Aim of the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement
The goal was to form a state for Marathi-speaking people including Mumbai, Vidarbha, Marathwada, Belgaum, Karwar, and Nippani.
Inspired by cultural pride and historical figures like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
Maharashtra Day (May 1) marks the achievement of this goal in 1960.
Key Events and Opposition
Early promises for linguistic states were broken; multiple commissions (Dhar Commission, the JVP Committee, and the Fazl Ali Commission) ignored Marathi demands.
The Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, led by Keshavrao Jedhe and others, pushed the movement.
Gujarati-speaking elites and RSS leaders like M.S. Golwalkar opposed the inclusion of Mumbai.
Indira Gandhi influenced Nehru to approve the demand after violent protests and political losses in 1957.
Cultural Power Behind the Movement
Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe played a major role through songs and folk theatre.
His famous song “Majhi Maina Gavavar Rahili” became an anthem for the movement.
Sathe used lokanatya (folk theatre) like ‘Majhi Mumbai’ to explain why Mumbai belongs to Maharashtra.
His cultural troupe Lal Bavta Kalapathak mobilised support from villages and working-class people.
Sathe promoted inclusivity across caste, gender, and class through art.
Political and Public Mobilisation
S. M. Joshi, a socialist leader, supported the formation of Samyukta Maharashtra.
Acharya Atre, a fiery writer and speaker, led the movement’s media front.
He ran newspapers like Navayug and Mahrattha, which voiced the movement’s demands.
Famous poet Shailendra wrote songs stirring public emotion for the cause.
Ambedkar and the SCF’s Involvement
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar and his party Scheduled Caste Federation (SCF) backed the demand early on.
SCF introduced and supported resolutions in the Bombay Corporation as early as 1948.
Ambedkar believed linguistic states strengthen democracy and cultural identity.
He wrote extensively in:
States and Minorities
Need for Checks and Balances
Thoughts on Linguistic States
Maharashtra as a Linguistic Province (1948) – where he argued that language-based states promote social unity and democracy.
He said Mumbai rightfully belonged to Maharashtra, not for geography alone but for ensuring social and economic justice.
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