Kolhapur held a special place in Narilkar's heart
Kolhapur
: In his 2016 memoir "
My Tale Of Four Cities
", written in English, renowned cosmologist
Jayant Narlikar
recounted his life across Varanasi, Cambridge, Mumbai and Pune.
He also dedicated a chapter, "Summer Vacations in Kolhapur", to his cherished annual visits to his
ancestral hometown
: Kolhapur.
Narlikar noted that despite opportunities to visit other tourist destinations, his parents consistently chose Kolhapur — their hometown for three generations before his father. These trips, beginning in 1938, would last for around two to three months. The journey from Varanasi involved taking the Bombay Mail to Bombay, then the Deccan Queen or Poona Mail to Pune, followed by an overnight trip on the Pune-Kolhapur Mail.
Upon arrival, Narlikar, his sister and brother Anant would stay at Huzurbazar Wada at the foot of Bhende Galli, while his father, Vishnu, resided in the ancestral Narlikar Bhavan on Mahadwar Road. Narlikar was also born in Kolhapur at the
Dabholkar Nursing Home
.
Narlikar also fascinated train journeys. "There were special saloons belonging to the royal family of Kolhapur, standing on the tracks. We would try to climb them to catch glimpses of the luxurious fittings inside," wrote Narlikar, who wished he could travel in such luxury and mentioned that his wish was fulfilled in 1986 when he travelled on the engine of the Koyna Express on the Pune-Lonavala sector.
In his book, Narlikar remembers visiting Temblai Hill, from the top of which they could see a panoramic view of the city. On the way back, his father treated them with Amboli, a special version of dosa, for the kids.
Despite attempts to learn swimming, Narlikar and his brother Anant were deterred by their fear of the Panchganga river. Their mother and sister ultimately ended their lessons, a decision that brought relief to a young Narlikar.
He later recalled in his book that leaving Kolhapur for Varanasi was a painful experience for him.
Uday Kulkarni, a veteran journalist and activist, said, "Three generations of Narlikars spent their lives in Kolhapur. The Narlikars' wada was trimmed during road widening and then redeveloped as Narlikar Bhavan. When he became well-known in the field of science, we used to call him for lectures in Vidnyan Prabhodini. He used to deliver lectures for free, and whenever we mailed the fees, he politely returned them.
The people of Kolhapur recognised his contribution and publicly felicitated him with the Kolhapur Bhushan and Rajarshi Shahu Puraskar."
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