(Arun Naik, Bapurao Naik's elder son speaks at the Mumbai Marathi Sahitya Sangh kickstarting Bapurao Naik's centenary year celebrations).
Now there are too many controversies. Including the latest episode of Nayantara Sehgal’s speech. But initially and for many years the Mahamandal was really effective. One of the major contributions was the Shudhdhalekhan Niyam, now in full use.
Another major institution which Bapurao took a keen interest in was the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Natya Parishad which organised the annual Natya Sammelan. This was an event as big as the Sahitya Sammelan. The Parishad now has its own theatre at Dadar which has a badly designed theatre known as the Chavan Natyagruha. The Parishad has been involved in many controversies in recent times. So much so that we had to agitate in the satyagraha style under the leadership of Damoo Kenkre where persons like the Late Vijay Tendulkar and Alyque Padamsee were also present.
The Parishad now has a president elected for a long term. In those days there was a president for the Sammelan. He was not the administrative head, but he was assisted by a senior Vice-President who managed the Parishad. Now that position is the administrative President. The Parishad’s headquarters were in the Sahitya Sangh then and my father was the senior Vice President and the administrative head for many years.
Another major institution was found around the year 1960. This was the Sahitya ani Sanskruti Mandal or the State Board for Literature and Culture. It was headed by Tarkateerth Laxmanshastri Joshi. Very senior and top-class Marathi intellectuals, writers, professors were members. G.D. Parekh, A.B. Shah, D.V. Bedekar, Na Ra Phatak, Anant Kanekar, P.L. Deshpande, M.P. Rege and my father were members. The main activities of the Mandal were to publish books, reprints of out of print classics, Marathi Vishwakosh (encyclopaedia), dictionaries, companion volumes to literature, language and culture.
The Mandal was split into two around 1980: The Vishwakosh work was entrusted to a new committee. The entire physical aspect of the Vishwakosh was designed by Bapurao. The first volume was printed at Mouj Printing Bureau. From the second volume the Vishwakosh Mudranalaya at Wai was established. My father was the principal force behind this. This is one more great contribution. I also worked on this committee as a printing expert for a long time. In fact, I exposed a scam in the purchase of Bible paper amounting to crores. I knew the physical specifications of Bible paper, and how my father had got it manufactured. The paper that the Mandal was now buying was much inferior. I got it tested. And moreover, there was no requirement at all. Only volume 17 was published during my long tenure and the paper ‘purchased’ was enough for at least six volumes! It is enough to say that no paper was purchased. Only bills were paid.
The government had a Director of Cultural Affairs. The incumbent was Rajaram Humne who was a friend and he sought advice from my father. My father proposed that Maharashtra should have a Kala Academy. The government set up a committee under the chairmanship of Tarkateerth Laxmanshastri Joshi. He entrusted the task of preparing the blueprint to my father. My father prepared a detailed and comprehensive report. But things did not move fast enough and the blueprint was shelved.
Much later Damoo Kenkre convinced Dayanand Bandodkar who adopted the blueprint and the Goa Kala Academy was found with Damoo Kenkre as the first head.
Maharashtra did not have a Kala Academy for many years. When P.L. Deshpande died, Satish Alekar, Meena Naik and I went to meet the Education Minister Ramkrishna More and told him that that we should have an academy named after P.L. Deshpande. He accepted the proposal and the P.L. Deshpande Kala Academy was found on the site of the Ravindra Natya Mandir. It is a horrible building designed by Shashi Prabhu. Even the academy is run badly. Maybe it will improve in the future.
It was during this period that my father was a visiting lecturer at the Government Institute of Printing Technology in the JJ campus near Victoria Terminus. Here he taught Composition (typesetting), Letter-press Machine-work, Costing & Estimating, Business Management. I was not a student there but I have attended some classes. I remember one such class where he taught Paper Sizes. I have never forgotten this subject and I have myself taught it later. It was a very comprehensive lecture with insight into why these paper sizes, how the sizes of various articles of print were affected, as well as how machinery sizes corresponded, right up to the sizes of envelopes!
After Independence we established the Indian Standards Institution. My father was involved in this from our Nagpur days. He served on some printing related sectional committees, like paper and ink. As we moved to Mumbai my father was made the Chairman of the Ink & Allied Products Sectional Committee. He contributed immensely and remained a chairman for over ten years. The Indian Standards Institution made him a Fellow, a rare honour.
