Who is the greatest Indian after Gandhi?

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Homi J Bhabha

Full credit for the establishment of India's nuclear research program, and its nuclear weapons program, must be given to Dr. Homi Jehangir Bhabha, a man who throughout his life dominated both the scientific and policy spheres of India's nuclear affairs, first bringing the Indian nuclear program to life and then setting its priorities and direction.

After Nehru became the new nation's first leader Bhabha was entrusted with complete authority over all nuclear related affairs and programs and answered only to Nehru himself, with whom he developed a close personal relationship. India's nuclear policy was set by unwritten personal understandings between Nehru and Bhabha.

The power that Bhabha held is no where more sharply illustrated by the fact that in the wake of China's first nuclear test Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, Nehru's successor, found it necessary to align his policies with the preferences of Dr. Bhabha, and secure his personal endorsement to withstand legislative and public criticism.

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Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay

Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay was one of the most romantic figures of the freedom movement. Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay was born into an aristocratic yet independent-minded family from Mangalore.

Her grandmother was a scholar of ancient Indian texts, and her mother was also widely read. Together their presence in the household gave Kamaladevi a firm grounding and provided benchmarks for intellect and integrity.

She came under the spell of Mahatma Gandhi, and influenced him in turn, by persuading the Mahatma to allow women like herself to court arrest during the Salt Satyagraha of the 1930s.

After Independence, Kamaladevi could have joined the Union Cabinet; instead, she chose to work for the forgotten and downtrodden. Placing the artisan at the centre of her activities, she became the driving force behind the renaissance of Indian handicrafts and handlooms in the 1950s and 1960s.

She was a strong believer in the power of producers' co-operatives. Numerous cultural institutions in India today are a gift of her vision, among them the National School of Drama (NSD), the Sangeet Natak Akademi, Central Cottage Industries Emporium, and The Crafts Council of India.

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N R Narayanamurthy

N R Narayanamurthy is synonymous with Infosys and India’s IT revolution. He climbed the ladders of phenomenal success without dropping his ethical precepts by the wayside. The Infosys legend began in 1981 when Narayana Murthy dreamt of forming his own company, along with six friends, though-he didn't have any seed money.

Luckily, his wife Sudha Murthy gave all her savings of Rs.10000. It was Murthy's first big break. The decade until 1991 was a tough period when the couple lived in a one-room house. The second break came in 1991 when Indian doors to liberalization were flung open… Murthy grabbed the opportunity with both hands and has never looked back ever since.

Today, Infosys is the first Indian company to be listed on the US NASDAQ. As he claims "I'm a capitalist in mind, a socialist at heart." It was this belief in the distribution of wealth that made Infosys one of the first Indian companies to offer employees stock-option plans. Infosys now has hundreds of employees who are dollar millionaires.

The Infosys Foundation headed by his wife, channels millions into charity every year.

Simplicity, humility and maintaining a low profile are the hallmarks of this super-rich Bangalorean. And the man is principled to a fault. Sometimes he courts controversies because of his strong views and politically incorrect statements.

In 2008, Murthy was honored with the Padma Vibhushan award conferred by the government of India. He has also received the Légion d’Honneur from the government of France, besides being honored with the title Commander of the Order of the British Empire by the government of Britain.

Murthy also holds the distinction of being the first Indian to win the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year award. In 2005, he was among the ten most-admired global business leaders as per a ranking by Economist.

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R K Narayan

R K Narayan was regarded as India’s greatest writer in English of the 20th Century and a major World literary figure of his time. The creator of fictional South Indian town Malgudi, R K Narayan was famous for his lucid style. He made intricacies of Indian life accessible to people in the West and rest of the World. Narayan’s works are strikingly original and 100% Indian.

He was the grand old man of Indian letters, who always kept a low profile. Simplicity was his forte. He received numerous national and international awards for his remarkable contribution to Indian English literature. He was also a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, where he rubbed shoulders with legends like M F Husain, Pt. Ravishankar and Salim Ali. His demand for the abolition of loaded school bags led to revolutionary reforms in the field of primary education. His speech in defence of the children is considered one of the best speeches in the history of Parliament.

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Vinoba Bhave

Vinoba Bhave, was often called Acharya or a National Teacher of India and he is considered spiritual successor of Mahatma Gandhi. He was associated with Mahatma Gandhi in the Indian independence movement.
In 1940 he was chosen by Gandhi to be the first Individual Satyagrahi (an Individual standing up for Truth instead of a collective action) against the British rule. Bhave also participated in the Quit India Movement.

Vinoba's religious outlook was very broad and it synthesized the truths of many religions. This formed the core of his Sarvodaya (Awakening of all potentials) movement. Another example of this is the Bhoodhan (land gift) movement.

He walked across India asking people with land to give him a portion of their land which he then distributed to landless poor. Nonviolence and compassion being a hallmark of his philosophy. He died on November 15, 1982 after refusing food and medicine few days earlier. Some Indians have identified this as sallekhana. He was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1983.

