Maharashtra

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Maharashtra

Capital - Coordinates	Mumbai - 18.96° N 72.82° E
Largest city	Mumbai
Population (2001) - Density	96,752,247 (2nd) - 314.42/km²
Area - Districts	307,713 km² (3rd) - 35
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Establishment - Governor - Chief Minister - Legislature (seats)	1960-05-01 - SM Krishna - Vilasrao Deshmukh - Bicameral (289 + 78)
Official language(s)	Marathi
Abbreviation (ISO)	IN-MH
Website: www.maharashtra.gov.in
Seal of Maharashtra

Maharashtra (Marathi: महाराष्ट्र mahārāṣṭra, IPA: /məhaːraːʂʈrə/ (help·info), English: Great Nation) is India's third largest state in terms of area and second largest in terms of population after Uttar Pradesh. It is bordered by the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Goa and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The Arabian Sea makes up the state's western coast. Mumbai, India's largest city, is the capital of Maharashtra where as Nagpur serves as the second capital or winter capital of the state.

Maharashtra was known as Rashtra in the Rig Veda, Rashtrik in Ashoka's inscriptions, and Maha rashtra afterwards, as attested by Huein-Tsang and other travellers. The name appears to have been derived from Maharashtri, in an old form of Prakrit, an ancient Indian language.

However, there are other theories put forward by different schools of thought. One possible derivation is believed to be the corruption of the term Maha Kantara, which means "Great Forest"^[1].

1 History
2 Geography
3 Protected areas of Maharashtra
4 Economy
- 4.1 Macro-economic trend
5 Government
- 5.1 Revenues of Government
6 Demographics
7 Divisions
8 Principal cities
9 Transport
10 Culture
11 References
12 See also
13 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Medieval history and Islamic rule

Not much is known about Maharashtra's early history, and its recorded history dates back to the 3rd century BC, with the use the Maharastri language, a Prakrit corruption of Sanskrit. Maharashtra was known as Dandakaranya, i.e. the jungle (aranya) which bound by rules (dandakas). Later, Maharashtra became a part of the Magadha empire, ruled by the Buddhist emperor Ashoka. The port town of Sopara, just north of present day Mumbai, was the centre of ancient India's commerce, with links to Eastern Africa, Mesopotamia, Aden and Cochin. With the disintegration of the Mauryan Empire, a local dynasty called Satavahanas came into prominence in Maharashtra between 230 BC and AD 225. The period saw the biggest cultural development of Maharashtra. The Satavahana's official language was Maharashtri, which later developed into Marathi. The great ruler Gautamiputra Satkarni (also known as "Shalivahan") ruled around 78 AD. He started the Shalivahana era, a new calendar, still used by Maharashtrian populace. The empire gradually disintegrated in the third century.

During the reign of the Vakatakas (AD 250–525), Vidarbha, the eastern region of Maharashtra, come under their rule. During this period, development of arts, religion and technology flourished. By the 6th century, Maharashtra came under the reign of the Chalukyas from Badami. Later, in 753, the region was governed by Rashtrakutas, an empire that spread over most of peninsula India. In 973, the Chalukayas of Badami expelled the Rashtrakutas, and ruled parts of Maharashtra until 1189 when the region came under the hands of the Yadavas of Deogiri.

Maharashtra came under Islamic influence for the first time after the Delhi Sultanate rulers Ala-ud-din Khalji, and later Muhammad bin Tughluq appropriated parts of the Deccan in the 13th century. After the collapse of the Tughlaqs in 1347, the Bahmani Sultanate of Bijapur took over, governing the region for the next 150 years. By the 16th century, central Maharashtra was ruled by numerous autonomous Islamic kingdoms that owed allegiance to the Mughals, while coastal region was annexed by the Portuguese, in their quest to seize control of the spice trade.

[edit] Marathas and Peshwas

Portrait of Shivaji Maharaj

By the early seventeenth century the Maratha Empire began to take root. The Marathas, native to western Maharashtra, were led by Chhatrapati Raje Shivaji Bhosale, who was crowned king in 1674. Shivaji Maharaj (as he was referred to by his subjects) fought many battles with Mughal empire which was then ruled by Aurangzeb. He also fought several battles with King of Vijapur, Adilshah. Later he was engaged in few small battles with British army who were then in the early stages of their long and exhaustive control over Maharsahtra. Shivaji Raje was the most able, successful, popular and respected king Maharashtra ever had.

