-The Original Thackeray: 7 Things About Prabodhankar You Must Know. Many don’t know that Bal Thackeray’s father was a social reformer, a political activist and an eminent author. 20 Nov 2016. “Prabodhankar’s Hindutva was not against any religion.” . ...Prabodhankar was a face of anti-Brahminical movement....Prabodhankar was aggressive about women’s rights and education.
Keshav Sitaram Thackeray. It would be unfair to introduce him as the father of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. Keshav, popularly known as ‘Prabodhankar’ was an eminent social reformer, political activist, author and an editor....At a time, when love before marriage was a social taboo, he got dozens of youngsters married. .. Prabodhankar ensured inter-cast marriages took place without any opposition...3. Anti-Brahminism s greatly influenced by the writings of Mahatma Phule, Prabodhankar not only wrote against the dominance of Brahminism, but toured the then Bombay province holding lectures for a caste-less society. he admired Gandhi. But this admiration was limited as Prabodhankar didn’t approve of the Mahatma’s politics....4. Bahujan Hindutva .Prabodhankar was a Hindutva-wadi, but his Hindutva was diagonally opposite to that of RSS for two reasons. One, he was a “rationalist” in a limited sense, as he opposed religious rituals by Brahmins or anyone. Two, his followers call him the father of “Bahujan-wadi Hindutva” as it’s the Hindutva sans Brahminical dominance. When he wanted a Dalit to perform pooja at a Ganpati pandal at Dadar, traditional Brahmins opposed it. So, he started public Navratri at Dadar. Initially, it was a non-Brahmin affair, but now everyone celebrates it across Maharashtra. Uniting All For a Cause ...Prabodhankar was one of the prominent leaders of the Samyutka Maharashtra movement in the late 1950s. he played a crucial role in bringing the Left, Right and Dalits together against Nehru's Congress, which was against formation of a Marathi state with Mumbai as its capital. When he started Prabodhan (meaning enlightenment), “a fortnightly journal devoted to the social, religious and moral regeneration of the Hindu society”, it became so popular that Keshav Thackeray would be known as ‘Prabodhankar Thackeray’. He wrote over 20 books, which included the biography of Pandita Ramabai, whose immense contribution in the field of women’s education had gotten eclipsed following her embrace of Christianity.