Jaiprakash Nagar, Nagpur, INDIA

sudhakargaidhani@gmail.com

Education M.A. - Marathi Literature - Nagpur University
M.F.A. - Drama - Nagpur University
Honour Honorary Degree of Doctor of Literature (Litt.D.) by World Academy of Arts and Culture (UNESCO recognised) Issued at - 37th WCP, Mongolia
Profession Poet, Writer - (Marathi)
Columnist in Newspapers
Former contributory lecturer for a year in P.G. Dept. of Nagpur University
and 9 years for Bachelor of Fine Arts, Govt. Chitrakala Mahavidyalaya,
Nagpur
Voluntarily retired as Asst. Post Master in 1991 From Nagpur GPO
International Conferences and Tours
Participated in the following international conferences and tours:
Global Marathi Literary Meet - San Jose, USA - Feb 2009
The Ranch Cascade Forum Truth Seekers event - Seattle, USA - May 2010
World Congress of Poets - Bhubaneswar, India - Oct 2019
Study tour to Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Egypt - Dec 2019

Awards and Achievements
1. Best Literature Award of Maharashtra Government, 1981-82 for ‘Devdoot’
2. Jr. Fellowship, Dept. of Culture, Govt. of India, 1983-84
3. Sahitya Akademi (National Academy of Letters) Travel Grant, 1985-86
4. Best Music Direction award (for self-authored drama Raibai Bhulabai), Govt. of Maharashtra, 1987
5. Former member (co-opted), Board of Studies for Marathi, Nagpur University, 1988-91
Former member, South Central Zone Cultural Centre, Nagpur (a Govt. of India project),
1990-93
Former member Board of Literature and Culture, Govt. of Maharashtra.
6. DeshRatna Award (a national level award), Magnum Foundation Nagpur, 2001, awarded at Hyderabad
7. Prof. Dr. Lata Javale received Ph.D. (2003) for her work on Gaidhani’s writing, two more scholars registered
8. Felicitated by Aravind Babu Deshmukh Trust at the hands of senior journalist Sri Kuldeep Nayar on account of long and distinguished service as a columnist through poetry writing (2003)
9. Conferred with Ga. Di. Ma. Pratibha Kawya Award at Pune at the hands of Padmashree Narayan Surve, 2004
10. Former member, Maharashtra Rajya Sahitya aani Sanskruti Mandal, Govt. of M.S. 2005-07
11. Honoured by Andhra Governor Sri Sushilkumar Shinde, under the presidentship of
Padmabhushan and Jnanpith laureate Sri C. N. Reddy, organised by Yashwantrao Chavan Pratishthan, Nagpur, 2005
12. A two acre garden at Gaidhani’s birthplace Khapa (near Nagpur), set up by Khapa Municipality, has been named Mahakavi Sudhakar Gaidhani Garden, 2006
13. Participated in Pahile Vishwa Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, San Jose, CA, USA, 2009
14. Poems presented in International Conference organised by the Pacific Institute, Washington USA, 2010
15. Vidya Vachaspati Ram Shevalkar Literary Award of Rs 51,000 for writing epic poetry, at the hands of Hon. Nitin Gadkari, Nagpur Municipal Corporation, 2013
16. Honored with the prestigious Padmashree Poet Narayan Surve Sahitya Puraskar (Literary Award) by Maharashtra Sahitya Kala Prasarini Sabha, Pune at the hands of Padmashree Dr. Ganesh Devi, 2017
17. Ph.D. received by Prof. Ashok Raut (Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University), 2017. This is the second doctorate on Gaidhani’s work
18. World Academy of Arts and Culture has conferred H. Litt. Doctorate upon him at the 37th World Congress of Poets held in Mongolia, August 2017
19. Honoured with Shri Dalubhau Jain Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Sahitya Bhushan Puraskar, by Shri Dalubhau Jan charitable trust Jalgaon, August 2019
20. Honoured with Yashwantrao Chavan Gaurav Puraskar, organised by Dr. Girish Gandhi, president-regional Yashwantrao Chavan Pratishthan, Nagpur, November 2019
21. Devdoot : The Angel (1991), English Translation by Prof. Dr. Om Biyani (Gold Medalist), Publisher - Writer’s Workshop, Kolkata, Agents in USA, Jean Johnson, New York. This book
has been included by UNESCO in the lndex Translationum, 2016
22. Awarded Vidarbha Gaurav Award (National Vidarbha Pride Award for contribution in poetry)
of Rs 100,000 by Krushi Vikas Pratishthan, Nagpur, August 2020
23. Awarded International Ambassador of Peace award by World Literary Forum for Peace and Human Rights, Bhutan, Jan 2021
24. Selected for most prestigious state level literary award “Dhnyan Yogi” by Sahitya Vihar, a reputed literary organization, Nagpur, Feb 2021
 

Information on Books Authored
1. Two epic poems:
Mahaavakya - contains 555 pages, 9751 lines and 33003 words
Yogininchya Swapna Sawlya - contains 260 pages, 4096 lines and 13129 words
2. Six collections of poems
3. 125 short Radio plays
4. Three dramas

