Senior journalist and scholar Aroon Tikekar, 72, who authored over 20 books, including The cloister’s pale: A Biography of the University of Mumbai , passed away at his Bandra residence on Tuesday morning following breathing-related complications.
Born in a renowned family of litterateurs and journalists in 1944, Dr. Tikekar worked as a college teacher before working with the US Library of Congress Office, South Asia Division, in New Delhi. He joined The Times of India as the chief of its archive and reference section where he was given the responsibility of writing the official history of the 150-year-old newspaper. He also worked as Senior Assistant Editor with the group’s Marathi Maharashtra Times .
Dr Tikekar reached the pinnacle of his journalistic career when he served as the Editor of Loksatta , Marathi newspaper of The Indian Express group from 1991 to 2002. It was under his leadership that the broadsheet broadened its readership, and with its intellectual fervour and scholarly articles. Tikekar’s own columns Tartamya , and Jana-Mana were widely read.
He also worked as Group Editor of Lokmat and Editor-Director of the Sakal Group of newspapers.
He worked as Adjunct Professor in the Pune University’s Department of Journalism as well as the Mumbai University’s Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Contemporary Studies. He also had a stint as the President of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai where he led the initiative to restore rare books housed by the library in its collection.
His PhD thesis on British civil servants Charles Kincaid and his son Dennis was later published as a book.
Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao said, “As President of the Asiatic Society, Dr Tikekar took various important decisions including the one of digitisation of the manuscripts and books of the society. In his demise, Maharashtra has lost a great intellectual and respected journalist.”