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Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Known as the Ajaatshatru (a person with no enemies) in Indian politics, Atal Bihari Vajpayee is one of the most admired public figures. He is liked by both his admirers and opponents. A true believer in the culture of consensus Vajpayee led a fractious coalition government for Six years from 1998-2004. His first term in office lasted for just 13 days in 1996. As India's first non-Congress foreign minister during post Emergency years, he was credited with maintaining the most cordial relationship with Pakistan.

"Atal Bihari Vajpayee is the best PM India has never had," was the refrain among many Indians during 1980s and 1990s. He showed immense boldness in taking a bus yatra to Lahore before the Kargil war and going ahead with Pokhran - two. As a political analyst once rightly said 'He is larger than his party'. A true unifier, who is above his party and politics. His love for poetry is unmatched in Indian politics.

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Ram Manohar Lohia

Lohia was THE original socialist leader in post independence India. Prime Minister Nehru and Lohia were two opposite polars. Though Lohia was influenced by Western thoughts and system, he strongly advocated a pure Indian model. He was a decorated freedom fighter, at times a maverick socialist and a highly respected political leader of international repute. He worked against economic divide & caste inequalities. Lohia’s contribution in the rebuilding of new India is very significant.

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Amitabh Bachchan

Arguably India’s most popular and influential movie star Amitabh Bachchan has been a larger than life icon for almost 4 decades now. Though Amitabh made his debut as an actor in 1969, it was his breakthrough performance in Prakash Mehra’s ‘Zanjeer’ in 1973 that catapulted him to stardom.

Films such as ‘Deewar’, ‘Majboor’ and ‘Trishul’ through the 1970s established Amitabh as the ‘angry young man’ who fought the system on his own terms, an image that endeared him to the common man. The actor’s popularity saw a meteoric rise in the 80s, so much so that when Amitabh met with a near fatal accident on the sets of ‘Coolie’, lakhs of people thronged outside the hospital and community prayers were held at temples for his recovery.

Bachchan took a brief hiatus from films and joined politics in 1984, having contested the elections on a Congress ticket from Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. The actor soon grew disenchanted with politics and returned to acting, making a comeback with hits like ‘Shahenshah’ and ‘Agneepath’.

Arguably India’s most popular and influential movie star Amitabh Bachchan has been a larger than life icon for almost 4 decades now. Though Amitabh made his debut as an actor in 1969, it was his breakthrough performance in Prakash Mehra’s ‘Zanjeer’ in 1973 that catapulted him to stardom.

Films such as ‘Deewar’, ‘Majboor’ and ‘Trishul’ through the 1970s established Amitabh as the ‘angry young man’ who fought the system on his own terms, an image that endeared him to the common man. The actor’s popularity saw a meteoric rise in the 80s, so much so that when Amitabh met with a near fatal accident on the sets of ‘Coolie’, lakhs of people thronged outside the hospital and community prayers were held at temples for his recovery.

Bachchan took a brief hiatus from films and joined politics in 1984, having contested the elections on a Congress ticket from Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. The actor soon grew disenchanted with politics and returned to acting, making a comeback with hits like ‘Shahenshah’ and ‘Agneepath’.

Though Amitabh’s popularity waned in the 90s and his business venture ABCL Corp wound up due to mismanagement, he reinvented himself and made a comeback on television with the popular game show ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ in 2000, which he continues to host. Apart from the small screen, in the new millennium Bachchan reconnected with his cinema audience with hits like ‘Mohabbatein’, ‘Black’, ‘Baghbaan’ and ‘Sarkar’.

At 69 Amitabh Bachchan continues to entertain both on television and the movies and connect with his fans through Twitter and his blog… and for millions of cinema lovers, Amitabh Bachchan remains a living legend who defines everything an indomitable hero stands for.

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Jawaharlal Nehru

Jawaharlal Nehru is undoubtedly the architect of modern India and parliamentary democracy.

A scholar and a statesman par excellence. Nehru, who still holds the record of serving the longest term in office, had the unmatched aura of struggle and sacrifice before Independence.

He was among the leaders through most of his public life and a colossus. His Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) saved India from getting caught in the cold war between USA and Soviet Union during India's nascent stage as an independent nation. He laid a strong foundation for a secular India.

He set up our modern industries, academic institutions of excellence and encouraged scientific revolution. He has also created an atmosphere that allowed and encouraged free thinking. His contributions outweigh his flaws like China war of 1962 and over emphasis on controlled economy.

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Vallabhai Patel

Described as 'Iron Man of India' Sardar Vallabhai Patel will always be remembered for the stellar role he played in unifying the country by integrating over 500 princely states into the union of India. Patel was Nehru's near equal in leadership qualities, acceptance of the people, indomitable courage, scholarship and statesmanship. Slightly younger to Mahatma Gandhi and older to Nehru, Patel worked with both shoulder to shoulder during freedom struggle. While Nehru was known as a great thinker statesman, Patel was known as a doer statesman. Together they laid a strong foundation for modern India. In the words of many of his contemporaries, he was one of the best PM India never had.