Son of Mahatma

High expectations, failing health, alcoholism, failure in different aspects of life including education and daunting idealistic ideologies of his father overshadowed the personality of Ramdas Gandhi but never swayed him away from his father's ways.

Ramdas Gandhi: The Overshadowed Freedom Activist; Image Source: Wikipedia

Many of us have wondered in our childhood about how it feels to be born as kids of popular people. We often see news coverage on children of superstars and big businessmen. While life from the surface seems much too easy for kids who already have a baked cake, not all fare equally well in these lives. Most often than not, the popularity of a parent leads to high expectations which in turn sets a threshold too high to be easily realized.

Born on 2nd January 1897 in the Colony of Natal, South Africa, Ramdas Gandhi was the third son of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi or the Mahatma. He, like his father, was active in India’s Independence movement and accompanied other protestors in the civil protests across the nation. In the early 1930s, he spent the majority of his time in jails across India - his imprisonment having a severe impact on his health.

There were certain events in his life where he faced drastic failure. Ramdas Gandhi was not able to follow in his father’s footprints and was unable to impress or motivate the public through his speeches, which made him prone to depression.

Junior Gandhi had always wanted to go for higher studies and become a barrister just like his father, but owing to his weakness in studies, he could not complete his higher education. Being the son of a man who brought India independence, it was obvious that Ramdas had to bear the burden of high expectations. Unfortunately, he was unable to do them justice.  Yet despite such obstacles, he played a crucial role in India’s Independence through his participation in ways he found fit for his potential. Poona Pact, Dharasana Satyagraha, Bardoli Satyagraha and many more such events showcased Ramdas’ will to fight for the virtues and ideas his father preached.

Ramdas had no taste for asceticism. He found it difficult to adjust to the idealistic poverty imposed by his father but regardless, he did whatever his father told him to do because he respected him. Despite everything, Ramdas continued to remain in the shadow of his father that led to his increasing reliance on alcohol to soothe his pains. His alcoholism further ruined his health and on 18 June 1948, he died of liver disease at the age of 72.

Ramdas Gandhi and Manilal Gandhi requested clemency for the assassins of Mohandas Gandhi. Ramdas Gandhi asked for the prisoners to be sent to a penitentiary in the hope of converting them to the creed of non-violence and repentance. This became a vexing issue for top authorities as clemency was seen as Gandhi's method.