Dharawadada Mareyalarada Mahaneeyaru |
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Dharawadada Mareyalarada Mahaneeyaru |
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On the 1st of December 2000, a book on ‘unforgettable
individuals’ of Dharwad was published amidst much publicity. The book, in Kannda, is
called: "Dharawadada Mareyalarada Mahaneeyaru," gives thumbnail sketches of the
lives and contributions to Dharwad of 64 celebrities – men and women who lived in and
‘built’ the foundation for today’s Dharwad and in a way they represent the
‘spirit’ of Dharwad. Stories of their courage and sacrifice make a compelling
reading. I cannot list all 64 of them but can mention a few who are truly "praatahsmaraneeyaru":
Rodda Sreenivasarao, Mudaveedu Krishnarao, Alur Venkatrao, Pt M P Pujar, Hukkerikar
Ramarao, Shanta kavi, Sali Ramachandra Rao, D R Bendre, Dr K H Kabbur,
‘Sriranga’, Bhagirathibai Puranik, Sarasvatidevi Gowdar to name just a few. It
does not pretend to be an authoritative biography. The lives of these great men and women
of Dharwad are written by authors from Dharwad itself, which makes it special. The critic
supreme Kirtinath Kurtakoti(‘KK’) and ‘NK’ chip in with their
contributions on 3 each, the former also writing a preface in which he lauds the efforts
of the various authors all of whom are ‘pulling the same chariot called
Dharwad!’ As each was given a limit of 4 pages, some of the authors do no more than
give the bio data of their ‘hero,’ which is unfortunate. But some have managed
to give an assessment of their subject’s contribution to the ‘Dharwadatwa’,
which is commendable. Dharwad wasn’t the janmabhoomi of all of them. But certainly was (as all of them are now dead) their karmabhoomi. It is interesting that origins of some of them were as far flung as Kashi (Channaveerappa Anad), present day Andhrapradesh (Rodda and Kadapa) and Germany (Kittel and Ziegler). The book was launched at a grand function at Kalabhavan in Kadapa maidan, named, of course, after Kadapa Raghavendrarao whose biography I particularly liked, beautifully written by two authors. As there are biographical books available on most of the individuals this is not the only source book available on the inspiring individuals. But to have a short sketch of all of them in one handy book is a great advantage and having produced it in the time schedule they kept for themselves is an achievement. For this, the editor N H Katageri and the publishers of Sharad Prakashana are to be congratulated. Each article starts with the portrait (all photographs with a few exceptions) and the year of birth and death. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book as many of the characters were still alive andi8i living in Dharwad of my childhood and I had seen quite a number of them (and lived with two writers featured here) though not in the same light. The attractive cover photo features a hundred-year old banyan tree at the edge of Karnatak College sports ground under which I spent many an hour watching a century or two being scored by the cricketers of the day. There is no sporting personality among the 64 but has many musicians of note, whose worthy praise the relevant articles sing. This book is not only a collection of portraits on the celebrated figures of Dharwad, it is also, in an indirect way, a celebration of Dharwad’s role in Karnataka Ekikarana. However I would like to have seen an index, which could give cross-reference to various people who worked together or separately, be it at Vidyavardhaka sangha or at Jaya Karnataka or even for ekikarana. Fortunately there are very few ‘printer’s devils.’ As admitted by the editor and ‘KK’, a few famous names are missing from the list. Editor promises to make good in next ‘part’. Let the next edition be soon. For those Dharwadians like me, who live abroad yet have their heart in Dharwad, this nice little book is a ‘must buy’. I bought my copy for Rs 150. No ex-pat Dharwadians should be without it. Go, beg, borrow or steal it! If there is a demand to buy, will amazon.com take it up? |
| -Shrivatsa Desai 15-12-2000 |