Savitribai Phule
India's first woman teacher of modern times, who taught girls in Pune despite insults and attacks. The University of Pune is named after her.
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Quick facts
- Born:
- 1831, Naigaon, Satara
- Pune link:
- Taught girls in Pune
- Known for:
- First woman teacher, poet
- Lifespan:
- 1831 - 1897
Life and work
Savitribai was married to Jyotirao Phule as a child, and he taught her to read and write. In 1848 they started a girls' school in Pune, and she became its teacher. People threw mud and stones at her on the way to school. She carried a second sari to change into when she arrived.
Beyond the classroom
She ran a home for widows and their children.
She wrote poems, published as Kavya Phule.
During the plague of 1897 she nursed the sick. She caught the disease herself and died.
In Pune today
In 2014 the University of Pune was renamed Savitribai Phule Pune University in her honour. Her birthday, 3 January, is celebrated in Maharashtra as Balika Din.
Photos of Savitribai Phule
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More in Pune's Pride
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Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
The founder of the Maratha kingdom, who spent his childhood in Pune at Lal Mahal with Rajmata Jijabai.
-
Rajmata Jijabai
The mother of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, who rebuilt Pune and raised her son with the dream of Swarajya.
-
Mahatma Jyotirao Phule
The great social reformer who, with his wife Savitribai, opened schools for girls and fought against caste discrimination in Pune.
-
Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak
The fiery freedom fighter whose words "Swaraj is my birthright" moved the country. He made Pune a centre of the freedom movement.
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Gopal Krishna Gokhale
The moderate leader and teacher at Fergusson College whom Mahatma Gandhi called his political guru. Founder of the Servants of India Society.
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Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve
The reformer who worked all his life for the education of women and widows, and founded India's first university for women. Bharat Ratna, 1958.
Sources: Written by PuneDiary. Facts checked 10 October 2026.