named Harindranath (Harin for short), the younger brother of Sarojini Naidu. Their shared love for the arts led to a marriage that scandalised society, since they frowned upon widow remarriage. Kamala and Harin became a power couple, producing plays and generally causing a stir. She even graced the silver screen in a few films when that was considered scandalous for 'respectable' women.
Kamala then went to London and got herself a diploma in Sociology, because why not? But when Mahatma Gandhi called for action, she was on the next boat back to India. She joined the Seva Dal and swiftly rose through the ranks to become head of the women's section. She was basically the head recruiter for women freedom fighters, organising them to become ‘sevikas’.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Kamala became the first woman to run for a legislative seat in India in 1926, although she lost by a whisker – just 55 votes!. That didn’t slow her down. She helped found the All-India Women's Conference (AIWC) and travelled around Europe, getting ideas for all sorts of social reforms. She was part of the team making salt during the Salt Satyagraha and even tried to sell it to a rather surprised magistrate. She also famously clung to the Indian tricolour to stop it from being taken away.
During World War II, Kamala was gallivanting around the world, telling everyone about India’s plight and rallying support. She even had a rather memorable encounter on a segregated train in the US, where she refused to move from a "whites only" car. She had the conductor so confused; he just left her alone.
After India's independence, she turned her energy towards rehabilitating refugees, establishing the township of Faridabad. And when she realised that traditional artisans might get left behind with industrialisation, she made sure to set up museums and emporia to support them. She also headed the National School of Drama and the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
In the 1950s, she became concerned at the possibility that the introduction of Western methods of factory-based (machinery) mass production in India as part of Nehru's vision for India's development would affect traditional artisans, especially women in the unorganised sectors. She set up a series of crafts museums to hold and archive India's indigenous arts and crafts that served as a storehouse for indigenous know-how. This included the Theater Crafts Museum in Delhi. She was instrumental in setting up the All India Handicrafts Board, and was also its first chairperson.
Kamala picked up quite a few awards along the way, including the Padma Bhushan (1955), Padma Vibhushan (1987), a Ramon Magsaysay Award (1966), and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship. She was also honoured by UNESCO and Shantiniketan. Kamala was clearly a woman ahead of her time. She lived life on her own terms and did so with a lot of courage and a dash of drama.
Romulus Whitaker, the "Snakeman of India" is the step-grandson of Kamala. In a heartwarming essay titled "A Portrait of a Grandmother" from My Husband and Other Animals 2, Janaki Lenin writes, "Both worked tirelessly to promote traditional skills and ensure these crafts reached the market. She was a pioneer of the cooperative movement in India, so it's no surprise that Rom established a cooperative of snake catchers."
If you want to know more about her life in her own words, you can check out her autobiography, which is aptly titled Inner Recesses Outer Spaces: a Memoir.