Shivaji's son and successor, Sambhaji Bhosale was captured and executed by Aurangzeb, the Mughal in the late 1680s. The Mughals forced Sambhaji's younger brother, Rajaram Bhosale to flee into the Tamil-speaking countryside. He retreated to the great fortress of Jinji (sometimes anglicised to Ginjee) to barely recover in the early 18th century, in somewhat changed circumstances.

Rajaram's nephew & Sambhaji's son, Shahu Bhosale considered himself to be the legitimate heir to the Bhosale throne. In 1714, Shahu's Peshwa (chief minister) Balaji Vishwanath, helped him seize the Maratha throne in 1708, with some acrimony from Rajaram's widow, Tara Bai.

In the following four decades, the Peshwas virtually took over central authority in the Maratha state, reducing Shivaji's Bhosale dynasty to figureheads. After defeating the Mughals, the Peshwas became the dominant rulers of India. Peshwas not only ruled Maharashtra, but their empire was also covering Delhi (Panipat)- Gujarat ( Mehsana) - Madhya Pradesh (Gwalior, Indore) and to south till Thanjaur.

The Peshwas, Balaji Vishwanath and his son, Baji Rao I, bureaucratized the Maratha state. They systematized the practice of tribute gathering from Mughal territories, under the heads of sardesmukhi and chauth (the two terms corresponding to the proportion of revenue collected). They also consolidated Mughal-derived methods of assessment and collection of land revenue and other taxes. Much of the revenue terminology used in Peshwa documents derives from Persian, suggesting a far greater continuity between Mughal and Maratha revenue practice than may be politically palatable in the present day.

The years under Peshwa rule, saw the development of sophisticated networks of trade, banking, and finance; the rise of substantial banking houses based at Pune, with branches extending into Gujarat, the Ganges Valley, and the south; and an expansion of the agricultural frontier.

At the same time, Balaji Vishwanath cultivated the maritime Angre clan, which controlled a fleet of vessels based in Kolaba and other centres of the west coast. These ships posed a threat not only to the new English settlement of Bombay, but to the Portuguese at Goa, Bassein, and Daman.

On the other hand, there also emerged a far larger domain of activity away from the original heartland of the Marathas, which was given over to subordinate chiefs as fiefs. Gwalior was given to Scindia, Indore to Holkar, Baroda to Gaekwad and Dhar to Pawar.

After suffering a heavy defeat to the Afghan chieftain Ahmad Shah Abdali, in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761, the Maratha Confederacy broke into regional kingdoms.

Post-Panipat, the Peshwa's ex-generals looked after the little kingdoms they had been given. Pune continued to be ruled by what was left of the Peshwa family.

Branches of the Bhosale family itself, relocated to Kolhapur, while the main line remained in the Deccan heartland, at Satara. The Kolhapur Bhosales derived from Rajaram and his wife, Maharani Tara Bai, who had refused in 1708 to accept Shahu's rule. The Kolhapur Bhosales remained in control of minuscule territory into the early 19th century.

[edit] British Rule and Post-Independence

Samyukta Maharashtra Memorial, Mumbai

With the arrival and subsequent involvement of the British East India Company in Indian politics, the Marathas and the British fought the three Anglo-Maratha wars between 1777 and 1818, culminating in the annexation of Peshwa-ruled territory in Maharashtra in 1819, which heralded the end of the Maratha empire.

The British governed the region as part of the Bombay Presidency, which spanned an area from Karachi in Pakistan to most of the northern Deccan. A number of the Maratha states persisted as princely states, retaining local autonomy in return for acknowledging British sovereignty. The largest princely states in the territory of present-day Maharashtra were Nagpur, Satara and Kolhapur; Satara was annexed to Bombay Presidency in 1848, and Nagpur was annexed in 1853 to become Nagpur Province, later part of the Central Provinces. Berar, which had been part of the Nizam of Hyderabad's kingdom, was occupied by the British in 1853 and annexed to the Central Provinces in 1903. A large part of present day Maharashtra called Marathwada remained part of the Nizam's Hyderabad state during British rule. The British rule was marked by social reforms, an improvement in infrastructure as well revolts due to their discriminatory policies. At the beginning of the 20th century, A non-violent struggle started by Bal Gangadhar Tilak and later led by Mahatma Gandhi began to take shape. In 1942, the Quit India Movement was called by Mahatma Gandhi which was marked by a non-violent civil disobedience movement and strikes.

