Anke Gowda, a man who became a living sensation with his vision that is a reality today. At just 20, working as a bus conductor in Karnataka’s Haralahalli village, he started his journey that transformed both his own life and the lives of thousands of readers across India. He wanted to make a library that becomes a hub of knowledge accessible to everyone. He collected books, not just a handful but a truckload, under the stimulation of the encouragement of a favorite professor, and a love of books. Today, Anke Gowda is the heart and soul behind “Pustaka Mane” (Book House), a living monument to learning and sharing knowledge.
A Dream that Became a Reality
AnkeGowda was born into a farming family in Mandya district, where he had almost no access to books as a child. This kind of early denial sparked his interest as he later found literature as a young boy. Despite a long career at a local sugar factory and years managing transport duties, he spent nearly 80% of his earnings building a personal library. The drive for knowledge was so powerful that he even sold his house in Mysuru to buy more books for his growing collection.
Pustaka Mane: A Sanctuary for Readers
Located on land specially supported by the philanthropist Sri Hari Khoday, Pustaka Mane has become a haven for bibliophiles. It currently has just under two million books spread across a purpose-built facility on 22 guntas of land. There are 500,000 rare foreign volumes. The collection has more than 5,000 dictionaries and literary manuscripts which date back to 1832. Books in more than 20 languages, from Kannada and Sanskrit to English, French, and other foreign languages, fill its shelves, making the library one of the most diverse private collections in India.
No Barriers, No Charges, Only Knowledge
In an age where access to information often comes at a price, Pustaka Mane stands apart. Membership is free, no fee and no limitation. Everybody, whether he is a school child in the countryside, a student in the university, a civil service candidate, or a judge of the supreme court, will be welcome to read and study. The vision of Anke Gowda is straightforward: “I wanted to make knowledge accessible to everyone, no matter who they are.”
A Family Piety in the Face of Every Odds
Anke’s mission is a family effort. His wife, Vijayalakshmi and son, Sagar reside within the very library and cook in a corner and sleep on the floor amid the bookshelves. They dust, clean, and sort out the mountains of the books every day, side by side, even though the task is daunting. They have over 250 bags of yet-to-be-catalogued books waiting for their attention and the family also hopes to digitise collections so they can be stored away to be enjoyed long after they disappear.
The Spirit of Selflessness
The unconditional act of Anke Gowda is what makes his story touching and a lot inspiring. He proved that life is actually about being satisfied and not about business, money, or luxury. Despite limited means, he built Pustaka Mane not for profit, but to give others the opportunities he never had as a child. And to each of the students who found in these walls a new world, to each of the scholars who found a text here uncommon, the sacrifice and generosity of Anke lit the way, and it continues to date. His legacy is not just a free library, but an everlasting promise: that books, and the strength that books contain, do belong to all.
