Speech on Lokmanya Tilak in English - 10 Lines, Short & Long Speech

Lokmanya Tilak more commonly known as Bal Gangadhar Tilak was one of the important leaders of the Indian Independence Movement. He was called the Father of Indian Unrest and was conferred with the title of 'Lokmanya' which means 'accepted by the people as their leader'. He was one of the first and strongest advocates of Swaraj (self-rule). He is famous for his quote "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it!". Moreover, he had a close alliance with many Indian National Congress leaders including Bipin Chandra Pal and Lala Lajpat Rai.

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10 Lines on Lokmanya Tilak

1. Lokmanya Tilak was born on July 23, 1856, in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra.

2. Born into a middle-class Hindu Brahmin family, he completed his graduation in mathematics from Deccan College in Pune.

3. During his early days, he became a teacher in a private school and later became a journalist.

4. He began a mass movement towards independence with an emphasis on a religious and cultural revival.

5. Tilak joined Congress in 1890 and had a more radical and aggressive stance against British rule.

6. He was a proponent of boycotts and the Swadeshi movement.

7. Lokmanya Tilak was imprisoned for 18 months on the charges of "incitement to murder".

8. Despite being a nationalist radical leader, Lokmanya Tilak's social views were quite conservative.

9. He popularised the Ganesh Puja and Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav as one of the biggest festivals in Maharashtra.

10. Bal Gangadhar Tilak encouraged the people to be proud of their culture and heritage and was against the blatant modernisation of society.

Short Speech on Lokmanya Tilak

Early life

Born as Keshav Gangadhar Tilak, Lokmanya Tilak was born on 23 July 1856 in a Brahmin family in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. Married off at the early age of 16; he completed his Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Deccan College of Pune. After graduating, he was a Maths teacher in a private school in Pune and later became a journalist. He was a co-founder of an English school which led to the set-up of the Deccan Educational Society and the establishment of Fergusson College, where he taught Mathematics. In 1890, Tilak left for political work and began a mass movement towards the Independence of India.

During his political life, Lokmanya Tilak was called the "Father of Indian Unrest". Tilak joined the Indian National Congress and was one of the eminent radicals at that time. He had been tried for sedition charges, three times by the British India Government. Tilak served a six-year jail sentence in Mandalay, Burma for defending the revolutionaries that attempted to kill Douglas Kingsford, the Chief Presidency Magistrate of Calcutta fame. He also founded the All India Home Rule League which focussed on self-rule where Tilak travelled from village to village for the support of the locals to join the movement. The league had 1,400 members at the beginning which grew to approximately 32,000.

Lokmanya Tilak died on 1st August, 1920 in Mumbai. He breathed his last breath in a guest room at Sardar Griha where he suffered a cardiac arrest. His funeral was attended by more than 2 lakh people, the largest ever in Indian history. The turnout for the funeral was so huge that the cremation was done at Chowpatty instead of a crematorium. From his deathbed, he said, "Unless Swaraj is achieved, India will not prosper. It is vital for our existence". In a tribute, Jawaharlal Nehru referred to him as "The Father of Indian Revolution"

Long Speech on Lokmanya Tilak

Background

Lokmanya Tilak was born into a Brahmin, Marathi family in the Ratnagiri district of modern-day Maharashtra on 23 July 1856. His ancestral village was Chikhali. His father, Gangadhar Tilak was a school teacher and a Sanskrit scholar who died when Tilak was 16. A few months before his father's death, he was married to Tapibai. He obtained his bachelor's degree in Mathematics from Deccan College of Pune and obtained his L.L.B degree from Government Law College. After graduating, he became a mathematics teacher at a private school in Pune. Later, he became a journalist and got involved in public affairs.

In 1880, with a few of his college friends, he co-founded the New English School for Secondary Education, intending to improve the education quality for the Indian youth. The success of the school led to the establishment of the Deccan Education Society and Fergusson College, where he was a teacher there.

Social and Political Contribution

Tilak had a long political career agitating for Indian autonomy from British colonial rule. Tilak was the most widely known political leader before Gandhi. He was considered a Radical Nationalist but a Social Conservative. He was imprisoned on several occasions including a long stint at Mandalay, Burma. At one stage of his political career, he was called "The Father of Indian Unrest". Tilak encouraged the Swadeshi Movement and Boycott Movement. He was the one of founders of the All India Home Rule League which became one of the active movements in India.

He emphasised the importance of a cultural and religious revival to complement the political movements of the time. He popularized the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in the Maharashtra region, promoting it as a means of fostering unity and pride. Additionally, he advocated for the celebration of Shiv Jayanti, the birth anniversary of the Maratha King Chhatrapati Shivaji, as a symbol of historical and cultural heritage.

Tilak sought to unite the Indian population for mass political action throughout his life. Tilak started two weekly papers 'Kesari' in Marathi and 'Mahratta' in English, which gave him the recognition of 'Awaker of India'.

In 1903, Tilak wrote the book 'The Arctic Home in the Vedas, where he argued that the Vedas could only have been composed in the Arctic. In 'The Orion', he calculated the time of the Vedas by using the position of different Nakshatras.

Tilak suffered a cardiac arrest and breathed his last breath at Sardar Griha. His funeral was achieved by more than 2 lakh people. Lokmanya Tilak was cremated in the sitting legs crossed position (padmasana), a distinction given only to saints.

Tilak Memorial Statue was built near Girgaum Chowpatty. Tilak Smarak Ranga, a theatre auditorium in Pune is dedicated to him. In 2007, the Government of India released a coin to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Tilak. Several Indian films have been made in his life including the documentary films Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak' and 'The Great Freedom Fighter Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak - Swaraj My Birthright'.