Surayya Tyabji
Surayya Tyabji (born 1919 in Hyderabad, India) was an Indian artist, who contributed to the design of today’s Indian National Flag.[1]
Surayya Tyabji | |
|---|---|
| Born | Surayya Tyabji 1919 |
| Died | India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Known for | Contribution to Indian National Flag |
| Spouse | Badruddin Tyabji (diplomat) |
| Children | Laila Tyabji |
| Family | see Tyabji family |
Work
Historian Trevor Royle wrote in his book The Last Days of the Raj that Badruddin Tyabji designed the final form of the current Indian national flag, the tricolour with Ashoka's Dharmachakra in the centre. Surayya Tyabji made the first copy that flew on Nehru's car on the night of independence:
By one of those contradictions which run through India’s history, the national flag was designed by a Muslim, Badr-ud-Din Tyabji. Originally the tricolour was to have contained the spinning-wheel symbol (charkha) used by Gandhi but this was a party symbol, which Tyabji thought might strike the wrong note. After much persuasion Gandhi agreed to the wheel because the Emperor Ashoka was venerated by Hindu and Muslim alike. The flag which flew on Nehru’s car that night had been specially made by Tyabji’s wife."[2]
She also served as the member of various committees under the Constituent Assembly.[3]
Surayya Tyabji's daughter, social worker, designer and activist Laila Tyabji wrote in 2018 that both her mother and her father were involved in the design of the flag, having been commissioned by Nehru to do so,[4][5] as a development of a design by the soldier, scientist and lecturer Pingali Venkayya.[6]
Family and ancestry
She belonged to Tyabji clan who trace their ancestry to Bhoymeeah.[7] She was the niece of Sir Akbar Hydari who served as the Prime Minister of Hyderabad from 1937-1941, and granddaughter of Lady Amina Hydari who championed the cause of Muslim women's education in Hyderabad.[6] She was married to Badruddin Tyabji, a civil servant and later the Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University.[8][9]
References
- Dawar, Nikhil; Kundu, Chayan (14 September 2018). "Fact Check: Did a Muslim woman design Indian National Flag?". India Today.
- Royle, Trevor (1989). The Last Days of the Raj. p. 172. ISBN 9780718129040.
- Saurav, Suman (9 December 2018). "Surayya Tyabji: The Woman Who Designed India's National Flag'". Feminism in India. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- Tyabji, Laila (14 August 2018). "How the Tricolour and Lion Emblem Really Came to Be". The Wire.
- "Who designed the National Flag: Nehru's friend or Gandhi's follower?". Firstpost. 9 August 2022.
- Tyabji, Laila. "Growing Up in a Muslim Family That Didn't Fit Any Stereotypes". The Wire. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- Karlitzky, Maren (2004). "Continuity and Change in the Relationship Between Congress and the Muslim Elite: A Case Study of the Tyabji Family". Oriente Moderno. 23 (84): 161–175. doi:10.1163/22138617-08401011. JSTOR 25817923.
- Saxena, Akanksha (3 April 2022). "Overlooked Personalities: How Surayya Tyabji Finalised The Design Of Indian National Flag". The Logical Indian. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- "Pingali Venkayya designed the tricolour but one woman also contributed: Who is Surayya Tyabji". Times Now News. 13 August 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.