The Half Naked Fakir!

 

The year was 1931. The Second Round Table Conference on Indian Constitutional Reforms was held in London. Mahatma Gandhi attended as the sole representative of the Indian National Congress. Some British leaders and members of the public could not accept that Indians had an equal seat at the table with their British rulers. 

Winston Churchill, who later became Prime Minister of England, vented his anger in a vehement statement. He remarked, “It is alarming and also nauseating to see Mr. Gandhi, an Inner Temple lawyer, now become a seditious fakir of a type well known in the East, striding half-naked up the steps of the Viceregal Palace, while he is still organizing and conducting a defiant campaign of civil disobedience, to parley on equal terms with the representative of the King-Emperor.” Out of that remark came yet another sobriquet for Gandhi: the “Half Naked Fakir.”

Today when we think of Gandhi, the image that comes to mind is of an old, lean man with a stick in his hand, a half dhoti around his waist, and the other half wrapped across his upper body. But Gandhi did not always dress this way. There is a story behind this attire, a political meaning, and a deep social concern.

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After the death of his father, Gandhi’s family faced financial difficulties. Yet they managed to support his education in England including purchasing of western clothes. In his autobiography Gandhi mentioned that about the purchase and that he was initially uncomfortable in coats and ties. Over time he grew used to them and even started liking them. He even found that his clothes were not fashionable enough in London and bought new clothes. He wore suits and ties with a golden watch and a hat, until he realized that such a life was too ostentatious for a student and cut down his expenses.

While in London, Gandhi authored a booklet titled Guide to London to help other students planning to travel there. In it, he listed essentials such as an overcoat, morning coat, waistcoat, suit, trousers, woollen or cotton drawers, and woollen vests. After returning to India as a qualified barrister, Gandhi continued to wear western clothes. When he lived with his brother, he even insisted that his son and nephews wear them.

Later, Gandhi moved to South Africa. There he wore a coat and turban, which looked unusual in local society. Shortly after his arrival he attended a district court session where he was asked to remove his turban. Gandhi refused and walked out. He wrote about the incident in a newspaper, which brought him to public attention. From that time, he began to use clothing as a political tool and continued to wear his turban.

He did not fight for his rights alone. Once, a Tamil indentured laborer named Balasundaram approached him for help after being beaten by his supervisor. At that time, custom required those of lower status to remove their headgear and bow when meeting their superiors. Gandhi was disturbed by this humiliation and insisted that Balasundaram put his turban back on. Though reluctant, Balasundaram obeyed, and Gandhi later recalled that he was happy to see the gleam in Balasundaram’s eyes.

Yet Gandhi was also ready to compromise when necessary. On one occasion, while arguing a case in the Supreme Court of South Africa, the Chief Justice asked him to remove his headgear in line with court rules. Gandhi complied, explaining later, to his friends who disapproved his decision, that small compromises were sometimes necessary to achieve greater goals. Such thinking became central to his Satyagraha.

During a visit to India from South Africa, Gandhi attended a dinner hosted by Lord Curzon at the India Club in Kolkata. To his surprise, he saw Rajas and Maharajas dressed in outfits that reminded him of hotel waiters. When he asked about this, one of them replied bitterly, “Do you see any difference between the waiters here and us? They serve us, and we serve Lord Curzon.” This left Gandhi wondering whether Indians needed to change their habits to please others.

Back in South Africa, Gandhi gradually abandoned western clothes and began wearing traditional Indian dress. For him, this was a way to connect with the people whose causes he represented.

In 1915, Gandhi left South Africa for good and returned to India after visiting England. On his way back, he resolved to wear only traditional Indian clothes. When he landed in Mumbai, he wore a dhoti, shirt, and cap. Kasturba Gandhi too wore a simple sari. The sight of such a well-known leader dressed so simply astonished the public. Later, when stamps were issued to mark the centenary of Gandhi’s return to India by the Indian Postal Department, both Gandhi and Kasturba were depicted in their simple attire.

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At a time when elites followed western fashion, Gandhi’s choice of plain clothing stood out. It was not a stunt to differentiate himself. He believed sincerely that simple clothing brought him closer to ordinary people. His beliefs evolved over time, and he readily adjusted his lifestyle to match them.

Following the advice of his mentor Gokhale, Gandhi spent a year traveling across India before entering active politics. He rode mostly in third class compartments to meet people directly. His attire often led to difficulties. Many failed to recognize him or did not offer him the respect due to a leader. He accepted this calmly. In April 1915, for example, when Gandhi arrived in Chennai, local leaders searched the first class coaches for him, while he quietly alighted from third class. Eventually, he had to approach them himself.

Gandhi promoted the idea that Indians should wear locally made clothes instead of imported ones. He introduced khadi, handspun cloth, as a symbol of self-reliance and patriotism. To support this, he established his first ashram in Ahmedabad, not only because it was his home state but also because the city was known for its local handloom industry and it was in decline. He wanted to revive it through spinning and weaving, which he arranged in his ashram.

In 1916, Gandhi visited Banaras to take part in the foundation laying ceremony for the Banaras Hindu University. As part of the event, a banquet was held to honor Lord Hardinge, Gandhi saw Indian princes adorned with jewels and costly clothes at the event. Some confessed they had been forced to dress that way. Gandhi was pained by this, and the event strengthened his call for Indians to wear Indian clothes.

By 1921, during the Non-Cooperation Movement, he launched a campaign to boycott foreign clothes. At a public event in Mumbai on July 3, foreign clothes were set on fire. Gandhi declared that they were symbols of enslavement. This boycott soon spread around the nation and wearing khadi became a mark of patriotism.

Later that year, while touring Tamil Nadu, Gandhi reached Madurai. Farmers, who came to receive him in Dindigul, a town enroute, wore only dhotis without shirts, saying they could not afford khadi clothes. Deeply moved, Gandhi decided to share their condition. On September 22, 1921, he tore a dhoti in two, wore one half around his waist and draped the other across his shoulders, and addressed a public meeting. From then on he wore only this attire, earning forever the title of the “The Half Naked Fakir.”

Even today, when Gandhi is remembered, the images that come to mind are his simple clothes and the charkha. His clothing became an enduring symbol of resistance and identity. At first, his attire was a personal choice, not a political statement. But once he realized its power as a tool of protest, he embraced it fully. The fact that khadi remains associated with Indian politics today is the lasting success of his “dress politics.”