At the beginning of the 19th century, India was suffering from inhuman practices like Sati, infanticide and caste oppression, particularly the abominable practice of untouchability which was practiced from long time. Prohibition of widow re-marriage was major issue among the educated women. These practices were questioned by the contemporary intellectuals and to reform the Hindu society, a large number of intellectual activities were witnessed in Bengal and Western India. 

 In Bengal, there was the Young Bengal movement who led the socio-religious awakening among the progressive intellectuals in the Bengal. Social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Vidyasagar, Keshub Chandra Sen, Madhusudan Surendranath, Swami Vivekananda and such other personalities led a series of social reform in the country. In Western India, there were reformers like Shastri Jambhekar, Jotirao Govindrao Phule, Bhandarkar, Ganesh Agarkar and Swami Saraswati and others who directly addressed the questions of internal regeneration of Indian society. They launched vigorous critique of their own society, with the aim of bringing it out of its backwardness. Roy focused on elimination of superstition, polygamy and infanticide in Bengal. Saraswati opens the opportunity for people from lower caste to acquire the valuable knowledge of Vedas.  

 Concerns of women were focused by the reformers, primarily related to status of women in society. Practice of Sati, widow remarriage and education of women were primary issues, those were raised by the reformers. They re-interpreted traditions and lobbied for support with colonial government for enacting suitable legislations for banning of obnoxious practices like Sati, child marriage etc. 

 Like Jotiba and later, Dr Arnbedkar focused on the caste divisions and untouchability and encouraged to masses for assimilation of lower casts into the mainstream of Hindu society. Saraswati redefine caste, in a way that it ceased to be determined solely by birth. The social reformers have witnessed the scientific and philosophical advances of western world and they thought that the Indian society too acquired such knowledge. Bal Shastri Jambhekar saw the superior knowledge of the Arts and Sciences of Europe and want to be learnt by Indian society also. It was necessary to keep the Indian society unite by removal of traditional malpractices. 

 Alongwith, Indian society witness several organizations during the 19th century, like Brahm Samaj and Arya Samaj. These organizations works in area of women's literacy, anti-polygamy and opposes to child marriage. Though there were large movements for reforming of Hindu Society, yet the first generation of reformist thinkers face dual challenges, one from the colonial rule and other the internal resistances from the Hindu conservatives. In 19th century, there were several movements for social reforms among Muslim, Sikh and Parsi societies in the area of education, women's status and progressiveness in traditions.