Watch Original Interview by BBC
A pioneering social reformer, jurist, economist, author, polyglot orator, scholar of comparative religions and thinker Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambdekar, the principal architect of Indian Constitution and independent India’s first law minister, was a multi-faceted man who remapped the frontiers of human achievement by his sheer tenacity, perseverance and the will to excel against all odds.
Born into the Hindu Mahar caste, which was scorned as “untouchable” by the upper class of the time, Babasaheb did not allow the limitations of his background to come in the way of acquiring first-rate education and pushing the bar for academic excellence. He earned a law degree from Lincoln’s Inn and doctorates from Columbia University in the US and the London School of Economics, carving a place of eminence as a scholar extraordinaire for his research in law, economics and political science.
His early career saw him donning many hats: economist, professor, and lawyer. In the next stage, he emerged as a national leader with a pan-India vision of modernity underpinned by the ideals of social justice and equality. As India’s freedom movement gained traction, he harnessed his formidable intellectual energies to script an anthem of an inclusive India and strove tirelessly for political rights and social freedom for Dalits and the marginalized groups.