सुवर्णलता

80 Songs for 80 years

Ravan Ravan Burning Bright

Even as rest of the country celebrates victory of Good (Ram) over Evil (Ravan) on Dasara, the Gond Tribals in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh are not amused!

Dasara Greetings

सर्व वाचकांना विजयादशमीच्या शुभेच्छा!

मन मोराचा कसा पिसारा फुलाला Man Moracha Kasa Pisara Phulala

A song sung and composed by Lata Mangeshkar... brought to you on her 80th Birthday!

Vajreshwari

Vajreshwari @ Thane

Shantadurga

Shantadurga @ Kavle, Goa

Ekvira

Ekvira @ Karla

Raj @ Times Now

3M was amused at the style in which Times Now tomtomed the Raj Thackeray interview as 'First for any National Channel'... and hats off to Raj for being the first Maharashtrian Politician to have the guts to speak in Marathi on a National Channel... something that even his uncle could not do!

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Mumbadevi

Mumbadevi... the goddess in whose honour we call our city Mumbai!

Tulja Bhavani

Tulja Bhavani @Tuljapur

Renuka Mata

Renuka Mata @ Mahur

'Harishchandrachi Factory' for Oscars!

5 years after a Marathi movie (Shwaas) entered the Oscar fray; another small budget Marathi movie repeats history by beating the biggies like New York. ‘Harishchandrachi Factory’ is a fitting tribute to the father of Indian Cinema, Dadasaheb Phalke… a film that traces his trials and tribulations while making India’s first motion picture.

3M wishes Paresh Mokashi (The Director) all the best for his tryst with destiny!

Saptashrungi

Saptashrungi @ Vani

आई उदे गं अंबाबाई Aai Ude Ga Ambabai

Mahalaxmi

Mahalaxmi @ Kolhapur

Ambejogai

3M is bringing you one Devi image for each day of Navratri... Bow your head to the divine splendour of Ambejogai from Beed District!

Lavni by Miss India-America

Diana Pinto was recently crowed Miss India-America… and keeping true to her roots (Thane City) she performed the lavni on the song ‘Reshmachya Regani’ during the contest!

Maratha Royalty meets Balaji Telefilms!

As Bollywood decides to make a movie on the life and times of the former Maharani of Gwalior - Vijayaraje Scindia (Shinde) with Hema Malini in the lead… Akshay Chavan feels that the story is better suited for a ‘Balaji Telefilms’ soap… enjoy!

आघाडी की बिघाडी?

blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah… blah…

Mount Mary Jatra... Mumbai and beyond!

Even as thousands of people for all faiths throng the tony suburb of Bandra for the Mount Mary Jatra… very few people are aware of a replica event happening in Haregaon in Ahmednagar District for those who cannot afford to come all they way to the state capital for darshan of their beloved ‘Matmauli’!

राजा शिवछत्रपती Raja Shivchhatrapati

Just back from an amazing trek to Rajgad... and the most common song I heard there (from tongues and mobiles) was the title song of the serial Raja Shivchhatrapati!

इंद्र जिमि जंभ पर… बाडव सुअंभ पर… रावण सदंभ पर… रघुकुलराज है !
पौन बारिबाह पर… संभु रतिनाह पर… ज्यों सहसबाह पर… राम द्विजराज है !
उदरात माउली… रयतेस साउली… गडकोट राउळी… शिवशंकर हा
मुक्तीची मंत्रणा… युक्तीची यंत्रणा… खल दुष्टदुर्जना… प्रलयंकर हा
संतास रक्षितो… शत्रू निखंदतो… भावंडभावना… संस्थापितो
ऐसा युगेयुगे… स्मरणीय सर्वदा… माता-पिता-सखा… शिवभूप तो
दावा दृमदंड पर… चीता मृगझुंड पर… भूषन वितुंड पर… जैसे मृगराज है !
तेज तम‍ अंस पर… कान्ह जिमि कंस पर… त्यों मलिच्छ बंस पर… सेर सिवराज है !
जय भवानी, जय शिवाजी !

Old Nutrine Ad

A simple advertisment of Nutrine Sweets in Marathi... Half a century ago!

Courtesy www.chandamama.com

Chandoba online

Over the last half century, Chandamama has enthralled the Indian kids… and on its Golden Jubilee, Geodesic has strengthened its online presence! Now you can enjoy their Marathi microsite Chandoba.

3M Quiz… most people are aware that the name of Chandamama changes according to language the magazine gets published in… so it’s ‘Ambulimama’ in Tamil, ‘Chandoba’ in Marathi and so on. So the question is… which is the only other Indian brand that changes name depending on the state it is sold in?

One year already!

3M is delighted that his baby (Ek Marathi Manoos) is one year old today...

Guys thanks for all the support!

Marathi Film Festival in Paris

Earlier this year, the Maratha Regiment got the unprecedented honour of leading the Bastille Day Parade in Paris… and now the city is hosting a Festival of Marathi Films! From Sant Tukaram (1936) to Valu (2008), a wide spectrum of films have been compiled for the discerning Parisians…

More images of Miraj Riots

Rioters damaging Ganapati Idols

Miraj Riots

A small incident has snowballed into a big riot… but what really amused 3M is that the Police decided to 'enforce visarjan' on the protesting Mandals... will this give the SS-BJP Yuti a fillip in the region totally dominated by the NCP-Cong Aghadi?

देहाची तिजोरी Dehachi Tijori

"Kya tere baap kaa road hai?"

Another Email FWD... An apocryphal story involving Russi Mody. (Ex MD Tata Steel)

I would like to believe that the following story actually happened. It is so typically Russi.

