“The River that Stalwarts had to cross” - Mumbiram

“The River that Stalwarts had to cross”

Riverscapes of Pune

‘The River that Stalwarts had to Cross’ is a view of Bund Garden dam looking westward from the bridge to Yerwada. This colonial period bridge has lions that represented the British Empire decorating at four corners of the bridge. It was built soon after Queen Victoria took over the reins of India from the East India Company. The books sitting on the balustrade along with a wild pigeon and paintbrushes and a palette are associated with the world on the other side of the river.

Historian V.K.Rajwade single-handedly compiled the 18 volume Maraathyaanchyaa Itihaaasaachi Saadhane (मराठ्यांच्या इतिहासाचीं साधनें), a source book of original documents of the Maratha Confederacy. The Itihasacharya could not take the atrocity of the English indoctrination available in the Deccan College for more than a few months. Tilak the patriot graduated from the Deccan College along with his colleague Gopal Agarkar. Tilak was a mathematician and a scholar. By deciphering the references to the constellation Orion in the Vedas Tilak has put forward a theory of migration of the Vedic Aryas from the arctic region.
Sant Dnyaneshvar was native of Alandi a few miles to the North. His Dnyaaneshvari (ज्ञानेश्वरी), Marathi commentary of Bhagavad Gita, has withstood the passage of centuries and rules the spiritual domain all over rural Maharashtra. Vagvaijayanti (वाग्वैजयंती) is a collection of poems by Ram Ganesh Gadkari the poet-playwright who left a lasting imprint on Marathi literature of the 20th century. In his poem Dasara he has paid a tribute to the social courage of the Bhagvat family in which Mumbiram’s paternal grandmother was born.

Baalkavi (बालकवि), the inspired poet of nature, had a magical command over Marathi language. He flourished under the kind patronage of poet N.V.Tilak. Tilak had converted to Christianity and lived in Ahmadnagar with the American Mission. Mumbiram has been a great admirer of Baalkavi as well as Tilak.
Sir Edwin Arnold who introduced to the West the first biography of Siddharta Gautam “The Light of Asia” was principle of the Deccan College for some time.

This painting has a fascinating composition. Notice the flock of parrots in the sky above, in formation like so many fighter airplanes.

This bridge must have been a favourite with Mumbiram. It connected Koregaon Park with Yerwada. Mumbiram’s Mang and Phasepardhi muses lived in Yerwada. The German Bakery in Koregaon Park was attracting visitors from all over the world. The Burning Ghat on the river was the playground where Mumbiram liked to hang out. Like many other places along the river it was a place that inspired Mumbiram to dance.