List of honorary titles of Indian leaders

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Last edited March 3, 2026

The following is the list of honorary titles given to various Indian leaders during Indian independence struggle.

Honorary title Meaning Statesman Photos
Azad "Free" (Urdu)

Figuratively = "The Freed Soul"

Chandra Shekhar Tiwari[1][2]
• Babasaheb


• Mooknayak

"The Respected Father" (Marathi). "Baba" = "father" and "Saheb" = "sir"

"Captain of the Voiceless" (Marathi) (Hindi).
"Mook" = "Voiceless" and "Nayak" = "Captain".[3]

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar[4][5]
• Bacha Khan

• Badshah Khan

• Fakhr-e-Afghan

• Sarhadi Gandhi

"Bacha Khan" = "King of Chiefs"

"Badshah Khan" = Master King of Kings

"Pride of Afghans" (Urdu)

"Fakhr" = "Pride" and "Afghan" = "Afghan"

"Frontier Gandhi" (Hindi)

"Sarhad" = "Frontier" (North-West Frontier Province) and "Gandhi" = "Gandhi"

Abdul Ghaffar Khan[6]
Bihar Kesari "Lion of Bihar" (Hindi/Sanskrit)

"Bihar" = "Bihar" and "Kesari" = "Lion"

Shri Krishna Sinha[7][8] File:Shri Krishna Singh 2016 stamp of India.jpg
Bihar Vibhuti "Sacred Ash of Bihar" (Hindi).
"Bihar" = "Bihar" and "Vibhuti" = "Sacred Ash" 		Anugrah Narayan Sinha[9] File:Bihar Vibhuti Dr Anugrah Narayan Sinha,first Bihar Dy Chief Minister.jpg
Deenabandhu "Friend of the Poor" (Bengali).
"Deen" = "Poor" and "Bandhu" = "Friend". 		Charles Freer Andrews[10][11] File:C F Andrews.jpg
Deshabandhu "Friend of Country" (Bengali).
"Desh" = "Country" and "Bandhu" = "Friend". 		Chittaranjan Das[12] File:Chittaranjan Das 2.jpg
• Deshanayak

• Netaji

"Captain of the Country"

(Bengali).
"Desh" = "Country" and "Nayak" = "Captain".[3]

"Respected Leader" (Hindi).
"Neta" = "Leader" and "Ji" = an honorary suffix.

Subhash Chandra Bose File:Subhas Chandra Bose NRB.jpg
Deshapriya "Beloved of the country" (Bengali).
"Desh" = "Country" and "Priya" = "Beloved". 		Jatindra Mohan Sengupta[13] File:Deshapriya Jatindra Mohan Sengupta.jpg
Desh Ratna "Jewel of the Country" (Hindi).
"Desh" = "country" and "Ratna" = "jewel" 		Rajendra Prasad[14][15] File:Rajendra Prasad (Indian President), signed image for Walter Nash (NZ Prime Minister), 1958 (16017609534).jpg
• Gurudev

• Kobiguru

• Biswakobi

• The Bard of Bengal

"Divine Teacher" (Bengali) (Hindi).
"Guru" = "Teacher" and "Deva" = "divine". 		Rabindranath Tagore[16][17] File:Rabindranath Tagore unknown location.jpg
Lokmanya "Revered by the People" (Marathi).
"Lok" = "People" and "Manya" = "Revered". 		Bal Gangadhar Tilak[18] File:Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856-1920).webp
Loknayak "Captain of the People" (Hindi).
"Lok" = "People" and "Nayak" = "Captain". 		Jayaprakash Narayan[19][20]
Mahamana "Great Heart" (Hindi).
"Mahan" = "great" and "Mana" = "thought/heart". 		Madan Mohan Malaviya[21]
Mahatma "Great Soul" (Sanskrit).
"Maha" = "Great" and "Atma" = "Soul". 		Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi[22] File:Mahatma-Gandhi, studio, 1931.jpg
Mahatma "Great Soul" (Sanskrit).
"Maha" = "Great" and "Atma" = "soul". 		Jyotirao Govindrao Phule[23][24] File:Mahatma Jotirao Phule.jpg
Maulana "Guardian" (Arabic). Abul Kalam Azad[25] File:Abul Kalam Azad 1.jpg
Chacha "Paternal Uncle" (Hindi) Jawaharlal Nehru[26][27] File:Jawaharlal Nehru close-up (cropped).jpg
Punjab Kesari "Lion of Punjab" (Hindi)

