National Gandhi Museum Delhi

Undoubtedly, one of the best museums in Delhi is Gandhi Museum. Devoted to the Father of the Nation - late Mahatma Gandhi, Gandhi Museum is the best place to take an insight into the life of one of India’s greatest freedom fighter. Located just opposite to Raj Ghat, Gandhi Museum (also popular as the National Gandhi Museum) boasts a rich and finest assortment of original books, relics, documents, journals, audio-visual clips, photographs, art pieces, and a lot more, all closely connected to Mahatma Gandhi. In the tourism department, the museum plays a significant role in luring a major chunk of tourists through its rare exhibitions of Indian freedom struggle, and hence, is one of the major tourist attractions in Delhi.

In total, there are seven exhibition galleries in the Gandhi Museum - Entrance, Spinning Wheel, Photographic, Commemorative, Martyrdom, Art, and Ashram. The first one is an Entrance Gallery which includes Mahatma Gandhi’s talisman and his quotations. The must-notice attraction in this gallery is six hand telephones in which tourists can listen to Mahatma Gandhi’s recorded speeches in both English and Hindi. Next is the Spinning Wheel Gallery which consists 23 models of spinning wheels. In this gallery, you can find a hardly seen versions of spinning wheels (charkhas). These versions vary from traditional to portable charkha like Peti Charkha along with a mechanized version of Ambar Charkhas. Along with that, various other components related to hand spinning are also kept on display in the section. Besides, the gallery also includes photographs of various other freedom fighters operating on the spinning wheel. Photographic Gallery, the third exhibition gallery, houses more than 280 photographs of the Father of the Nation. These photographs are exhibited on ten different phases of Gandhiji’s life; from childhood to his last appearance in Delhi in 1947.

Commemorative Gallery which displays various personal items like clothes and bedsheet of late Mahatma Gandhi. In this gallery, there are few other artefacts that attract the eyes of tourists; a reprinted letter by Gurudev Tagore to Gandhiji, notes & coins with Mahatma Gandhi’s image, and last wore clothes of Mahatma Gandhi being few of them. As you’ll further proceed for the Gandhi Museum tour, you’ll reach the most interesting section of the museum which is Martyrdom Gallery where the bloodstained shawl and dhoti along with the watch which was worn by Mahatma Gandhi during assassination are kept on exhibition. On display, the gallery also includes one of the three bullets that killed Mahatma Gandhi and urns in which his ashes were kept are also put up on display for tourists. Next is the Art Gallery consisting of various paintings, sculptures, sketches, and special pieces of wooden art, groundnut shells, metal wire, and more such arts and artefacts related to Mahatma Gandhi.

Ashram Gallery is the last section of the museum that boasts some stunning models of Mahatma Gandhi’s cottages in Phoenix (South Africa), Sevagram Ashram (near Wardha), and Satyagraha Ashram (Sabarmati). Apart from these galleries, the museum also includes a section where audio-visual clips related to Mahatma Gandhi are put up on exhibition. In the audio clips, there are various speeches of Mahatma Gandhi and other notified freedom fighters, patriotic songs and hymns and tributes & reminiscences paid to Mahatma Gandhi by other prominent personalities. Whereas, the video section includes 137 films of Mahatma Gandhi and other prominent leaders of that time. Most of these films are in Hindi and English, while others are in Gujarati, Marathi, and Urdu. Moreover, the museum also has an auditorium where these films are displayed on Saturdays and Sundays from 4 to 5 PM. On a whole, Gandhi Museum is one of the best places to visit in Delhi to impart yourself with the rich historical past of India’s freedom struggle.

Major Highlights of the Museum

• Mahatma Gandhi’s Talisman
• Spinning Wheels
• Old Photographs of Mahatma Gandhi; starting from his young day to his final arrival in Delhi in 1947.
• Mahatma Gandhi’s Ashrams Models
• Bloodstained Clothes and Bullet used during the assassination
• Coins and Notes that display the figure of Mahatma Gandhi
• Six Hand Telephones with recorded speeches of Mahatma Gandhi

Visiting Timings:

Tuesday to Sunday - 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Monday Closed

Entry Fee:

Free

Address

Raj Ghat, New Delhi - 110002

How to Reach

From Gandhi Museum, the nearest metro station is ITO which lies on Violet Line. The distance between the station and the museum is around 1.5 km, and hence, can either be covered by walking or you can hire an auto to reach Raj Ghat.