By Quaid Najmi Mumbai 7th September : As a rare honor the Margarita Rudomino All-Russian State Library for Foreign Literature, Moscow, will unveil the bust of Maharashtra-born Tukaram B.Sathe, famed as “Annabhau Sathe the Father of Dalit Literature, officials announced on Wednesday.
A high-level delegation led the Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar Mumbai University’s Annabhau Sathe Study Centre Director Dr.Baliram Gaikwad and Central Eurasian Studies Department Director Dr.Sanjay Deshpande, besides other professors will be present at the event on the 14th of September.
Vice-Chancellor Dr.Suhas Pednekar and Pro Vice Chancellor Prof.Ravindra Kulkarni – who helped and inspired the project in large part are expected to attend the event live online.
Dr.Gaikwad said that the idea was first discussed during an international literary event in the Russian Consulate in Mumbai in 2017.because Sathe is an eminent person in the Russian academic community.
“Annabhau Sathe,” who was also the advocate of literary culture of the rural region in India was invited to Russia many times but was finally invited for two months in 1961 as India’s “cultural ambassador and left an indelible impression on the Russian culture.He is widely considered to be the “Maxim Gorky’ of Indian literature as well as he was the first Indian author whose works are a requirement in Russian university syllabi,” Dr.Gaikwad said to IANS.
While a school dropout on his first day in school, in Sangli, his birthplace, Sathe went onto become one of the tallest poets in the state.
He was also regarded for being the “Founder-Father of Dalit Literature”, he added.
Additionally, Russia has instituted scholarships in his name, and a number of scholars have specialized in his works, while his works were translated into 27 different languages across the world.
“As part of the launch three of his books in Russian language are being reprinted and will be released next week at the library that has been in operation for 101 years in Moscow,” said Dr.Gaikwad.
Born to an “untouchable” family in Sangli on August 1, 1920.Sathe became a renowned social reformer, actor folk poet writer from Dalit and despite a lack of an education at all, he went on to write 35 novel, 12 screenplays for films and 10 ballads in Marathi totalling 104 works in diverse genres.
The novel includes the torch-bearer “Fakira” (1959), which won the state’s highest literary prize (1961) as well as in 1963, it was made into the form of a Marathi film with the same title with Sathe playing the main role.
Dr.
Gaikwad said that since Sathe was a faithful adherent of Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Sathe’s “stories were proof of Dalits self-esteem and determination”.
He composed the “Ballad of Stalingrad”, “My Journey to Russia A Travelogue” which helped strengthen Indo-Russian ties through his writing on humanitarian issues and was the first person to come from Maharashtra to speak to Russian listeners on All Russia Radio, he declared.
In addition, in 1961, when the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was in Russia Some of the top officials of the country asked: “How are Raj Kapoor and Annabhau Sthe”.
Although Raj Kapoor was easy, there were worried Indian officials immediately called the former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Y.B.Chavan for a quick briefing on Sathe.
Armed with that, the happy officials informed the Prime Minister Nehru who was then able to provide a proper response on the two famous , non-political Indian people in Russia!
Apart from the Annabhau Sathe Study Centre in University of Mumbai, there are departments in his name at Pune and Aurangabad universities, and there are plans to establish the similar in New Delhi, Nanded and Nagpur Varsities.
The state government established the Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe Development Corporation (1985) Processions are conducted in his name every year and for example, a Kurla (Mumbai) flyover has been named for him There is also a memorial for his memory in Pune, India Post issues two postage stamps in his memory in 2002 and in 2019, while all political parties praise him to attract Dalit votes.
Sathe died in Mumbai on 19 July 1969, aged 48.His heirs reside in Mumbai as well as Sangli.
(Quaid Najmi may be contacted via [email protected])
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