Lakshmi Sharma (nee Dafda, 1914-1984) was born to Dudabhai and Danibehn Dafda. As members of a Dalit (“untouchable”) subcaste, the Dafda family was ascribed to the bottom of the caste hierarchy. In September of 1915, when Lakshmi was just a young toddler, the Dafda family joined Sabarmati Ashram at Gandhi’s invitation. Gandhi has been introduced to the family through a colleague, Thakkar Baba, who was engaged in anti-caste work through the Servants of India Society, and who encouraged Gandhi and his coresidents to consider how Sabarmati Ashram could be more proactive in contributing to the effort to abolish untouchability.  The arrival of the Dafda family challenged upper-caste residents of Sabarmati Ashram to think through their commitment to inclusivity and equity. As the residents wrestled with practical questions of day-to-day life in a mixed caste community, such as whether a commitment to equity also entailed intercaste dining, the Dafda family decided to leave just nine months later.

But when Lakshmi was 6 years old, Dudabhai and Danibehn brought her back to Sabarmati Ashram. They gave up their parental rights, and in exchange Gandhi promised to raise Lakshmi as his “adopted” daughter, educating her and treating her as equal to the other children. Lakshmi grew up at Sabarmati Ashram under the care of Gandhi and his wife Kasturba and other senior residents. Gandhi spoke often about his efforts to educate and “refine” Lakshmi, seeking to mold her into a model Dalit. In her teenage years, Lakshmi did not always act as Gandhi wanted her to. In letters to her father, Gandhi complained that she indulged in “pranks,” that she could not “control her mind,” and that she disobeyed the community’s rules.

            When Lakshmi was 19, Gandhi arranged her marriage to a young upper-caste man named Maruti Sharma. The wedding, which took place in 1933, defied the orthoprax norm that Dalits only marry other Dalits. After the wedding, Lakshmi left Sabarmati Ashram for good, moving to her husband’s village, where she became the mother of two children.