BHARATIYA VIDYA BHAVAN was founded in 1938 by Kulapati Dr. K.M.Munshi, a farsighted visionary and practical idealist, with the blessings of Gandhiji and inspired by several stalwarts of the freedom movement such as Shri C.Rajagopalachari, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabbai Patel, Rajaji, Dr.Rajendra Prasad and Dr.S.Radhakrishnan, who were also the founder members.

It was their belief that freedom had to be sustained by a faith and pride in our ancient culture. This had to be revived as cultures alien to Indian identity had made inroad jeopardizing its uniqueness and continuity.

It was in this context, that the need for a cultural renaissance was deeply felt. Today the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan has grown into a comprehensive intellectual and cultural movement following Shri C. Rajagopalachari's dictum "Information has to be transformed and made to blossom into knowledge, and knowledge should mature into wisdom".