Details About the Books Published
1. Kabritala Samadhista (In Trance in the Tomb): Poetry collection 1973, published by Pablo Prakashan, Nagpur. Noted critic Dr. D.B. Kulkarni called it, “imbued with power similar toMardhekar’s poetry”. He has not used his personal experiences of displacements unduly, nor exploited them for assumption of glory”.(This is remarkable considering that Gaidhani was a coolie and a dish-washer in a village eatery).
2. Devdoot (long poem, 1981): Pablo Prakashan, Nagpur. Second edition - 1999 by Dasganu Prakashan, Nagpur. It eventually became canto I of the epic Mahaavaakya in 2004.
3. Mokat Grahancha Fakir (The Fakir of Stray Planets): Poetry collection in Marathi, 1999. It later became canto II of Mahaavaakya. “Gaidhani has risen like Gorky, Dostoevsky...”, according to Dr. V.S. Jog, winner of Soviet Land Nehru Award .
4. Gofan-Gota (2000): Collection of Marathi poems printed in newspaper columns.
5. Devdoot (1981): It is the first part of Mahaavaakya and it also published in Hindi and English .
6. Devdoot: The Angel (1991): Translation of Devdoot in English , Translated by Prof. Dr. Om Biyani (Gold Medalist) Publisher - Writer’s Workshop, Kolkata, Agents in USA, Jean Johnson, New York .
Mr. Daniel Simon, managing editor of World Literature Today, Washington USA had remarked on Devdoot: The Angel as “it certainly is an impressive volume”.
7. Devdoot, Translation in Hindi (1991):
Publication Grant by Maharashtra State Hindi Sahitya Academy , Mumbai, Govt. of Maharashtra.
This edition was released by the hands of then Prime Minister of India, Hon. Mr. Chandrashekhar, 1991.
A curiosity is that the Smithsonian Institute, Washington discovery of a 30 million years old fossil of a giant bird reminded a critic of Devdoot . ‘Devdoot’ characteristics remarkably resemble those of the real-life giant bird- gigantic size, flying over oceans, living aeone ago. Raymond T. Rye II of the Smithsonian Institute , on reading Devdoot, found the coincidence “a rare occasion when science and poetry can meet with such magnificent blend of serendipity” .
8. Mahavaakya : It’s first canto was published in 1981, IInd in 1999 and in 2004, the author’s fans collected funds and published Samagra Devdoot of 5 Cantos - Mahavaakya - (Epic Poem) . This Marathi epic contains 555 pages, 9751 lines and 33003 words.
On 20th Feb 2005 , open mega discussion was organised on ‘Mahavaakya’ at Pune Cultural Megacity of Maharashtra State; the Marathi epic status was attributed to it by the prominent critics.
Library of Congress, Washington , has in its catalogue described Mahavaakya as “an excellent epic in Marathi”.
9. Abhang Tuka, Mrudang Vitthal (2009): Published by Vatsa Vinayak Prakashan, Nagpur-Pune. It includes 860 abhangas based on Saint Tukaram’s poetry . [Poet has set down the reactions inspired in him by reading Tukaram, a strange artistic co-creation.]
10. Mrugajal aani Onjal (Mirage and a Handful Water): Published in 2013. Each of its sixty poems are in three stanzas of four lines each.
11. Broadcasted 125 short radio dramas on widely varied subjects, mainly on social themes.
12. Wrote and produced the play Gotul on Madia tribal culture, under auspices of South Central Zone Cultural Centre, Nagpur.
13. Raibai Bhulabai (Marathi Drama): A chilling drama based on dowry and bridal torture by in-laws. Gaidhani is the writer, producer, director and music composer of the play. Published by Raghav Publishers and Distributors, Nagpur 2014. Play Raibai Bhulabai jointly sponsored by National Academy of Music and Drama along with the Directorate of Cultural affairs, Govt. of Maharashtra under inter-state exchange programme, 1987.
14. In 2016 , he captivated the attention of Marathi readers by his second modern epic, ‘Yogininchya Swapna Sawlya’ (Yogini’s Shadows of Dreams) and a symposium was held on it.
Soviet Land Nehru Award winner critic Dr. V.S. Jog exhorted in the symposium that Gaidhani’s creativity has scaled new heights by his two epics and it is difficult to cross that area of achievement.

Information on Works Translated
● His works have been translated into English, Chinese, Romanian, Italian, Macedonian and Indian languages - Hindi and Tamil.
● Some poems have been translated into Arabic, Greek, Albanian, Spanish, German and Indian languages - Gujarati and Bengali.
● Devdoot The Angel, long poem has been translated into Romanian and published.
4 Works included in International Literary Journals
● POIESIS - A Journal of Poetry Circle, Mumbai, India
● Literary Destinies – USA
● Contact International – Romania (http://contactinternational.ro)
● Yaad – Israel
● The Poet - UK (https://www.thepoetmagazine.org/mahaavaakya)
● IWA BOGDANI - International Writers Association, online magazine (UK). Seven pages poem from Devdoot The Angel selected by Prof. Dr. Jeton Kelmendi, Class I President European Academy of Sciences and Art
 

Other Information
1. Selected to represent Maharashtra State in the year 1984 in the National Symposium of Poets in New Delhi on Republic Day. The recited poem was translated into all Indian languages and broadcast over all centers of Akashwani (radio stations).
2. His translated works in English are available with original Marathi books in following libraries -
Library of Congress, Washington, Library of Columbia University, University of Illinois
Library, Library of University of Hawaii, Penn Library, Cornell University Library, MCGill
University Library, New York Public Library, University of Minnesota, University of
Wisconsin - Madison, Waseda University - Tokyo - Japan, and Germany, England, Canada, Australia, India etc.
3. His translated work is available for sale in international market with prominent book sellers like -
Adams and Adams, Biblio.com, Amazon.com, Chapters.indigo.ca, Amazon.co.uk
4. Only a rate writer gets the chance to appear for an examination for a course whose
syllabus includes his own book. Mr Sudhakar Gaidhani is such a writer. When he appeared for his M.A. Marathi from Nagpur University, his first collection of poems “Kabritala Samadhista” was prescribed.
5. His work is included in the academic syllabus of several Universities in Maharashtra.
6. His poems in Marathi were broadcasted from Moscow Radio