Gandhi Collection

The Gandhi Collection is a large repository of multi-media objects focused on Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian independence movement at large. Comprising over 60,000 objects, the collection offers a wide array of material such as photographs, negatives, slides, audio and video cassettes, cartoons, books, vinyl records, posters by children, and correspondence documents amongst others. Most objects in the collection are reproductions from originals, preserved and maintained for their historical importance. 

The collection traces the beginnings of Mahatma Gandhi from his early years around 1876, along with his family, his time in South Africa and London, slowly roping in various people and events that defined the struggle for Indian independence in 1947. 

In addition to Mahatma Gandhi, it amply highlights many other vital personalities that led the movement, such as Kasturba Gandhi, Sarojini Naidu, Sardar Patel, Abdul Gaffar Khan, Vinoba Bhave and Jawaharlal Nehru. A sizable part of the collection is formed by photographic material from Kanu Gandhi, Jagan Mehta, Margaret Bourke-White, Narayan Vinayak Virkar, Manubhai Patel and countless ‘unknown’ photographers. The photographs present a visual record of the freedom struggle movement and the people who drove it, along with the history of modern Indian photography. 

The collection was built over four decades by German computer engineer and Gandhian, Peter Ruehe. MAP is grateful to Roopa and G.V. Ravishankar for donating the collection in 2023.