# Honorific titles of Indian figures

Popular figures of India have often been conferred with an honorific title by fans and followers. These generally include those that are not formally recognised. Many titles were given to various Indian leaders during Indian independence struggle.

## List

| Honorific | Full Name | Notes | Portrait |
| Acharya | Vinayak Narahari Bhave | Translates to 'respected teacher'. | Vinoba Bhave |
| Azaad | Chandra Shekhar Tiwan | "The Freed Soul" (Urdu) | |
| Babasaheb | Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar | "The Respected Father" (Marathi). "Baba" = "father" and "Saheb" = "sir" | B. R. Ambedkar |
| Babuji | Jagjivan Ram | A term of respect for one's father | Jagjivan Ram |
| Bahadur | Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw | Meaning 'the Brave'. Bahadur is an honorific title bestowed upon princes and victorious military commanders by Mughal emperors, and later by their British successors. | Sam Manekshaw |
| Bihar Kesari | Shri Krishna Sinha (Singh) | "Lion of Bihar" ( Hindi/Sanskrit) "Bihar" = "Bihar state" and "Kesari" = "Lion" | |
| Bihar Vibhuti | Anugrah Narayan Sinha | "Gem of Bihar" (Hindi). "Bihar" = "Bihar state" and "Vibhuti" = "Gem" | |
| Buddha | Gautama | In Buddhism, means 'awakened one' | Gautama Buddha |
| Deen Bandhu | Charles Freer Andrews | "Friend of the Poor" (Bengali). "Deen" = "poor" and "Bandhu" = "friend". | |
| Desh Bandhu | Chittaranjan Das | "Friend of country" (Bengali). "Desh" = "country" and "Bandhu" = "friend". | Chittaranjan Das |
| Desh Nayak Netaji | Subhash Chandra Bose | "Leader of the country" (Bengali) (Hindi). "Desh" = "country" and "Nayak" = "Leader". "Respected leader" (Bengali) (Hindi). "Neta" = "leader" and "ji" = an honorary title. | Subhas Chandra Bose |
| Desh Ratna | Rajendra Prasad | "Jewel of the Country" (Hindi). "Desh" = "country" and "Ratna" = "jewel" | |
| Fakhr-e-Afghan | Abdul Ghaffār Khān | فخرِ افغان, 'Pride of Afghans' | Abdul Ghaffar Khan |
| Gurudev Kobiguru Biswakobi The Bard of Bengal | Rabindranath Tagore | "Supreme teacher" (Bengali) (Hindi). "Guru" = "teacher" and "dev" = "Respected person". | Rabindranath Tagore |
| Guruji | Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar | Hindi for 'respected teacher' | M. S. Golwalkar |
| Karnataka Kulapurohita | Aluru Venkata Rao | Translation - "High priest of the Kannada family" | Aluru Venkata Rao |
| Lokmanya | Bal Gangadhar Tilak | "Revered by the people" (Hindi). "Lok" = "people" and "manya" = "Revered". | Bal Gangadhar Tilak |
| Loknayak | Jayaprakash Narayan | "Leader of the people" (Hindi). "Lok" = "people" and "nayak" = "leader". | Jayaprakash Narayan |
| Mahamana | Madan Mohan Malaviya | "One with greatest thoughts" (Hindi). "Mahan" = "great" and "Mann" = "thought/heart" | Madan Mohan Malaviya |
| Mahatma /Bapuji | Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi | Sanskrit for 'great soul'. In popular usage ever since Rabindranath Tagore used it to refer to him. | Mahatma Gandhi |
| Mahatma | Jotirao Govindrao Phule | "Great Soul" (Sanskrit). "Maha" = "great" and "atma" = "soul". | Mahatma Jotirao Phule |
| Maulana | Abul Kalam Azad | "Our lord" (Arabic). | |
| Mootharignar | Chakravarti Rajagopalachari | Tamil for "the Scholar Emeritus", for his scholarly contribution to the Tamil literature. | C. Rajagopalachari |
| Nata Saarvabhouma | Singanalluru Puttaswamaiah Muthuraj | Kannada for 'Emperor of Actors'. Revered as so by the people of Karnataka. | Dr.. Rajkumar |
| Pandit / Chacha | Jawaharlal Nehru | Sanskrit for "learned man". Originally meant exclusively for a man expert in Hindu law and literature. | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Punjab Kesari | Lala Lajpat Rai | "Lion of Punjab" ( Hindi/Sanskrit) "Punjab" = "Punjab state" and "Kesari" = "Lion" | Lala Lajpat Rai |
| Raja | Ram Mohan Roy | Translates to 'king' in most Indian languages. Conferred upon by Akbar II. | Ram Mohan Roy |
| Sadhguru | Jagadish Vasudev | "Sadhguru", alternatively spelt "sadguru", means "real or true guru". The term has also been translated as "senior sadhu; eminent preceptor". | Jaggi Vasudev |
| Sardar | Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel | Persian for "leader or chief". Conferred upon by his long-time mentor Mahatma Gandhi after the Bardoli Satyagraha. | Vallabhbhai Patel |
| Shaheed e Azam | Bhagat Singh | "Great martyr" (Urdu). "Shaheed" = "martyr" and "Azam" = "Principal". | |
| Veer | Vinayak Damodar Savarkar | Hindustani for "the brave". Popularly used by followers; now a part of popular culture. | Vinayak Damodar Savarkar |