Early Life

Indira Gandhi was born on November 19, 1917 in Allahabad (in modern day Uttar Pradesh), British India. Her father was Jawaharlal Nehru, who would go on to become the first prime minister of India following its independence from Britain, her mother, Kamala Nehru, was just 18 years old when the baby arrived. The child was named Indira Priyadarshini Nehru.Indira grew up as an only child. A baby brother born in November of 1924 died after just two days. The Nehru family was very active in the anti imperial politics of the time, Indiras father was a leader of the nationalist movement, and a close associate of Mohandas Gandhi and Muhammad Ali Jinnah.