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Ramchandra Chintaman Dhere (21 July 1930 – 1 July 2016) was a Marathi writer from Maharashtra, India.

Early life

Dhere was born in the small village of Nigade in Pune district. He was orphaned at an early age of five. He studied at Municipal School, Pune, Poona English School, Poona Night School and graduated in 1966. During high school days he worked as a proof reader in the local press.

Dhere earned a PhD in Marathi in 1975. His doctoral thesis titled Shtsthal: Ek Adhyan was completed under the guidance of Ramchandra Shankar Walimbe. In 1980, he became the first person to obtain a Doctorate of Literature from Pune University.

Career

From his childhood, Dhere was deeply influenced by folk-life and literature. He was drawn towards saint literature such as Warkari and Nath sects and started studying them.

Dhere wrote over 100 scholarly books, including some edited or translated works of others, on Marathi folk literature and culture, reconstruction of cultural history of places, religious sects in Maharashtra, and biographies of marathi saints. He also composed several poems and musical plays. Dhere lost almost all of his collection of old books in 1961 when the Panshet Dam broke flooding the city of Pune.

Dhere received a Sahitya Akademi Award in 1987 for his literary criticism Shri Vitthal: Ek MahaSamanvay. The highly influential book was translated to English by Anne Feldhaus and published by Oxford University Press in 2011.

Death and legacy

Dhere died in Pune on 1 July 2016 at the age of 86 following prolonged illness. Writer Aruna Ramchandra Dhere is his daughter. In 2019, a library was built in Pune to preserve a collection of his books.

Literary work

The following is a partial list of Dhere's works:

• Datta Sampradayacha Itihas (1958)
• Nath Sampradayacha Itihas (1959)
• Dakshinecha Lokdev Khandoba (1961)
• Marathi Loksanskrutiche Upasak (1964)
• Ramrajyachi Sphurtikendre (1966)
• Vividh (1967)
• Loksanskrutichi Kshitije (1971)
• Prachin Marathichya Nawadhara (1972)
• Shakti Pithancha Shodh (1973)
• Vividhdarshan (1975)
• Matangipatta (1976)
• Chakrapani (1976)
• Nawadarshan (1977)
• Lajjagauri (1978)
• Mharashtracha Dewhara (1978)
• Sant Sahtya Wa Lok Sahitya: Kahi Anubandha (1978)
• Shri Vitthal: Ek MahaSamanvay (1984)
• Shikhar Shinganapurcha Shambhu Mahadev (2002)
• Gangajali
• Agnyapatra
• Shodhashilpa
• Shree Tuljabhavani
• Shree Anandnayaki
• Lokdevatanche Vishva
• Sant, Lok Ani Abhidnyan
• Musalman Marathi Santkavi
• Bhartiya Rangbhumichya Shodhat
• Lokasahitya: Shodh Ani Samiksha
• Trividha

Notes

1. ^ Srivastava, Shilpika (2 July 2016). "Eminent Marathi literary scholar Ramchandra Chintaman Dhere dies". Jagran Josh. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
2. "इतिहास संशोधक रा. चिं. ढेरे यांचं निधन". Maharashtra Times (in Marathi). 1 July 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
3. "Ramchandra Chintaman Dhere". sangeetnatak.gov.in. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
4. "Ramachandra Dhere bags Punyabhushan award". The Indian Express. 7 March 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
5. ^ Datta, Amaresh (1988). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Devraj to Jyoti. Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 9788126011940. OCLC 34346334. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
6. ^ "ऋषितुल्य". Loksatta (in Marathi). 2 July 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
7. "Biography". www.rcdhere.com. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
8. Dhere, Ramchandra Chintaman (1975). Shtsthal: Ek Adhyan (PhD) (in Marathi). Pune University. hdl:10603/161126. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
9. ^ Banerjee, Shoumojit (2 July 2016). "R.C. Dhere, chronicler of Maharashtra's religious traditions, passes away". The Hindu. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
10. "Akademi Awards (1955-2019)". Retrieved 13 December 2020.
11. Ḍhere, Rāmacandra Cintāmaṇa (2011). Feldhau, Anne (ed.). The rise of a folk god: Viṭṭhal of Pandharpur. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199777594. ISSN 0262-7280. OCLC 764404903. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
12. "A library to preserve the collection of books of R C Dhere". Punekar News. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2020.

• Marathi-language writers
• Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Marathi
• 1930 births
• People from Pune district
• 2016 deaths