India: Indian independence leaders Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, Bombay, India, 1946

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2 October 1869 - 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement. He pioneered satyagraha. This is defined as resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience, a philosophy firmly founded upon ahimsa, or total non-violence. This concept helped India gain independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma Gandhi or 'Great Soul', an honorific first applied to him by Rabindranath Tagore. In India he is also called Bapu (Gujarati: 'Father') and officially honored in India as the Father of the Nation. His birthday, 2 October, is commemorated as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday, and worldwide as the International Day of Non-Violence. Gandhi was assassinated on 30 January 1948 by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu Nationalist. Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889-27 May 1964) was an Indian statesman who was the first (and to date longest-serving) prime minister of India, from 1947 until 1964. One of the leading figures in the Indian independence movement, Nehru was elected by the Congress Party to assume office as independent India's first Prime Minister, and re-elected when the Congress Party won India's first general election in 1952. As one of the founders of the Non-aligned Movement, he was also an important figure in the international politics of the post-war era.