Kala Bagai
Kala Bagai was born in British India in 1893. She married Vaishno Das Bagai, and they were both involved in the Ghadar Party, the political movement for Indian independence. To escape what was described as an enslaved country under British rule, they sought to flee the country and immigrate to the United States.
Kala Bagai arrived along with her husband in San Francisco at Angel Island in 1915, becoming some of the first South Asians to immigrate to the United States. Early life in San Francisco life was met with a combination of novelty, adjustments, and racial underpinnings. Upon her arrival, multiple newspaper outlets commented on Bagai’s nose ring as the latest fad in Hindu culture. She had to adjust to non-meat dietary restrictions in a largely meat-centric society. At one point, when she and her husband bought property in Berkeley and began to move in, she found their home barred and locked by their neighbors. Over the years, the Bagais made a living by opening up small shops that sold Asian and South Asian handmade goods as well as convenience items such as candies, soaps, and supplies.
In 1921, Vaishno Das Bagai was naturalized as an American citizen, but his citizenship was revoked in two years after the court case United States vs. Bhagat Singh Thind. The couple consequently had to sell all of their property and businesses, and without citizenship, they became stateless citizens in the United States. Having given up their British passports during the naturalization process and being supporters of Indian independence, they could not go back to India. Trapped in what he called a “gilded cage”, Vaishno committed suicide in 1928.
Kala Bagai continued raising her three children as a widower and as a non-United States citizen. She became a prominent leader in the small, South Asian community in California. She married again to Mahesh Chandra and became an advocate for South Asians in the United States. Bagai was best known for her hospitality and generosity for immigrants arriving to foreign soil, hosting cultural events and receptions aimed to bridge American life with the diversity of Indian culture.
Following the passage of the Luce-Celler Act of 1946, Kala Bagai was naturalized and gained United States citizenship. She continued to be an activist and community leader for the South Asian community up until her death in 1983. South Asian community members often regard her as “Jhaji”, or “Mother India”. In 2021, as part of restructuring and redesigning parts of the Berkeley area, a two-block section of Shattuck Avenue will be named “Kala Bagai Way” in honor of her contributions and activism for the South Asian immigrant community.
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