The choice of chief guests at the major events of the RSS has never been incidental. Each name, their social standing, ideological alignment and area of work, reflect a carefully crafted and layered message, both to the swayamsevaks within and the wider public outside. Over the years, the evolution of these choices reveals not only the Sangh’s own shifts in strategy and outlook but also its expanding acceptance in the national mainstream.

Take the case of Vijaya Dashami, the most important date in the RSS calendar, marking the organisation’s founding in 1925. Traditionally, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, called as Sarsanghchalak, delivers the keynote address, but the presence of an eminent chief guest has often served as the symbolic bridge between the Sangh and the larger society. Earlier, these guests were drawn largely from cultural, social, or nationalist spheres. Over time, however, the range broadened, bringing in voices from science, literature, politics, the armed forces, and even some of those perceived as distant from the Sangh’s........

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