Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Padma Shri Award to Chaitramji Pawar: A great moment!

Hello. Generally we don't come to know about good things. They are not much acknowledged. Writing this article so that many people come to know about a very good initiative. Chaitramji Pawar! I know him as very close friend of my maternal uncle Dr. Anand Phatak. They also have worked together. When I was studying Baripada, I also had close interactions with him. Chaitramji Pawar- the pioneer of development in "Baripada" hamlet in Dhule district of Maharashtra! In today's language, he is a great rural innovator. And even more common terms, he is super rich with many crores with him! But no, he is not "that type of crorepati!" His wealth is the forest resources of his village and although its value in money is many crores, for them it is invaluable.

Baripada! A small tribal hamlet located near Magi- Tungi peak adjacent to Maharashtra- Gujarat border! Today Baripada in itself has become a peak of international level! But its rise from the valley and darkness is worth knowing and inspiring. Chaitramji is its trailblazer. He is the first generation who got high education in this region. He learned with plenty of difficulties and struggle in those days. He learned in the school and outside also. After completing M. Com around 1990, he started working for development of his village Baripada under the guidance of Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram. He took all good things- come from what direction and implemented those in his villages. Improved farming, forest conservation, water conservation, experiments of rural development and so on. It was in 2005 that Indian Government brought the act for Joint Forest Management. But many years before this, Baripada was doing joint forest management. Over the years they worked extensively on 5 Js- Jungle, Jameen (land), Janawar (animal), Jal (water) and Jan (people).



Tuesday, April 8, 2025

शंतनू नायडू- ध्यास घेतलेला माणूस

✪ शंतनू नायडूची प्रेरणादायी मुलाखत
✪ वाचनासाठी पुरस्कार देण्याची वेळ येऊ नये
✪ "मला रतन टाटांबद्दल प्रश्न विचारू नका!"
✪ मुंबई बूकीज- निसर्गात वाचण्याची चळवळ
✪ पुस्तकं डोनेट करणं सोपं, पण मांडीवर घेऊन वाचनाची गोडी लावणं कठीण
✪ Good fellows India – नातवंड भाड्याने देतो! ती वेळ आलेली आहे
✪ रतन टाटा माझ्यासाठी "डंबलडोर" होते!
✪ आई शिक्षिका. पण घरी शिक्षिका व शाळेत आई
✪ आई म्हणते, मराठी मुलगी मिळाली तर बरं होईल!

सर्वांना नमस्कार. काही‌ दिवसांपूर्वी लोकमत साहित्य पुरस्कार कार्यक्रमामध्ये टाटा मोटर्समधील जनरल मॅनेजर शंतनू नायडूची मुलाखत बघितली! शंतनू नायडू! आदरणीय रतन‌ टाटांचा तरूण मित्र! पण हा शंतनू नायडू (त्याच्या उत्साहामुळे व ऊर्जेमुळे "ते" नाही‌ तर "तो" म्हणावसं वाटलं)  इतका भन्नाट असेल हे माहिती नव्हतं. पुण्यामध्ये तो शिकला. आईमुळे त्याच्यावर वाचनाचे संस्कार झाले. श्वान प्रेमाचेही संस्कार झाले. आणि कालांतराने श्वान प्रेमामुळेच तो रतन टाटांच्या संपर्कात आला.

लोकमत साहित्य पुरस्कार समारंभात त्याला वाचन चळवळ व "मुंबई बूकीज" उपक्रमासाठी पुरस्कार देण्यात आला. ह्या मुलाखतीमध्ये त्याने सुरूवातीलाच सांगितलं, की मला रतन टाटांबद्दल प्रश्न विचारू नका! आणि वाचनासाठी पुरस्कार द्यावा लागतोय, ही खरं तर चांगली गोष्ट नाहीय! आणि त्या पूर्ण मुलाखतीमध्ये त्याने अस्खलित मराठीमध्ये सुंदर मनोगत व्यक्त केलं. खरी मोठी माणसं नेहमी विनम्र असतात आणि डाउन टू अर्थ असतात. हे त्याला ऐकताना सतत जाणवत होतं.

 

हा लेख इथे ऑडिओ स्वरूपात ऐकता येईल.

Shantanu Naidu- India’s “Good Fellow!”

 
✪ Inspirational interview of Shantanu Naidu

✪ It is unfortunate to give an award for reading initiative

✪ "Please don't ask about Ratan Tata!"

✪ Mumbai bookies- An initiative to read with nature

✪ Easy to donate books, but difficult to cultivate habit of reading

✪ Good fellows India – We give grand children on rent! Need of the hour

✪ Ratan Tata is "Dumbledore" for me!

✪ Mother is a teacher, but rather teacher in the home and mother in the school

✪ Mother says, better if you get a Marathi girl!


Hello. Some days ago, I came across an interview of Shantanu Naidu, General Manager, Tata Motors. In Lokmat Literature Awards programme, he was awarded for his reading initiatives and for “Mumbai bookies”. Shantanu Naidu! Young friend of honourable Ratan Tata! But little did I know that this Shantanu was this great. He studied in Pune. His mother cultivated habit of reading for him. She also cultivated habit of loving animals. And later on due to his love for dogs, he came in contact with Ratan Tata.

In this interview, his first statement was, “Don’t ask me anything about Ratan Tata!” He went on to say that it is actually not good that an award is needed to be given for reading! Through the course of this interview, he fluently expressed himself in Marathi. True great persons are always humble and down to earth! It was a great joy to listen to him.


This article can be listened on spotify.