The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, popularly known as Bhavans, was started in 1938 by KM Munshi. Its reach as a cultural movement soon spread in the fields of literature, performing arts and education as well as spiritual learning. The Bangalore Kendra of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan began in 1965, and the chapter commenced their diamond jubilee celebrations with Santhavani.
Santhavani was inaugurated by film director TS Nagabharana and columnist Narahalli Balasubramanya, with devotional films in different languages and a book exhibition. As part of their diamond jubilee celebrations as many as 60 programmes have been planned for the following year.
The devotional film festival, which concluded on November 14, will be followed by Santhavani’s Segment Two with lectures, music, dance, drama, choirs and panel discussions scheduled from November 15 to 21.
KM Munshi
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“Our founder Munshiji, whom we refer to as Kulapati, chose the name Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan because he envisioned it as an institution without boundaries of geography, caste, religion, politics or language,” says KG Raghavan, chairman, Bhavans, Bangalore Kendra. “That is why it is called Bharatiya Vidya (Indian education). In keeping with this, he chose a tagline from the Rig Veda, that translates to let noble thoughts come to us from every side.”
Munshi was a prominent freedom fighter, lawyer, politician and prolific writer. He was on the committee which drafted the Indian Constitution, and served as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh. “India required an institution to foster value-based education and culture that would share ‘vidya’ or knowledge without barrier; Munshi’s passion sowed the seeds for Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan,” Raghavan says.
Talking about Bhavan’s e-book, The History and Culture of Indian People, Raghavan says, “Munshi was a visionary who undertook this mammoth project. Comprising 11-volumes, it took as many as 100 reputed historians nearly 32 years to write and compile it, labouring from 1944 to 1976. It contains nearly 10,000 pages of the nation’s history makers and their accomplishments.”
Later, the Kannada version of the book was undertaken by 60 translators under an advisory committee headed by AV Narasimha Murthy.
Film director TS Nagabharana and writer Narahalli Balasubramanya along with Bhavans Bangalore Kendra chairman KG Raghavan and director HN Suresh at the Santhavanibook exhibition
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Dispelling darkness
The ongoing 60th special was curated by the Bhavans team in Bengaluru to integrate knowledge, wisdom and culture in an effort to bring light to areas of ignorance. HN Suresh, director, Bhavans Bangalore Kendra, says, “Today, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan has 365 centres in India and 10 centres abroad. We publish thousands of books aside from the ones by Munshi who wrote 150 titles in English, Gujarati and Hindi, and publications in regional languages.”
Suresh goes on to say, value-based education is imparted in 165 Bhavans-affiliated schools across India. “Our association with the Infosys Foundation sees regular cultural programmes throughout the nation.”
Bhavans has brought out a special booklet with messages of hope and appreciation by world leaders and cultural icons who have been associated with the institution. Among them is His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who has said,”Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan makes a special effort to foster religious harmony with an emphasis on sarva dharma samabhav or equal respect for all religions, which I too, wholeheartedly support.”
Jnanapeeth awardee writer UR Ananthamurthy has also penned a few words in the same booklet: “If I have an education in Indian culture, a large part of it is from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s books. At the level of book reading, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan decolonised India and made us respect ourselves. There are great people in the world whom European colonisers not only cowed into political submission, but also made them forget their past. That could never happen in India, and we owe it to people like Munshi and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.”
Segment Two
Santhavani’s Segment Two includes devotional talks, discourses, presentations, music and dance recitals, and panel discussions that cover a gamut of reformist movements and philosophies of all faiths prevalent in India. Former Karnataka chief minister Veerappa Moily, scholar Shatavadhani R Ganesh, former ambassador to UNESCO Chiranjiv Singh will be part of the inaugural function on November 15.
Progressive reform movements, socio-religious efforts, and devotional traditions such as the Natha Parampara and Saints from Orissa are some of the topics that will be discussed. The socio-cultural influence of the Haridasas will be followed by a dance-drama on vachanakars on November 16. Other interesting presentations include the philosophical doctrines of Vallabhacharya Sampradaya, the Tattvapada tradition and a talk on Guru Bani.
“The Evangelist church choir will perform at the evening session on November 18. On November 20, Peter Machado, the Archbishop of Bangalore, will speak in the afternoon, followed by a ‘Message of Islam’ presented by Umar Teekay of Teekays Interior Solutions. This would be followed by a Carnatic music concert by Nithyashree Mahadevan,” says Suresh.
He adds that the concluding day of the festival will feature talks on Jainism and Buddhism and a musical on Ramanuja Vaibhavam. “The scope of Santhavani encompasses a wide range of presentations, both secular and scholarly,” he adds.
Santhavani will take place at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Bangalore Kendra till November 21. Entry free, but registration required on bhavankarnataka.com. Call 9845625899 for details
Published – November 14, 2025 10:19 pm IST