Pune: Eminent Marathi man of letters Gangadhar Pantawane, whose crusading writings of more than half a century did much to usher marginalised voices into the literary mainstream, passed away in Aurangabad district early on Tuesday. He was 80.
He had been ailing since January this year and was undergoing treatment in Aurangabad.
His pioneering journal, Asmitadarsh, galvanised generations of Dalit writers and thinkers. Recently honoured with the Padma Shri, it was Pantawane’s trail-blazing efforts that single-handedly helped mould Dalit literature elevating it into a pulsating literary sub-genre.
A multifaceted personality, his writings and research articles lucidly expounded the canon of Ambedkarite beliefs and progressive thought, influencing generations of intellectuals, writers and thinkers hailing from Dalit and tribal communities, like Namdeo Dhasal, Raja Dhale and Krishna Kirwale among others.
Born in Nagpur in June 1937, Pantawane completed his primary and secondary education in the city before moving to Aurangabad in the early 1960s as a teacher in Milind College.
But it is his pioneering literary journal Asmitadarsh , which he founded in 1968 and edited for nearly five decades, that will perhaps remain his most enduring and remarkable legacy.
The journal gave voice to the bitter experiences of ostracised and helpedbring highlight Dalit experiences of Maharashtra’s rural hinterland like never before.
But it went far beyond that, transforming rapidly as a unique rallying point for younger and unheralded writers, while serving as a vibrant forum for exchanging ideas and publishing the best in ‘socially conscious’ literature in the State — regardless of the writer’s caste, creed or gender.
In helping awaken the dormant and explosive potential lying untapped within hitherto unsung writers from Maharashtra’s social margins, Asmitadarsh often acted as a mirror, reflecting prevalent social ills and seriously engaging with them.
The importance of this journal can hardly be overstated. As the late American academic Eleanor Zelliot observed: “it is Gangadhar Pantawane, through Asmitadarsh , who has been making the roots of the revolutionary movement of Dalit literature strong.”
Noted filmmaker Jabbar Patel described the journal as the “foundation of Dalit literature”.
A dyed-in-wool adherent of the Shahu-Phule-Ambedkar brand of progressive thought, Pantawane transcended the straitjacket of a ‘Dalit writer’ through his prodigious writings and collections of trenchant literary criticism which included Dhammacharcha (1963, which he edited), Mulyavedha (1972) and Leni (1997).
He effortlessly donned the roles of activist-thinker whilst being a superb stylist in the Marathi language, eschewing dogma and wearing his erudition lightly as evinced in his brilliant and highly readable biography of B.R. Ambedkar titled Mooknayak (1978).
An adept groomer of budding literary talent, Pantawane’s activism often translated into pragmatic action, as he headed and chaired scores of institutions and committees with his tireless energy and cheerful mien.
“He used to take me on his Lambretta scooter to literary and press meets. We are all in debt of his many personal kindnesses, his constant encouragement and the very fact that he gave us the opportunity to publish in his path-breaking journal,” said noted poet F.M. Shinde.
In 2008, he was elected president of the first Marathi Vishwa Sahitya Sammelan that was held in the US.
Besides research tours to universities in the UK and Thailand, Pantawane was especially active as a member in the Nagpur-based Chokhamele Girls’ Education Society, imbuing the institute with his passion for education of women in the marginalised communities.
