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The Somaiya School
Our History
Our History
Shri K. J. Somaiya, recipient of the Padma Bhushan, first initiative in education was the founding of a school in 1942 in rural Maharashtra, to provide quality holistic education.
It was founded on the belief that education is an important pillar of nation-building with the power to change lives, and that it is the duty of the privileged to provide education to the needy.
He later founded the Girivanvasi Pragati Mandal, The K J Somaiya Medical Trust, Girivanvasi Education Trust and sister institutions to make great citizens of India and the World. In the words of Swami Vivekananda, “We want that education by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, the intellect expanded, and by which one can stand on one’s own feet.” We have now grown into a multi-disciplinary and multi-campus education institution with over 1500 faculty, and 39000+ students.
Somaiya Vidyavihar was founded in 1959 by Padmabhushan (late) Shri K. J. Somaiya with the aim of creating great citizens of India. Those that know how to make a living, and more importantly, also know how to live.
Somaiya Vidyavihar and the Somaiya Trust also manage schools in rural Maharashtra and Karnataka. The Somaiya School will be our first English Medium School in Mumbai.
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Somaiya Vidyavihar has about 32,000 students on all its campuses. The institutions in Mumbai are spread across 2 main campuses: a 50 acre campus in Vidyavihar, and a 35 acre campus in Sion-Chunabhatti.
Shri K. J. Somaiya
Somaiya Vidyavihar was founded in 1942 by Shri K. J. Somaiya, recipient of the Padma Bhushan with the aim of creating great citizens of India. Those that know how to make a living, and more importantly, also know how to live.
Our Founder
Awards & Achievements
Early Life & Education
It’s no small achievement to distinguish oneself in such diverse fields as commerce, education, and philanthropy. Pujya Shriman Karamshibhai Jethabhai Somaiya, born on May 16 1902 in the remote village of Malunjar in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, India, was however, a blessed person by dint of hard work and singular devotion to service.
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Born to humble beginnings he rose to become one of the doyens of the industry in Western India. The young Karamshi, after completing school at the New High School in Mumbai (now the Bharda School) went back to his hometown in Ahmednagar embarking on a career of tireless work marked by singular devotion to whatever he did.
Karamshi’s young, fresh mind was moulded by
Gandhiji's ideas of 'Swadeshi' and 'Satyagraha'
Business Career
Young Karamshibhai Somaiya began his career by engaging in his father’s small grocery business and then went on to become a partner in a leading sugar trading firm in the area while continuing to nurture his dream of contributing to the creation of a resurgent India – a vision painted by Mahatma Gandhi and Swami Vivekananda.
In the 1939 Shri K.J. Somaiya launched 2 sugar factories – in Sakarwadi and in Lakshmiwadi to mark the launch of his own sugar business. He soon came to be known as the Sugar King of India.
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At the age of 60 he relinquished the leadership of his economic enterprise to his son Dr. Shantilal Somaiya, and fully immersed himself in social service. No sketch of Shri K.J. Somaiya can be complete without mentioning his philanthropy. You can read more about it under the Outreach section of this website.
He was committed to the ideal
"what you receive from society give back multifold"
Morals & Beliefs
Shri K.J. Somaiya was warm and endearing. Stately in appearance, immaculately dressed, generally in spotless white hand spun khadi, he exuded a picture of resourcefulness and restraint. He was compassionate and reached out to those in suffering. In all he did, Karamshibhai brought a sense of love and humanism, qualities imbibed in his early youth from the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. He believed in the ancient Sanskrit saying (na manushit paro dharmah). “There is no religion greater than Man”. Karamshibhai’s life exemplified this lofty principle through practice.
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Shri Karamshibhai Somaiya passed away on May 9, 1999, a week before his 97th birthday. Somaiya Vidyavihar is the living legacy he has left behind, a standing monument to his sagacity, perseverance and foresight.
न मानुषात् परो धर्म:।
There is no religion greater than service to humanity.
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