After India's independence in 1947, the princely states were integrated into the Indian Union, and the Deccan States including Kolhapur were integrated into Bombay State, which was created from the former Bombay Presidency in 1950. In 1956, the States Reorganisation Act reorganized the Indian states along linguistic lines, and Bombay Presidency State was enlarged by the addition the predominantly Marathi-speaking regions of Marathwada (Aurangabad Division) from erstwhile Hyderabad state and Vidarbha region (Amravati and Nagpur divisions) from Madhya Pradesh (formerly the Central Provinces and Berar). On May 1, 1960, Maharashtra came into existence when Bombay Presidency State was split into the new linguistic states of Maharashtra and Gujarat. There was widespread discontent among the people of Vidarbha when it was included in Maharashtra. The people of Vidarbha consider themselves to be of a distinct culture which is different from the culture of the rest of Maharashtra. These people have ever since demanded a separate state in the union.

[edit] Geography

[edit] Protected areas of Maharashtra

Several wildlife sanctuaries, national parks and Project Tiger reserves have been created in Maharashtra, with the aim of conserving the rich bio-diversity of the region. As of May 2004, India has 92 national parks, of which 5 are located in Maharashtra. Much of Maharashtra's forests and consequently the wildlife are in Vidarbha region. These are:

Gugamal National Park, also known as Melghat Tiger Reserve is located in Vidarbha region in Amravati district.
Navegaon National Park, located near Nagpur in the eastern region of Vidarbha is home to many species of birds, deer, bears and leopards.
Pench National Park, in Nagpur district also in Vidarbha, extends into Madhya Pradesh as well. It has now been upgraded into a Tiger project.
Sanjay Gandhi National Park, also known as Borivali National Park is located in Mumbai and is the world's largest national park within city limits.
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Project, is a prominent tiger reserve near Chandrapur in Vidarbha.

Apart from these, Maharashtra has 35 wild life sanctuaries spread all over the state, listed here. The Nagzira (Bhandara district), Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary, and the Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary are the important ones.

[edit] Economy

[edit] Macro-economic trend

Mumbai stock exchange

This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Maharashtra at market prices estimated by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.

Year	Gross State Domestic Product
1980	166,310
1985	296,160
1990	644,330
1995	1,578,180
2000	2,386,720

Favourable economic policies in the 1970s led to Maharashtra becoming India's leading industrial state. However, regions within Maharashtra show wide disparity in development. Apart from Mumbai, Pune and western Maharashtra is the most advanced. It also dominates the politics and bureaucracy of the state. This has led to resentment among backward regions like Vidarbha, Marathwada, and Konkan. There was a movement in Vidarbha to separate from Maharashtra and become a separate state largely owing to lack of development and perceived sense of injustice.

Maharashtra's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $106 billion in current prices. Maharastra is second most urbanised state with urban population of 42% of whole population.

Maharashtra's is India's leading industrial state contributing 13% of national industrial output. 64.14% of the people are employed in agriculture and allied activities. Almost 46% of the GSDP is contributed by industry. Major industries in Maharashtra include chemical and allied products, electrical and non-electrical machinery, textiles, petroleum and allied products. Other important industries include metal products, wine, jewellery, pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, machine tools, steel and iron castings and plastic wares. Food crops include mangoes, grapes, bananas, oranges, wheat, rice, jowar, bajra, and pulses. Cash crops include groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, turmeric, and tobacco. The net irrigated area totals 33,500 square kilometres.

Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra houses the headquarters of almost all major banks, financial institutions, insurance companies and mutual funds. Within Mumbai is located Bollywood, the centre of India's Hindi film and television industry. India's largest stock exchange Bombay Stock Exchange, oldest in Asia, is located in the city. After successes in the information technology in the neighbouring states, Maharashtra has set up software parks in Pune, Nagpur, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Nasik, Now maharashtra is second largest exporter of softwares with exports of Rs 18000cr(20% of india's exports).

Maharashtra ranks first nationwide in coal-based thermal electricity as well as nuclear electricity generation with national market shares of over 13% and 17% respectively.

