Umabai Kundapur became a women’s leader in India in her early twenties. After being encouraged in her own education, she became the leader of a girls’ school and then of a youth movement for young women, urging them to fight for independence from Britain and hiding them when they tangled with the law. Her risks garnered attention, and, at the request of Mahatma Gandhi, she worked to empower the rural poor, always insisting on no pay or position in return. Fifty years of high-profile volunteerism made her a household name and beloved servant-leader. Photo: kamat.com
Leave a Reply