Freedom Fighters - V

Vaman Narayan Joshi

Indian freedom fighter (1889 – 1964)

Vaman Narayan Joshi also known as Daji was an Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary from Maharashtra. He is known for his involvement in the assassination of Nashik's district collector, A. M. T. Jackson, as Joshi trained Anant Laxman Kanhere, who carried out the killing of Jackson. Following Jackson's assassination, Joshi was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment. He became a prominent figure in the revolutionary movements of his time.

Vanshidhar Shukla

Indian freedom fighter, politician (1904–1980)

Pandit Vanshidhar Shukla was an Indian freedom fighter, politician, and poet of Hindi and Awadhi language. He is best for writing the patriotic song Qadam Qadam Badhaye Ja, which became the regimental quick march of the Indian National Army, banned by the British in India post-World War II but later became a patriotic anthem of India after India's independence.

Variyankunnath Kunjahammad Haji

Leader of the Malabar rebellion

Variyankunnath Kunjahammad Haji sometimes called Variyamkunnan was a prominent leader during the war in Malabar against the British, during the Malabar rebellion, and the founder of a parallel government. He was an Indian freedom fighter, opposer of the Jenmi system, and an ordinary member of the Khilafat movement.

Vasudev Balwant Phadke

Indian independence activist (1845–1883)

Vasudev Balwant Phadke was an Indian independence activist and revolutionary who sought India's independence from colonial rule. He is also considered one of the 'Adi Kraantikaaris' or the 'First Revolutionists'. He was inspired by the motives of Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj, a prominent king and a godly figure to all Maharashtrians. Phadke was moved by the plight of the farming community and believed that Swaraj was the only remedy for their ills. With the help of various sub-communities of Hindu society he created a movement against British rule. The group started an armed struggle to overthrow the colonial government, launching raids on wealthy European businessmen to obtain funds for the purpose. Phadke came to prominence when he got control of the city of Pune for a few days after catching colonial soldiers off-guard during a surprise attack.

Veerapandiya Kattabomman

Palaiyakkarar of Tenkasi

Veerapandiya Kattabomman was an 18th-century Palayakarrar and king of Panchalankurichi in present-day Tamil Nadu, India. He fought the British East India Company and was captured by the British with the help of the ruler of the kingdom of Pudukottai, Vijaya Raghunatha Tondaiman, and at the age of 39 he was hanged at Kayathar on 16 October 1799. He belongs to the Thokalavar sub-sect of the Rajakambala Nayakkar community.

Veer Surendra Sai

Freedom fighter and revolutionary from Odisha

Bira Surendra Sai was an Indian revolutionary and freedom fighter from what is now Odisha. He fought against the British rule in India after they dethroned the rulers of the Sambalpur State.

Velu Nachiyar

Queen of Sivagangai, freedom fighter (1730–1796)

"Veeramangai" Rani Velu Nachiyar was a queen of Sivaganga estate from c. 1780–1790. She was the first Indian queen to wage war with the East India Company (EIC) in India. She is proudly called by Tamils as Veeramangai.

Vidyadhara Chandela

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Vijay Singh Pathik

Indian revolutionary (1882-1954)

Vijay Singh Pathik, popularly known as Rashtriya Pathik, was an Indian revolutionary. He was among the first Indian revolutionaries who lit the torch of freedom movement against British rule. Much before Mohandas K. Gandhi initiated the Satyagrah movement, Pathik experimented during the Bijolia’s Kisan agitation. After being implicated in the Lahore conspiracy case in 1915, he changed his name to Vijay Singh Pathik. His grandfather's sacrifice in the struggle of 1857 in Bulandshahr district, affected him deeply to be freedom fighter.

Vinoba Bhave

Advocate of non-violence and human rights

Vinayak Narahar Bhave, also known as Vinoba Bhave, was an Indian philosopher and an advocate of nonviolence and human rights. Often called Acharya, he is best known for the Bhoodan land reform movement, and is considered as the spiritual successor of Mahatma Gandhi.

Vishnupriya

Daughter of Indian Raj

Vishnupriya Devi a.k.a. Bishnupriya Debi Biṣṇupriẏā Dēbī, was the daughter of Sanatan Mishra, and the second wife of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. According to Gaudiya Vaishnavism, she is believed to be reincarnation of the goddess Satyabhama, the third queen consort of Krishna in Dvaraka.

Vishnushastri Krushnashastri Chiplunkar

Marathi writer

Vishnushastri Chiplunkar was a Marathi writer, whose writings have had a decisive influence on modern Marathi prose style. He was the son of the writer and scholar Krushnashastri Chiplunkar.

Vishwanath Mathur

Indian independence activist

Vishwanath Mathur was an Indian independence activist.

Vithalbhai Jhaveri

Indian independence activist and filmmaker (1916–1985)

Vithalbhai Jhaveri (1916–1985) was an Indian independence activist, filmmaker, photographer, writer and a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi. He documented Gandhi, since the Dandi March till his death in 1948, through numerous photographs which were displayed at many exhibitions and used in several literary works. Gandhi-A Photo Biography, a book by Peter Rühe, uses several of his photographs and he was a collaborator of Dinanath Gopal Tendulkar, in the latter's biography of Mahatma Gandhi, Mahatma; Life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. His 330-minute documentary on Gandhi, Mahatma: Life of Gandhi, 1869–1948, covers the Indian leader's life through 14 chapters. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan, in 1969, for his contributions to Literature and education.

Vivienne Goonewardene

Sri Lankan anti-colonial activist and politician (1916–1996)

Violet Vivienne Goonewardene, commonly known as "Vivi", was a Sri Lankan anti-colonial activist and prominent politician, serving as one of the world's first female ministers. A key figure in both the Indian independence movement and the Sri Lankan independence movement, Goonewardene was a prominent member on the non-aligned stage, where she fought against perceived injustices and was critical of the Middle East diplomacy sponsored by the United States. Goonewardene was the first and, to date, only female National Hero of Sri Lanka. By her death, she was one of the Left's most vibrant personalities, and the foremost female figure in the Sri Lankan leftist movement.

V. O. Chidambaram Pillai

Indian freedom fighter, first Indian helmsman and former leader of INC

Vallinayagam Olaganathan Chidambaram Pillai was an Indian freedom fighter, lawyer, businessman, Tamil scholar, and politician. He founded the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 to compete against the monopoly of the British India Steam Navigation Company (BISNC). He launched the first indigenous Indian shipping service between Tuticorin in British India and Colombo in Ceylon. Once a member of the Indian National Congress, he was later charged with sedition by the British government and sentenced to life imprisonment, and his barrister license was revoked. He is known by the epithet Kappalottiya Tamizhan. Tuticorin Port Trust, one of India's thirteen major ports, is named after him.