“I wonder whether those of our political masters who have been put in charge of the defence of the country can distinguish a mortar from a motor; a gun from a howitzer; a guerrilla from a gorilla, although a great many resemble the latter.” - Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw

Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw MC (b. 3 April 1914 - d. 27 June 2008), also known as Sam Bahadur ("Sam the Brave"), was an military officer who was the first Indian Army officer to be promoted to the rank of Field Marshal. His distinguished military career spanned four decades and five wars, beginning with service in the British Indian Army in World War II. Manekshaw rose to become the eighth chief of staff of the Indian Army in 1969 and under his command, Indian forces conducted victorious campaigns against Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 that led to the liberation of Bangladesh in December 1971.

“We stand then for freedom, because we claim the right to develop our own individuality and evolve our own destiny along our own lines, unembarrassed by what Western civilisation has to teach us and unhampered by the institutions which the West has imposed.” - Chittaranjan Das

Chittaranjan Das popularly called Deshbandhu "Friend of the country" (b. 5 November 1870 - d. 16 June 1925) was an Indian politician and leader of the Swaraj (Independence) Party in Bengal under British rule. He belonged to the famous Das family of Telirbagh (Vaidya-Brahmin), in Bikrampur, Dhaka (now in Bangladesh).

He was educated in England, where he became a Barrister. His public career began in 1909 when he successfully defended Aurobindo Ghosh on charges of involvement in the previous year's Alipore bomb case. He was a leading figure in Bengal during the Non-Cooperation Movement of 1919-1922, and initiated the ban on British clothes, setting an example by burning his own European clothes and wearing Khadi clothes. He was a believer of non-violence and constitutional methods for the realisation of national independence, and advocated Hindu-Muslim unity, cooperation and communal harmony and championed the cause of national education. His legacy was carried forward by his disciples, and notably by Subhas Chandra Bose.