Sindhutai Sapkal was born in Wardha district of Maharashtra, India on 14 November, 1948. Sindhu Tai’s childhood was spent in the midst of many hardships. She was an unwanted child. She was married off to an older man when she was only nine years old.
Sindhu Tai had studied only till the fourth standard. After marriage, she wanted to study further, but her in-laws did not allow her to do so. Even after this, she insisted on studying, so she was thrown out of her in-laws’ house during pregnancy.
Unfortunately, even her family members did not support her. After that she kept wandering from door to door. She started living by begging. At that stage she gave birth to a baby girl. In those days, she saw the pain of orphan children closely and she took a vow to serve those children.
After this she started arranging food for the orphan children. For this she begged day and night. When the society saw her struggle, people came forward to help her. After this she built an ashram for orphans.
In this ashram, she saved the lives of hundreds of children. Whatever amount she got as a mark of respect, she spent it on the orphan children. She had also received a doctorate degree from DY Institute of Technology and Research, Pune.
A Marathi film ‘Mee Sindhutai Sapkal’ has been made on her life, which was released in 2010. The film was also screened at the 54th London Film Festival. Sindhu Tai once begged at the railway station for a living. Afterwards she inspired millions of women that they should never give up their dreams and be disappointed in their life. If there is darkness in life, there will be light one day. With this thinking, she faced every difficulty that came in her life.
She dedicated her heart and soul to social work. She became popular globally. For her social service, she was awarded the Padma Shri in November 2021. Sindhutai Sapkal passed away at the age of 73 due to a heart attack on 4 January, 2022. She had been ill for a long time and was being treated at a hospital in Pune. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over her death and gave his condolences to her family members.
More than 1500 orphaned children were nurtured by her. She has been honoured with more than 700 accolades for her social work. Her life story is absolutely inspiring and encouraging. She positively changed lives of hundreds of children and is inspiring millions globally.