Pandit Nehru, Prime Minister of India, on a visit to London in 1949. Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 - 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat and author who was a central figure in India during the middle third of the 20th century. Upon India's independence in 1947, he served as the country's prime minister for 17 years.