At a time when pro-Marathi politicians are fuelling a divide against north Indians the 88th All India Marathi Literary festival is slated to be held in a small town in Punjab. The nondescript town of Ghuman in Gurdaspur district will host the event in February 2015.
The organisers zeroed in on Ghuman because of its link to Bhatki saint Namdev, who hailed from Maharashtra. In the 12th century Sant Namdev is said to have walked hundreds of kilometres from Maharashtra to Ghuman, which he founded. He lived there for more than 20 years and left his imprint on the Sikh faith. Sant Namdev’s ‘abhangas’ are included in the Guru Granth Sahib as ‘Namdev ji ki Mukhbani’.
“It’s a place which spiritually connects Punjab and Maharashtra just like Nanded, but it was unknown to us for the last 700 years,” All India Marathi Sahitya Mandal (AIMSM) secretary Prakash Paigude said. Locals too supported the proposal to conduct the festival, he added.
The meet’s emblem was inaugurated by Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, who even asked for a special train between Ghuman and Pandharpur in Maharashtra, where Namdev is said to have died.
Sarhad, an NGO that helps rehabilitate displaced youngsters, first proposed that the meet be held in Ghuman. “Namdev is an example of our country’s social and communal unity. We felt that a place like Ghuman can give that message effectively,” said Sanjay Nahar of Sarhad.
However, the Marathi Publishers’ Committee has opposed the move, saying Ghuman does not have a Marathi-speaking community. In the past, the festival has been conducted in Baroda, Indore and Hyderabad, all places with a substantial Marathi population. Many of us will not be participating as there will be no reader of Marathi books. Who will buy books in Ghuman? We too are spiritually connected to this place, but how can we ignore reality?” asked the Committee’s executive president Arun Jakhade.
