Dhere Center

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Time wipes away the footprints of history. And along with that fade away the various cultures that humans painstakingly build to bond with the communities they live with and the earth that provides them the very basics of their existence. But should such cultural foundations be allowed to simply disintegrate and crumble into nothingness? Rather, they should be kept alive. And that is what many individuals and organisations involve themselves with, one of them being the Dr. R C Dhere Center for Cultural Studies, established to keep intact the legacy left behind by renowned scholar and researcher Dr. Ramchandra Chintaman Dhere.
The literary treasure that Dr. Dhere has left behind is one of the reasons for the formation of a public charitable trust – the ‘Dr. R C Dhere Center for Cultural Studies’. In several ways, the Trust will make this historic and modern literary treasure available to young researchers and scholars. A great tradition of dedicated scholars has always been a precious asset of Maharashtra. The writing and collection of books of Dr. Dhere have an inherent strength for keeping this tradition intact and united.
This treasure comprises rare and valuable books from various disciplines like ancient Marathi literature, saints’literature, theogony, theology, sociology, anthropology, mythology, history, Sanskrit literature, dramas, autobiographies, biographies, folklore, books on environment, and texts on sacred sites of India.
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Scholars can get references of hundreds of subjects just by browsing among the magazines in the collection. For instance, one may not be able to see anywhere else such an extensive collection of references about the culture of South India, including states of Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
This treasure chest of rare books can also provide useful references for cultural exchanges between India and the neighbouring South Asian countries. The center has already initiated the data entry work. Cataloguing and digitization are the next stages, which is a gigantic and time-consuming task. The center intends to complete this task in the upcoming year. This, of course, calls for generous financial support and human resource to ensure speedy and efficient completion of the task, this being the first priority of the center.

Legacy

Many national-international scholars refer Dr. Dhere’s books to understand the cultural tradition of Maharashtra. Lot of international scholars also often cite his work in various fora and on official research platforms. Dr. Dhere was honoured with the ‘Maharashtra Gaurav’ award by the Government of Maharashtra, Lifetime Achievement Award by Maharashtra Foundation, Sahitya Academy Award and various awards by Pune and Mumbai University as well as Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad. He breathed his last on July 1, 2016.
In addition, Dr. Dhere amassed in the course of his research and writing a collection of more than 60,000 books, of which about 20,000 were donated to libraries and institutions in the state, leaving behind a cache of more than 40,000 books. These include ancient manuscripts, magazines and encyclopaedias along with modern books. It contains volumes not only in Marathi but also Sanskrit, Hindi, English and Kannada, covering a vast range and portfolio of Indian culture.
The collection is undoubtedly precious and is an invaluable resource for future scholars and seekers. It is also capable of inculcating a coherent and harmonious culture which once prevailed in this land and may inspire future researchers and scholars with a positive attitude along with generating a genuine interest in related research topics.

Vision

Dr. R C Dhere Center for Cultural Studies will be an institution in perpetuity that will build an academic organisation that aims to make a difference to society through creation of knowledge and building cultural linkages.

Mission

The ‘Dr. R C Dhere Center for Cultural Studies’ will function with the following objectives in mind:
  • It will preserve and conserve the valuable collection of books that it owns and make this reference material available to students, researchers and scholars with all state-of-the-art facilities.
  • It will inspire young scholars for studies in folklore, history, Indology, arts and culture.
  • It will organise various events and implement projects that will broaden the perspective of students and society in general towards India’s vast and fascinating cultural heritage.
  • It will work towards preserving the country’s folk culture and support folk arts and folk artists.
  • Aware of the contribution of women in building the country’s culture, it will focus on their participation in the overall cultural development movement.
  • It will explore the co-relation between environment and culture and strive to study the same in relation to sustainable development.

Call for Support

Several benevolent donors have played a crucial role so far in the development of the center. The management hopes that this support continues in the future. Recognising the center’s thrust on inculcating research acumen and imbibing Dr. Dhere’s interdisciplinary approach among young scholars, the management earnestly appeals to individuals and various institutions to extend financial or infrastructural support to the above activities and become a part of this ambitious drive to carry the legacy forward. Any such contribution would be deeply valued and appreciated.
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