List of Baniyas
This is a partial list of notable/famous people from Baniya community.
Freedom fighters
- Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948), Indian independence activist.[1]
- Kasturba Gandhi (1869–1944), Wife of Mahatma Gandhi.[2]
- Karamchand Gandhi (1822–1885), - Father of Mahatma Gandhi.[1]
- Ram Manohar Lohia - Quit India Movement fame and General Secretary of Praja Socialist Party[3]
- Lala Lajpat Rai - Indian revolutionary, politician, and author, popularly known as "Punjab Kesari"[4][5][6]
Arts
- Bhagwan Das, Bharat Ratna (India's highest civilian award) awardee[7]
- Sita Ram Goel, historian, religious and political activist, writer, and publisher in the late twentieth century[8]
- Bharatendu Harishchandra, Known as the "father of modern Hindi literature and Hindi theatre"[9]
Corporate and business
Technology and startups
- Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and CEO, Ola Cabs and Ola Electric[10]
Other businesses
- Dhirubhai Ambani, Indian businessman, Reliance Industries[11]
- Jamnalal Bajaj, the adopted son of Mahatma Gandhi and the founder of the Bajaj Group of Industries[12]
- Lalbhai Dalpatbhai (1863–1912), Gujarati industrialist[13]
- Ramnath Goenka and family, Indian Express Limited[14]
- Walchand Hirachand (1882–1953), Indian industrialist and founder of Walchand group[15]
- Seth Hukumchand (1874–1959), Indian industrialist[16]
- Khushalchand Jhaveri (1680–1748), Indian jeweller and financier[17]
- Shantidas Jhaveri (1584–1659), Indian jeweller, bullion trader, and moneylender[18]
- Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Indian billionaire investor, stock trader, and Chartered Accountant, founder of Akasa Air[19]
- Premchand Roychand (1832–1906), 19th century Indian businessman and founder of Bombay Stock Exchange[20]
- Sarabhai family, a prominent Business family[21]
- Jagat Seth family, merchant, banker and money lender family in Bengal[22]
Politics and activists
Activists
- Sir Ganga Ram Agrawal, civil engineer and architect known as "the father of modern-day Lahore"[23]
India
- Rekha Gupta, Politician, Chief Minister of Delhi[24]
- Arvind Kejriwal, Chief Minister of Delhi[25]
- Amit Shah, Union Minister of Home Affairs, Minister of Co-operation, Member of Parliament (MP), President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), chairman of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Member of Gujarat Legislative Assembly, Minister of State, Government of Gujarat[26]
See also
References
- ^ a b Rudolph, Susanne Hoeber; Rudolph, Lloyd I. (2009-04-08). Gandhi: The Traditional Roots of Charisma. University of Chicago Press. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-226-22760-3.
- ^ Gandhi, Arun and Sunanda (1998). The Forgotten Woman. Huntsville, AR: Zark Mountain Publishers. p. 314. ISBN 1-886940-02-9.
- ^ "Vaishyas find caste icon in Lohia". The Telegraph. 12 October 2003. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
- ^ "Remembering India's freedom fighters: Lala Lajpat Rai". India TV News. 2013-08-01. Retrieved 2025-10-24.
- ^ "Sub Division, Jagraon, Punjab". www.jagraonadministration.in. Archived from the original on 2021-06-15. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
- ^ "Indian National Congress". Indian National Congress. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
- ^ John Gallagher; Gordon Johnson; Anil Seal (1973). Locality, Province and Nation: Essays on Indian Politics 1870 to 1940. CUP Archive. pp. 45–. ISBN 978-0-521-09811-3.
- ^ "'How I Became Hindu' by Sita Ram Goel – Chapter 9(d): Nightmare Of Nehruism". hindupost.in. Archived from the original on 2024-03-01. Retrieved 2025-11-06.
- ^ "Remembering Bharatendu Harishchandra on Hindi Divas, a man whose work fortified the language". Firstpost. 14 September 2019.
- ^ World, Rest of (2025-05-06). "Who is Bhavish Aggarwal, the Indian EV founder compared to Elon Musk?". Rest of World. Retrieved 2025-11-06.
- ^ Rowley, Chris; Rama, Marie dela (3 May 2017). The Changing Face of Corruption in the Asia Pacific: Current Perspectives and Future Challenges. Elsevier. p. 210. ISBN 978-0-08-101230-7.
- ^ Parvate, T. V. (1960). Jamnalal Bajaj [A brief study of his life and character] (1st ed.). Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House. p. 5.
- ^ Sheth, Sudev (2024). Bankrolling Empire: Family Fortunes and Political Transformation in Mughal India. Cambridge University Press. pp. 6, 296. ISBN 9781009330268.
- ^ Rozario, Joseph (2015-12-12). "The indomitable baron of the fourth estate". Marwar India Magazine. Retrieved 2025-11-06.
- ^ Damodaran, Harish (2018). India's New Capitalists: Caste, Business, and Industry in a Modern Nation. Hachette. ISBN 978-93-5195-280-0.
- ^ Markovits, Claude (1985). Indian Business and Nationalist Politics 1931-1939: The indigenous capitalist class and the rise of the Congress Party. Cambridge University Press. p. 32.
- ^ Sheth, Sudev (2023-11-30). Bankrolling Empire: Family Fortunes and Political Transformation in Mughal India. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-009-33026-8.
- ^ Sheth, Sudev (2024). Bankrolling Empire: Family Fortunes and Political Transformation in Mughal India. Cambridge University Press. pp. 6, 296. ISBN 9781009330268.
- ^ Chakraborty, Debarati (2016-05-25). "Moving Markets". Marwar India Magazine. Retrieved 2025-11-06.
- ^ Subramanian, Lakshmi (15 January 2016). Three Merchants of Bombay. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN 9788184757217.
- ^ Entrepreneurship and Industry in India, 1800-1947. Oxford University Press. 1992. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-19-562806-7.
The Sarabhais and the Lalbhais, the town's two most prominent entrepreneurial families, were Jain Banias prominent as shroffs.
- ^ Ray, Aniruddha (2017). Towns and Cities of Medieval India. Routledge. p. 508.
- ^ "Sir Ganga Ram: The pride of Lahore | Pakistan Today".
- ^ 'I Am A Baniya Mukhya Mantri, I Know How To Spend Money,' Says Rekha Gupta #rekhagupta #delhicm. Retrieved 2025-11-05 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ ""I Am Baniya, Will Arrange Money For All Schemes": Arvind Kejriwal". www.ndtv.com. Archived from the original on 2025-05-20. Retrieved 2025-11-05.
- ^ "'बनिये का बेटा हूं हिसाब देना आता है', सीतमढ़ी में अमित शाह ने राहुल गांधी पर कसा तंज - amit shah son of baniya knows how to account retaliation to pakistan". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 2025-11-05.