Charting boli and bhasha

It was on January 6 1832 that a 20yearold Bal Shastri Jambhekar founded the Marathi newspaper Darpan Every year this day is celebrated as Marathi Patrakar Dinmdashto remember Jambhekarrsquos journalism which took on the BritishThis commemorative day generates predictable copy on Jambhekarrsquos belief in the printed word But the social reformer had many other dimensions He was a celebrated polyglot with a hold over eightodd languages he set up the Bombay Native General Public Librarymdashone of the foremost institutions which shaped 19thcentury Mumbai He was a person of eclectic literary and scientific pursuits which reflect in his varied achievements Not only was he the director of the Colaba Observatory but he was also the author of the Encyclopaedic History of English GrammarJambhekarrsquos greatness is the stuff of books which engage lovers of Mumbairsquos history But I was pleasantly surprised to meet him as one of the lead characters in a twohour Marathi play penned by Dr Samira GujarJoshi Madhurav Boru Te Blog is a melodic musical recounting of the key personalities and institutions who nourished the Marathi language beginning with the Satavahana dynasty particularly Hala Raja 2024 CE whose 700 gathas added to the languagersquos depth which recognised Maharashtri Prakrut a linguistic predecessor as the administrative tongueAshish Gade depicts Muslim saintpoet Shekh Mahammad babarsquos teachings on the healthy confluence of language and cultureThree actorsmdashMadhura WelankarSatam also the playrsquos directorproducer Akansha Gade and Ashish Gademdashtake a chronological choreographed journey through the ancient medieval and contemporary stages of Marathirsquos usage for the presentday speaker In an interactive QampAstyle narration interspersed with a rich audio track WelankarSatam leads the discourse by answering queries from the younger actors about Marathirsquos power of articulation adaptability over 2000 years openness to absorbing newer influences varied sources of royal patronage mass appeal and most importantly the resilience to encompass new spheres of experienceMadhurav Boru Te Blog is cute and alliterative but also misleading supposedly conveying the transition from the ancient bamboo stylus boru to the modern computer keyboard which helps common people to blog about everyday life It treats the average theatregoer to a dose of linguistic history peppered with necessary songanddance components a tinge of humour a dash of melodrama a soliloquy delivered by Samarth Ramdasrsquo lsquowifersquo is stretched for emotional effect loads of feelgood ldquolets speak Marathirdquo resolution momentsmdashall against the backdrop of an enlarged screen which shows the faces and institutions which have shaped the language over the years While some individuals are easily identifiable others are lesser known Consider shahir Vamandada Kardak who infused the Girgaum textile mill working class ethos into literary Marathi or courtier poet BR Tambe who immortalised poetry in the language during his time as a royal teacher in Dewas Tambe studied in Allahabad and lived mostly in the Gwalior princely state but his poetry created a sensation in Maharashtra His most popular song Jan palbhar mhanatil haay haay has been immortalised by Lata didiWith minimal props and a lean team of performers Madhurav is a noteworthy attempt in the right direction Most importantly it is not aggressive in its delivery and appeal for a wider usage of Marathi It does not strike a jarring note of hatred for the lsquootherrsquo languages or cultures Neither does it claim to be an allinclusive authority on allthings Marathi It brings to life enlightened souls like Jambhekar who enriched the language by lending themselves to other Indian and foreign tongues Jambhekar was the first native Indian professor of Hindi at Elphinstone College and among his pupils were Dadabhai Naoroji and Bhau Daji Lad Of course playwright GujarJoshi could have at least mentioned some nonMaharashtrians who have served the cause of the language such as British lexicographer James Molesworth and Jesuit missionary Thomas StephensldquoEvery show encourages the audience members to suggest new nuggets about forgotten writerlitterateurs or other lesser acknowledged aspects of Marathirsquos uniqueness We are even open to distilling the content into new thematic focus areas like saint literature the language of the culinary world travelogues and Marathi letter writing traditionrdquo says WelankarSatam an awardwinning actor known to be a natural whose work spans theatre cinema TV and ads A book on her musings during the pandemic is a bestseller and she was instrumental in uplifting amateur writers through her online writing project WelankarSatam was recognised as a COVID19 warrior for building a vibrant online community of novice writers and social media influencers at a time of social isolation In fact she conducts a quick pop quiz in every live performance of the play her goodie bag for the winner adds to the audiencersquos excitementMadhurav is replete with aha moments of discovery and insight for two varieties of language loversmdashthe uninitiatedbutinterested as well the deeply invested As the narrative is linear it begins with the beginning the prewriting preprinting stage of the spoken idiom which matures into the evocative powerhouse that it is now albeit the 15th most spoken in the world and unrecognised as classical The trajectory includes stone inscriptions in Marathi dating back to 1 century BCE The language survived due to its firm hold in popular memory even before it was recorded in a written scriptJust as the language was promoted by dynasties in power the Yadavas included who wished to woo Marathispeaking subjects it also grew because of religious sects Mahanubhav Panthrsquos Chakradhar Swami propagated his doctrine in Marathi denouncing a ritualridden dogmatic religion in the language of the commoners To date Chakradhar Swamirsquos biography Leelacharitra is one of the first known Marathi treatises Saint Dnyaneshwar 127596 chose Marathi as the medium for his Dyaneshwari commentary and more on the Bhagavad Gita and Amrutanubhavmdashtwo milestones which have forever characterised Marathi literatureMadhurav rightly honours all the poetphilosophers of the Warkari sect who popularised Marathi ovis and abhangs to speak of equality of all humans before the Almighty Sweet and empathetic are these saintsrsquo thoughtsmdashbe it Tukaramrsquos ldquodev aahe antaryami vyarth hinde teerthgramirdquo God is within you needlessly seek him in pilgrim precincts or Janabairsquos ldquoJyacha sakha Hari tyavari vishwa krupa karirdquo The one who befriends the Lord is blessed by the worldThere is one serious lack however that the play should address in its future editions It doesnrsquot currently factor in the contribution of dialects in the enrichment of the language Just as the Marathi used in the corridors of Mantralaya or the purple prose in Diwali Anks have their own significance dying dialects such as Malvani Varhadi and Ahirani are lifelines for communication Even tribal languages like Warli Korku Thakar and Bhilori need to be accorded their rightful place They bring their own colour vitality and madhurav melodic music to the mainstream Their death is our collective and irreparable lossSumedha RaikarMhatre is a culture columnist in search of the subtext You can reach her at sumedharaikarmiddaycom