List of nicknames of the prime ministers of India

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This is a list of nicknames of prime ministers of India that were or are in common usage.

Jawaharlal Nehru[edit]

Full name: Jawaharlal Nehru

Pandit, for his Kashmiri Pandit ancestry.^[1]
Chacha (Hindi: Uncle), as he was better known among children.^[1]

Lal Bahadur Shastri[edit]

Full name: Lal Bahadur Shastri

Man of Peace ^[2]^[3]^[4]
Nanhe (Hindi: Little One) was his childhood nickname.^[5]

Indira Gandhi[edit]

Full name: Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi

Priyadarshini, (Sanskrit: dear to the sight), was not only her nickname but her official middle name.^[6]^[7]
Mother India, a biographical book written on her by Pranay Gupte.^[8]
Iron Lady of India, to iterate her gutsy matriarchal charisma.^[9]
Durga, a nickname that is rumoured to be given to her by Atal Bihari Vajpayee after she won the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. He although strongly refused having called her so.^[10]

Atal Bihari Vajpayee[edit]

Full name: Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Ajatashatru (Sanskrit: having no enemy), for having a perpetual good-man aura and no enemies even from the opposing sides.^[11]^[12]^[13]
Bhishma Pitamaha, a nickname that is given to him by earstwhile Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.^[14]

H. D. Deve Gowda[edit]

Full name: Haradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda

Mannina Maga (Kannada: Son of the Soil), for iterating that he is down-to-earth and cares for the poor.^[15]
Dodda Gowdaru (Kannada: Senior Gowda), for disambiguating him from his children or anybody else with the Gowda title.

Narendra Modi[edit]

Full name: Narendra Damodardas Modi

NaMo, a portmanteau derived from his first and last names.^[16]
Modiji, a heavily used colloquial term to refer to him.^[17]^[18]^[19]
Chaiwala, (Hindi: Tea-seller), a nickname that was popular among his supporters during 2014 Indian general election.
Chowkidar, (Hindi: Gatekeeper or Watchman or effectively a Protector), a self-styled nickname that was popular among his supporters during 2019 Indian general election.

References[edit]

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 "Nation pays tribute to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his 124th birth anniversary". DNA India. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ "Remembering "The Man of Peace" – Lal Bahadur Shastri". EducationWorld. 2019-01-11. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ K, PAVAN RAO (2019-10-29). "Lal Bahadur Shastri: In a time of war, the man of peace". The Asian Age. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ "MAN OF PEACE, A | Films Division". filmsdivision.org. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ "Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri | Prime Minister of India". www.pmindia.gov.in. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ Frank, Katherine (2010-07-08). Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi. HarperCollins UK. ISBN 978-0-00-737250-8.
↑ "Indira Gandhi | Department of Justice | Ministry of Law & Justice | GoI". doj.gov.in. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ Gupte, Pranay (2012-02-15). Mother India: A Political Biography of Indira Gandhi. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-306826-6.
↑ "Indira Gandhi: The 'Iron Lady of India', a leading stateswoman, was once a lonely child". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ "Atal Bihari Vajpayee Had Refuted Calling Indira Gandhi 'Durga'". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ Mohan, Archis (2018-08-17). "Atal Bihari Vajpayee, more than a rare 'Ajatshatru' in Indian politics". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ "Atal Bihari Vajpayee: The 'True Ajatshatru' of Indian Politics is No More; Leaders Pay Tributes". News18. 2018-08-16. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ "Ajatashatru: Remembering Atal Bihari Vajpayee". The Financial Express. 2018-08-17. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ ""Bhishma Pitamah" should rise above party politics: PM". The Hindu. 2008-03-06. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
↑ Poovanna, Sharan (2019-05-24). "Deve Gowda: Karnataka's humbled Goliath". mint. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ "Narendra Modi still the man for India: Why despite Covid, country under Modi is on the cusp of positive transformation". Times of India Blog. 2021-06-03. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ Team, N. L. "Watch: Meghnad reacts to Adarniya Modiji". Newslaundry. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ "Meet Anmol Bakaya, the YouTuber who chanted 'Modiji' for 24 hours on PM's birthday". The Indian Express. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
↑ Where did you Spend Rs 35,000 Crore for COVID Vaccine Modiji? | NewsClick, 2021-06-03, retrieved 2021-06-05

[:0-1] 1.0 ^1.1 "Nation pays tribute to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his 124th birth anniversary". DNA India. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[2] "Remembering "The Man of Peace" – Lal Bahadur Shastri". EducationWorld. 2019-01-11. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[3] K, PAVAN RAO (2019-10-29). "Lal Bahadur Shastri: In a time of war, the man of peace". The Asian Age. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[4] "MAN OF PEACE, A | Films Division". filmsdivision.org. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[5] "Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri | Prime Minister of India". www.pmindia.gov.in. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[6] Frank, Katherine (2010-07-08). Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi. HarperCollins UK. ISBN 978-0-00-737250-8.

[7] "Indira Gandhi | Department of Justice | Ministry of Law & Justice | GoI". doj.gov.in. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[8] Gupte, Pranay (2012-02-15). Mother India: A Political Biography of Indira Gandhi. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-306826-6.

[9] "Indira Gandhi: The 'Iron Lady of India', a leading stateswoman, was once a lonely child". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[10] "Atal Bihari Vajpayee Had Refuted Calling Indira Gandhi 'Durga'". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[11] Mohan, Archis (2018-08-17). "Atal Bihari Vajpayee, more than a rare 'Ajatshatru' in Indian politics". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[12] "Atal Bihari Vajpayee: The 'True Ajatshatru' of Indian Politics is No More; Leaders Pay Tributes". News18. 2018-08-16. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[13] "Ajatashatru: Remembering Atal Bihari Vajpayee". The Financial Express. 2018-08-17. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[14] ""Bhishma Pitamah" should rise above party politics: PM". The Hindu. 2008-03-06. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-07-05.

[15] Poovanna, Sharan (2019-05-24). "Deve Gowda: Karnataka's humbled Goliath". mint. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[16] "Narendra Modi still the man for India: Why despite Covid, country under Modi is on the cusp of positive transformation". Times of India Blog. 2021-06-03. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[17] Team, N. L. "Watch: Meghnad reacts to Adarniya Modiji". Newslaundry. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[18] "Meet Anmol Bakaya, the YouTuber who chanted 'Modiji' for 24 hours on PM's birthday". The Indian Express. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2021-06-05.

[19] Where did you Spend Rs 35,000 Crore for COVID Vaccine Modiji? | NewsClick, 2021-06-03, retrieved 2021-06-05

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v t e Prime Minister of India
List Living By education By longevity By previous experience
Prime ministers	Jawaharlal Nehru Lal Bahadur Shastri Indira Gandhi Morarji Desai Charan Singh Rajiv Gandhi Vishwanath Pratap Singh Chandra Shekhar P. V. Narasimha Rao Atal Bihari Vajpayee H. D. Deve Gowda Inder Kumar Gujral Manmohan Singh Narendra Modi (incumbent)
Acting	Gulzarilal Nanda
Assassination attempts Children Eponyms Nehru Indira Rajiv Nicknames Office Official aircraft Official residence Spouse State visits