The moment he designed that piece of khadi, he knew he wasn’t crafting just another flag—he was weaving the soul of a nation. His fingers traced a vision that would outlast empires. Each thread he spun embodied the courage and sang of unity louder than any speech could.
Pingali Venkayya was born on 2 August 1876 in Bhatlapenumarru, a modest village in Andhra Pradesh. From boyhood, he stood out for his insatiable curiosity. He studied hard, travelled far and found a passion in geology, languages, agriculture and education.
As a young adult serving in British Indian Army in South Africa during the Second Boer War, he met Mahatma Gandhi and felt the sting of colonial dominance—not just in policy, but in ritual, when Indian soldiers were ordered to salute the Union Jack.
That moment changed everything. He witnessed the pain of seeing his people honouring a symbol that didn’t belong to them. He vowed that India must have its own standard—one born of its land, its people, its spirit. Returning home, he immersed himself in research of studying flags from over thirty nations.
He earned nicknames like Diamond Venkayya for his mineral knowledge, Patti Venkayya for his cotton experiments, Japan Venkayya for his linguistic fluency. Yet amid all these titles, his deepest identity remained unspoken: bearer of a dream.
In 1906, during an All India Congress Committee meeting chaired by Dadabhai Naoroji in Calcutta, Pingali voiced his conviction: India needed its own flag. He didn’t just speak, he spent fifteen years refining ideas. By 1916, he published a booklet titled A National Flag for India, containing thirty varied designs.
The turning point came in March 1921 at the Congress session in Vijayawada. Gandhiji, having heard of his consistent efforts, asked Pingali to bring a design. Within three hours, on a piece of Khadi, he drew two broad bands—red for Hindus, green for Muslims—framing a spinning wheel at their heart. Gandhiji, symbolically inclusive, requested the addition of white for all other faiths. The result was the Swaraj Flag, an act of synthesis that fused communal identities into a single narrative.
That very flag, born from humble cloth and humble hands, fluttered across Congress meetings, carrying with it a quiet revolution. Yet Pingali himself faded. He died on 4 July 1963 with a last wish to be draped in the Tricolour he gave India. His story reminds us that every great symbol requires a humble voice.
That is why Luv My India dedicates this tribute to Pingali Venkayya. We honour his vision by keeping alive the khadi tradition and the story behind it. Our Tiranga flags reflect the same tactile essence he valued—a testament to self-reliance and dignity. Because a nation’s colours are nothing without the soul that chose them. And Pingali Venkayya was that soul. His flag is ours; his spirit stirs whenever it flies.
