Nagpur: “Had it not been for Chhatrapati Shivaji, it would have been difficult for many to stick to their original religion,” said prince Shivaji Rao Bhosale, the Maratha warrior king’s descendant from the Thanjavur branch in Tamil Nadu. Bhosale was among the invitees at the groundbreaking for the Shivaji statue at Nagpur University.
Asked to speak, Shivaji Bhosale first excused himself for not being so fluent in Marathi. Dressed modestly and soft spoken, he narrated a bit of Maratha history in heavily Tamil accented Marathi.
The Thanjavur branch of Bhosales was founded by Shivaji’s half brother Vyankoji. Shivaji’s father Shahji had two wives, Jijabai and Tukabai. Vyankoji was the latter’s son and stayed in the south. Even today, as many as 15 lakh documents in Modi (old Marathi script) have been preserved at Thanjavur.
In 2017, with ₹2 crore given by the Maharashtra government, the work of digitization of the documents began. So far 12 lakh letters have been digitized.
Bhosale said one of the documents details a conversation between Shivaji and Vyankoji. Shivaji, who was camping in the south, met Vyankoji and demanded a share in his kingdom saying that it was their father Shahji’s legacy. Vyankoji replied that by that logic even Shivaji should share the Pune kingdom with him, as that too belonged to Shahji. Finally, Shivaji left peacefully, while secretly leaving a note of appreciation for Vyankoji.
Asked to speak, Shivaji Bhosale first excused himself for not being so fluent in Marathi. Dressed modestly and soft spoken, he narrated a bit of Maratha history in heavily Tamil accented Marathi.
The Thanjavur branch of Bhosales was founded by Shivaji’s half brother Vyankoji. Shivaji’s father Shahji had two wives, Jijabai and Tukabai. Vyankoji was the latter’s son and stayed in the south. Even today, as many as 15 lakh documents in Modi (old Marathi script) have been preserved at Thanjavur.
In 2017, with ₹2 crore given by the Maharashtra government, the work of digitization of the documents began. So far 12 lakh letters have been digitized.
Bhosale said one of the documents details a conversation between Shivaji and Vyankoji. Shivaji, who was camping in the south, met Vyankoji and demanded a share in his kingdom saying that it was their father Shahji’s legacy. Vyankoji replied that by that logic even Shivaji should share the Pune kingdom with him, as that too belonged to Shahji. Finally, Shivaji left peacefully, while secretly leaving a note of appreciation for Vyankoji.