Maharashtra is also introducing Jatropha cultivation and has started a project for the identification of suitable sites for Jatropha plantations.^[2]

Ralegaon Siddhi is a village in Ahmednagar District that is considered a model of environmental conservation. ^[3]

Over 41% of the S&P CNX 500 conglomerates have corporate offices in Maharashtra.

See also: List of conglomerates in Maharashtra

[edit] Government

Maharashtra State's Mantralaya

Like all states in India, the head of state is the governor, appointed by the Central government. His or her post is largely ceremonial. The Chief Minister is the head of government and is vested with most of the executive powers. Maharashtra's capital is Mumbai, home to the Vidhan Sabha – the state assembly and Mantralaya, the administrative offices of the government. It is also home to the Bombay High Court which has jurisdiction over Maharashtra, Goa, and the Union Territory of Daman and Diu. The legislature convenes its budget and monsoon sessions in Mumbai, and the winter session in Nagpur, which was designated as the state's auxiliary capital.

Maharashtra's legislature is bicameral, one of the few states in India to have a bicameral type. The Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) is the lower house consisting of directly elected members. The Vidhan Parishad (Legislative Council) is the upper house, whose members are indirectly voted through an electoral college. Maharashtra is allocated nineteen seats in the Rajya Sabha and forty-eight in the Lok Sabha, India's national parliament.

After India's independence, most of Maharashtra's political history was dominated by the Congress party. Maharashtra became a bastion of the Congress party producing stalwarts such as Y.B. Chavan, one of its most prominent Chief Ministers. The party enjoyed near unchallenged dominance of the political landscape until 1995 when the right wing Shiv Sena and BJP secured an overwhelming majority in the state to form a coalition. After a split in the Congress party, former chief minister Sharad Pawar formed the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), but formed a coalition with the Congress to keep out the BJP-SS combine. The 2004 elections saw the NCP gaining the largest number of seats to become the state's largest party, eroding much of the Shiv Sena's base. Under a pre-poll power sharing agreement, the Chief Minister would be from the Congress while the deputy Chief Minister would be from the NCP. Vilasrao Deshmukh is current CM and R. R. Patil (NCP) is DCM.

See also: :Category:Indian political parties-Maharashtra

[edit] Revenues of Government

This is a chart of trend of own tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) of the Government of Maharashtra assessed by the Finance Commissions from time to time with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.^[4]

Year	Own Tax Revenues
2000	198,821
2005	332,476

This is a chart of trend of own non-tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) of the Government of Maharashtra assessed by the Finance Commissions from time to time with figures in millions of Indian Rupees. ^[5]

Year	Own Non-tax Revenues
2000	26,030
2005	30,536

[edit] Demographics

A person native to the state is called a Maharashtrian. As per the 2001 census, Maharashtra has a population of 96,752,247 inhabitants making it the second most populous state in India, and the second most populous country subdivision in existence. The Marathi-speaking population of Maharashtra numbers 62,481,681 according to the 2001 census. This is a reflection of the cosmopolitan nature of the state. Only eleven countries of the world have a population greater than Maharashtra. Its density is 322.5 inhabitants per square kilometre. Males constitute 50.3 million and females, 46.4 million. Maharashtra's urban population stands at 42.4%. Its sex ratio is 922 females to 1000 males. 77.27% of its population is literate, broken into 86.2% males and 67.5% females. Its growth rate between 1991-2001 was pegged at 22.57%.

Marathi is the official state language. Marathi is spoken by a vast majority of its populace. In Mumbai however, due to its cosmopolitan nature, Hindi, and English, along with a variety of other languages are also spoken. In the northwest portion of Maharashtra, a dialect Ahirani is spoken by a minority. In south Konkan, a dialect of Konkani (sometimes called a dialect of Marathi) called as Malvani is spoken by most of the people. In the Desh region of the Deccan, a dialect called Deshi is spoken. While in Vidarbha, a dialect of Marathi, known as Varhadi is spoken by most of the people.

The state has a Hindu majority of 80.2% with minorities of Muslims 10.6%, Buddhists 6%, Jains 1.3% and Christians 1%. Maharashtra has the biggest Jain, Zoroastrian and Jewish populations in India.

The Total Fertility Rate in 2001 was 2.23. Caste Hindus - 2.09, Muslims - 2.49, Christians - 1.41, Jains - 1.41, Sikh - 1.57, Budhist - 2.24, Others -2.25, