Maharashtra

Article By: Amit Abhyankar

Regionalism would always (and should always) take a backseat in country like India. Still the various States having their individual culture & language can boast of uniqueness of their own in various aspects. This series is an effort to discover that uniqueness. Starting with my State- Maharashtra…

Maharashtra……….the state I proudly call ‘the meeting place of North & South’. It’s because Maharashtra marks the geographical and cultural transition from the North to the South.

Maharashtra literally means ‘Maha’ ‘Rashtra’ i.e. great nation. (Yes, there are plenty of theories concerning origin of the name; but this seems more appropriate.) First May, 1960 was the day when the present Maharashtra came into being by amalgamation of some parts of former Bombay State & Central Provinces.

From geological variations like—from Deccan Plateau to natural sky-scrappers of Sahyadri ranges to geological instabilities ranging from earthquakes to tsunamis, Maharashtra has seen it all. It may not boast of rivers like Ganga & Yamuna, but numerous small-large rivers symbolize the cultural heritage of Maharashtra and of course, support its agriculture. 720 km of coastline ensures its 2^nd rank in fish production, next only to Kerala. This ancient land is also well endowed with industrial and fuel minerals. Proximity of oil fields at Bombay High provides enormous advantage to the state though it actually has no royalty claim over it.

Covering 1/10^th of national territory, the State boasts of being second most populous state in India, and the second most populous subnational entity in entire world. Since ancient times, the Maharashtrian society is an amalgam of several races- Nag, Kol, Mund, Dravid and Aryans. In fact, nowhere in India is such a diversity of ethnic elements observed as in Maharashtra.

The state has glorious past. It finds its mention right from the period of Ramayan & Puranas. Empires of Satvahana, Vakataka, then upto the advent of Muslims, Maharashtra has experienced it all. But the part of history that makes not only every Maharashtrian but also every Indian proud is the rise of Shivaji. Concept of Swarajya had its seeds right in his empire. 1857 freedom struggle saw leaders like Tatya Tope, Nanasaheb & Queen of Jhanshi, all of Maharashtrian origin. The late freedom movement witnessed numerous heroes emerging from this State- Tilak, Savarkar, Vasudeo Balwant Phadake, Chafekar brothers to name few. The need of social reforms was met by persons like Mahatma Phule & Ambedkar.

‘Glorious past does not ensure illustrious present’, they say. But Maharashtra has maintained its edge even in this age of technology. This most industrialized state in India, contributes 23% of industrial output and 1/7^th of national income. The state, with agriculture as its backbone, as like of India, has done quite well in sugar & cotton industries. The cooperative movement has given boost to sugar industry. The capital of this State, Mumbai, alone contributes, in the nationally kitty, 10% of factory employment, 33% of income tax collections, 60% of customs duty collections, 20% of central excise tax collections, 40% of India’s foreign trade and rupees 40,000 crore in corporate taxes. This commercial capital of the country has headquarters of most financial organisations- The RBI, SBI, Exim bank, UTI, SEBI, Film Finance Corporation, KVIC, – you name it, Mumbai has it. Numerous Indian conglomerates such as the Tata Group, Godrej and Reliance are located in Mumbai. Bombay Stock Exchange is the oldest stock exchange in the country. The Dalal Street is better known as “the Indian Wall Street”. Mumbai is in fact set to become financial capital of South-East Asia.

Maharashtra is 2^nd in literacy rate. From medical to military and from hotel management to IITs, Maharashtra has it all. Cities like Mumbai & Pune are becoming education hubs, adding to the cosmopolitan outlook. The state has produced scientists like Narlikar, Govarikar & plenty more.

Art in Maharashtra having centuries-old tradition, has undergone continuous evolution – from cave temples of Karla, Ajanta & Ellora to J.J School of Art. This musical region provides adequate representation to all four music categories- primitive, folk, classical & Popular- from Sangeet Ratnakar to Geet Ramayana. The traditional tamasha, powada, lavani have a peculiar hold on minds of masses. Voice of India –Lata Mangeshkar finds her proud origin in this very State. So do the ‘master-blaster’ Sachin 6+4dulkar and the little master ‘Sunny the Great’. Within Mumbai is located Bollywood, the epicentre of India’s Hindi film and television industry. Mumbai is the birthplace of Indian cinema, with the oldest film shot here in 1896. Mumbai also boasts of large number of cinemas, including Asia’s largest IMAX dome theatre. The Marathi film Shwas, was recently nominated for Oscars. From actresses like Smita Patil to Madhuri Dixit, and from directors like Dada Kondake to Amol Palekar, Marathi contribution to Indian cinema is significant.

In all, Maharashtra has truly been the ‘gateway of India’. The transitional mixture of north & south has rendered a unique heritage to this State, which it has proudly conserved. Still a fair way to go; but the path is right and the destination in sight; it will get there very soon.