"Punjab" = "Punjab" and "Kesari" = "Lion"

Lala Lajpat Rai File:Mahatma Lala Lajpat Rai.jpg
Sardar "Commander" (Persian).
"Sar" = "Head" and "dar" = "Holder". 		Vallabhbhai Patel[28][29] File:Sardar patel (cropped).jpg
Shaheed-e-Azam "Greatest Martyr" (Urdu).
"Shaheed" = "Martyr" and "Azam" = "Greatest". 		Bhagat Singh[30][31] File:Bhagat Singh 1929.jpg
Swadeshi Tamil Naavik "Kappal Ootiya Tamilan" (Tamil)

"Kappal" = "Tamil" and "Naavik" = "Captain"

V O Chidambaram Pillai File:V. O. Chidambaram Pillai.jpg
Swantanryaveer
or
Veer 		"Brave Freedom Fighter" (Marathi).
"Swantanrya" = "Freedom" and "Veer" = "Brave" 		Vinayak Damodar Savarkar File:V. D. Savarkar.jpg

References

  1. ↑ Champaran flower drive to honour Bapu. The Telegraph. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  2. ↑ Bapu tower soon at Bihar Vidyapeeth - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sanskrit - Dictionary. www.learnsanskrit.cc. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  4. ↑ Renaming Dr. Ambedkar in modern-day India stems from caste hatred(30 March 2018). Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  5. ↑ Mahamanav Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar{{#if:Gaikwad|, Gaikwad}. Riya Publication(2016)
  6. ↑ Abdul Ghaffar Khan was no Gandhi—he was the powerhouse Pathan who mobilised Indian Muslims, Mathew, Shania. ThePrint(2023-01-20). Retrieved 2023-10-15.
  7. ↑ 'बिहार केसरी' श्री बाबू की 134वीं जयंती पर मुंगेर ने किया उन्हें नमन, यादें की गईं ताजा. Dainik Jagran. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
  8. ↑ बिहार केसरी किसे कहा जाता है ?. www.gkexams.com. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
  9. ↑ Congress a divided house in Anugrah babu's hometown - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  10. ↑ 3 new bus sheds before summer. The Telegraph. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  11. ↑ Martyr bust damaged. The Telegraph. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  12. ↑ Thoughts of the 'chatur bania', at Sabarmati ashram. The Indian Express(2017-06-14). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  13. ↑ JATINDRA & NELIE SENGUPTA. www.indianpost.com. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  14. ↑ Chronicle of Rajendra babu's life at home gallery. The Telegraph. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  15. ↑ Bihar CM Nitish Kumar announces scholarship for toppers - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  16. ↑ 'No film shoot with contrarian view on Tagore'(2018-02-20). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  17. ↑ Finding peace in Tagore land(2018-03-03). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  18. ↑ Ganesh Utsav Pandals Started By 'Lokmanya' Bal Gangadhar Tilak Turns 125 years: This Throwback Pic Is A Gem. India.com(2017-08-25). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  19. ↑ PM bows to Loknayak Jayprakash Narayan, on his birth anniversary. www.narendramodi.in. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  20. ↑ The Pursuit Of Truth. The Indian Express(2017-10-12). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  21. ↑ Madan Mohan Malviya's 156th Birthday: 5 Important Things To Know. NDTV.com. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  22. ↑ Opinion | Why India is being really rude to Justin Trudeau. Washington Post(2018-02-20). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  23. ↑ Manjhi's absence will be felt: Kushwaha. The Hindu(2018-03-05). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  24. ↑ Who was Jyotirao Phule?. The Indian Express(2017-11-28). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  25. ↑ Khan Ata Mohammad Khan- Mentor of Moulana Azad. www.kashmirmonitor.in. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  26. ↑ Children's Day 2017: How Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru's Birthday Became Bal Diwas. India.com(2017-11-14). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  27. ↑ Remembering Nehru. Jammu Kashmir Latest News | Tourism | Breaking News J&K(2016-11-14). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  28. ↑ Statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is twice taller than statue of liberty: PM Modi(2018-02-27). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  29. ↑ 'Statue of Unity' to be ready for inauguration on Oct 31: Govt - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  30. ↑ It's Punjab vs Haryana over naming of Chandigarh airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh. Zee News(2018-02-27). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  31. ↑ "Even Pak conferred title of Shaheed-e-Azam on Bhagat Singh, but India has not" - Govt to look into the matter. TimesNow. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
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