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The first thing that would have struck anyone entering the SP College on Sunday was the massive security. 

The college was the venue of the 83rd Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan and as one entered the campus under the massive archway constructed for the event, the security for what was a literary shindig - no matter how high profile - might have come as surprise. All belongings of every entrant was checked and then checked again by the security guards in place.

 It was just before the lunch hour when this reporter walked into the sprawling grounds which were dotted with large white tent-like structures, interspersed with red carpets welcoming the hordes in. The searing heat, however, did not seem to have deterred the lovers of the written word as hundreds thronged the area. 

The crowd was motley  from enthusiastic college students to senior citizens all togged up for a day out; from NRIs to the average typical Punekar; from women in their best sarees to khadi-clad politicians looking to make a statement with their presence.

I even spotted a couple of squealing babies (appreciating literature in your mother-tongue can never start too early can it). If it was one thing they all had in common, it looked like it was their love for the Marathi language and an ardent interest in the literature born out of it. 

The heat was intolerable and excerpts from an interesting discussion were wafting out from the largest tent. I walked in to discover the guests on the dais in the throes of a topic currently trending in the news  whether Marathi should be made compulsory in the state. 

He came, he recited poems, and he conquered! Superstar Amitabh Bachchan on Sunday mesmerised 20,000 or so literature lovers in Pune. He not only expressed gratitude to Maharashtra and its people for everything he has gained in life, but he also recited some poems by his father, the late Harivansh Rai Bachchan, which had the audience spellbound.

Bachchan was in Pune to attend the concluding session of the three-day all-India Marathi literary conference. Addressing the gathering, he said, “I consider myself part of Maharashtra. This state has given me name, fame, home, wife, children and even criticism, which is necessary for one’s life.

“Whatever I am at present has been due to Maharashtra. In my 68 years, I have lived in Mumbai for 41. And I consider myself part of this glorious state.”

Jnanpith Award winner for Sanskrit literature Satyavrat Shastri was the chief guest at the function. Conference president Da Bhi Kulkarni, Sahitya Mahamandal president Kautikrao Thale-Patil, and reception committee chairman Satish Desai were also present. Chief minister Ashok Chavan skipped the function though the invite said he would be the chief guest.

Lauding Pune’s contribution to literature, art, and culture in the past, Bachchan said the city would be known for these things in the future, too. “Pune is the heart of Marathi literature and culture,” he said, hailing the contribution of poet-saints like Dnyaneshwar, Namdeo, Eknath, Tukaram and Ramdas. “Not many know that I had decided to make Jaya my wife in Pune,” he revealed. Bachchan also paid tribute to the late Vinda Karandikar. 

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