The whole world is but one family - Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Australia

Men Behind
The Bhavan
Dr. K.M. Munshi—The Visionary &
S. Ramakrishnan—The Builder
Kulapati Dr. K.M. Munshi started the Bhavan in
1938 in a modest way at Mumbai with the blessings
of Mahatma Gandhi and S. Ramakrishnan joined
him in 1947. After the sad demise of Munshi in
1971 Ramakrishnan continued to steer the ship of
Bhavan along with a team of dedicated Bhavanties
and during this period the Bhavan achieved
phenomenal growth and attained eminence all over
the World.
In spite of these sad incidents, Bhavan would
continue to grow and grow in the years to come by
following the great ideals and foundation laid down
by these two great leaders.
30 | Bhavan Australia | February 2012
Dr. K.M. Munshi—A Shining Star
R. Venkataraman
(Former President of India)
In the Galaxy of eminent men of India, Kanhaiyalal
Maneklal Munshi is a shining star that still beckons
humanity to the path of duty and dharma.
Spruce in his turnout, gifted with intense and
penetrating eyes, Munshi impressed one as a
person who had a strong hold on his inner as well
as outer life. He struck one as a man with great
inner strength, which prompted and sustained his
external actions.
Munshi was imbued, from the very start, by a
strong sense of the expanse and sweep of
India—both literally and figuratively. He was
similarly imbued with a sense of its inherent
greatness. His mother, through songs and stories,
had acquainted him at a very young age with the
great sages and seers of India’s past—Vasishta,
Vishwamitra, Vyasa.
The heritage that these master-spirits represented
was ingrained in the young Munshi deeply. And
then, as a student in the Baroda College, this
incipient perception received an adult dimension.
I refer to the influence of Aurobindo Ghose who
was then in the service of the Baroda State as a
Professor of English. Munshi was fortunate enough
to have Sri Aurobindo as his direct teacher. Munshi
found in his teacher intellectual, cultural and