C.K. Thambi Naidoo was born of indentured stock. His family, originally from the state of Madras in India, had settled in Mauritius. He had no formal education but spoke and wrote English very well. He also spoke Tamil, Telegu, Hindustani, Zulu and Creole (which he had learned in Mauritius as a child).

Mohandas Gandhi hailed Thambi Naidoo as one of the most important figures in the history of Satyagraha (passive resistance) in South Africa. In 1907 he served on the Executive Committee of the British Association, and from 1912 he was the Chairperson of the Tamil Benefit Society from whose membership the most dedicated passive resisters were drawn. He was also involved in raising funds from the Tamil community for the Satyagraha Campaign, aimed at opposing the pass laws for Indians, which were introduced in the Transvaal in 1907. Naidoo was among the first campaigners to be arrested and in 1908 he was imprisoned with Gandhi. He, Gandhi and the Chinese leader Leuing Quinn signed an agreement that led to the amendment of the Asiatic Act (Act No. 20 of 1907). The essence of the compromise was a plan for voluntary registration.

In terms of the Act all Indians above the age of eight years had to apply for a certificate of registration. If they neglected to do so they would forfeit their right to stay in the Transvaal and could face fines, imprisonment or deportation. Such certificates were to be produced on demand. Gandhi's comment on the Act was: "I have never known legislation of this nature being directed against free men in any part of the world."

A section of the Indian community was unhappy about this compromise and on 10 February 1908 Gandhi was attacked and severely beaten by the dissidents. His life was probably saved by Naidoo and A.M. Cachalia in whose company he was. Later Naidoo was also attacked and injured by the dissidents.

While the campaign continued, Naidoo served ten terms of imprisonment which ranged in length from a few weeks to six months. During one of these terms his wife suffered a miscarriage and Gandhi publicly put the blame for this on J.C. Smuts, then the Minister of Interior. On 13 October 1913, at a public meeting in Newcastle, Naidoo, representing Gandhi, successfully mobilized the Indians living there to start the Satyagraha Campaign.

Together with others he then began mobilizing the miners in the coalmines surrounding Newcastle and more than 2 000 came out on strike. He subsequently led some 300 resisters across the Transvaal border. This famous strike and march do not only represent the finale of Gandhi's passive resistance, but played a crucial role in the making of the modern South African working class.

The march resulted in a general strike in Natal. Naidoo brought out the Pieter-maritzburg strikers on 22 November 1913. At Tolstoy farm outside Johannesburg, where Gandhi had created a commune, Naidoo was one of the most active settlers, helping with construction work and taking charge of sanitation and marketing.

Naidoo had an indomitable spirit. When at the height of the passive resistance struggle, prior to the strikes, there was a lack of volunteers, he personally took on the responsibility for recruitment. At one stage he is said to have chided Gandhi for not pursuing the passive resistance struggle more vigorously.

He had a very keen intelligence and grasped new subjects very quickly. His facial features attested to his steadfastness and his ready wit was astonishing, according to Gandhi, who also described Naidoo as having boundless love for his homeland even though he had never been to India. He was physically strong and possessed boundless energy. He worked equally hard chairing meetings and doing manual work. Nobody was more ready than he to make sacrifices for the Indian community in the Transvaal. However his uneven temper and the fact that he was easily irritated made him less suitable for a leadership position.

Naidoo's wife, also a person of exceptional courage, was one of the 11 women who crossed into Natal to incite the rail-way workers and miners to strike. She was arrested for vagrancy at Newcastle on 21 October 1913 and sentenced to three months' imprisonment with hard labour.

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