It is said that once Russi Mody was on an official trip to (the then) Bombay. Even though it was a Sunday morning, Russi had to visit Bombay House, the Corporate Head Quarters of the Tata Group. Russi was driving a Mercedes himself as it was a Sunday and there was very little traffic and also it was the chauffeur's day off. Russi was wearing simple shorts and a T shirt.

Knowing that he would take just a few minutes to finish his work in Bombay House and that it was a non-working day in the business district with very low traffic, he decided to take liberties to park his Merc in an other-wise no parking zone. A conscientious traffic cop noticed all this and he immediately rushed to Russi who had started sauntering towards the Bombay House entrance.

In a gruff voice the Pandu Havaldar asked Russi. "Kyun bhidu, baap kaa sadak samajh kay rakha hai kya?"

Russi very non-chalantly replied: "Haan kuchh aisa hi hai. Aapko English padhna aata hai kya?"

Then he gently held the Pandu's arm and walked him to the kerbside and pointed to the metal signage of the road. He asked the cop "Kya Likha Hai?"

The cop said "Sir Homi Mody Street". A mischievously smiling Russi discloses"Woh Mera Baap Tha".

Russi was allowed to leave his car parked in the "No Parking" Zone that Sunday morning.

What is MNS's idealogy?

This letter in India Today succinctly explains what the MNS idealogy stands for…

"The genesis of the Raj Thackeray phenomenon is sub-nationalism and not regional or parochial chauvinism. The non-Hindi states in India are virtual sub-nations while Hindi states are quasi-sub-nations. When Maharashtra was formed in 1960, the Gujaratis were the largest among the linguistic minorities. Over the years, this status has been acquired by the Hindispeaking community. Hindi leaders in Mumbai are bent upon destabilising the sub-nation called Maharashtra. India’s think tank should first accept the ground reality of subnationalism and then try to find solutions for it."

Godse’s 'Killer Car'

The car that Nathuram Godse used on the day he assassinated Mahatma Gandhi has resurfaced in New Delhi… aptly this 1930 Studbaker is called ‘Killer’!

पुढच्या वर्षी लवकर या!

Model Schools… without English!

The Central Government is setting up 6000 ‘Model Schools’ across the country to promote quality education… and the recommended language is English. Any guesses as to which is the only state that is refusing to comply? UP? Bihar? Jharkhand?.... Well it’s our good ol’ Maharashtra!

Ideally, 3M should be happy that Marathi Culture and Language is being preserved by this Congress initiative… But he is not! In the global economy, if we have to succeed, we cannot ignore English… let’s learn from the mistakes made by countries like Bangladesh. Respect and learn your mother tongue but don’t ignore English… or we will be left with a generation of Kupamanduks (Frogs in a well)!

First it was ‘Marathi as compulsory subject’… then came the 90-10 funda… with elections round the corner, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, our education minister is busy trying to usurp the ‘Marathi Asmita’ issue from the Senas!

MAHAPOL POWERLIST Sept 09 Edition

click on the image to see larger version

The complete list of 25 most powerful politicians is as follows -

1. Bal Thackeray (82) SS 0
2. Sharad Pawar (68) NCP 0
3. Raj Thackeray (39) MNS +1
4. Gopinath Munde (59) BJP +1
5. Ashok Chavan (50) INC -2
6. Chhagan Bhujbal (60) NCP 0
7. Uddhav Thackeray (48) SS 0
8. Vilasrao Deshmukh (63) INC 0
9. Narayan Rane (56) INC 0
10. Nitin Gadkari (60) BJP 0
11. Ajitdada Pawar (49) NCP 0
12. R R Patil (52) NCP 0
13. Murli Deora (71) INC 0
14. Gurudas Kamat (51) INC 0
15. Praful Patel (53) NCP 0
16. Prakash Ambedkar (51) RPI 0
17. Ramdas Athavale (55) RPI 0
18. Vinay Kore (37) JSP 0
19. Sushilkumar Shinde (66) INC 0
20. Balasaheb Vikhe-Patil (76) INC 0
21. Manohar Joshi (71) SS 0
22. Vijaysingh Mohite Patil (64) NCP 0
23. Vinod Tawde (45) BJP 0
24. Raju Shetty (42) IND New
25. Supriya Sule (39) NCP 0

Party Code

BJP – Bharatiya Janata Party

INC – Indian National Congress
IND – Independent
JSS – Jana Surajya Shakti

MNS – Maharashtra Navanirman Sena

NCP – Nationalist Congress Party

PWP – Peasants & Workers Party (Shetkari Kamgar Paksha)

RPI – Republican Party of India (any faction)

SS – Shiv Sena

Movement on the MahaPol ladder –
0 : Zero indicates that there has been no change in the ranking over the previous month.
+X : Plus indicates improvement in ranking over last month and ‘x’ indicates how many ranks he/ she has moved upwards.
-X : Minus indicates degradation in ranking over last month and ‘x’ indicates how many ranks he/ she has moved downwards.

To understand the methodology used for the ranking click here.

The figure in bracket indicates the age of the politician.

Analysis

• A lame-duck CM seems to be not in charge as Congress heads for the battlefield… with little chances of his being at the helm post elections, Ashok Chavan has been pulled down 2 rungs.
• The above development has catapulted Raj Thackeray at an unprecedented rank of #3!
• Sadashiv Mandlik could not sustain his foothold on this Powerlist and has been replaced by Raju Shetty… another independent from Southern Maharashtra. He is incidentally the only worthwhile candidate in the new formation called Republican Left Democratic Front.
  

MahaPol can be directly contacted on mahapol25@gmail.com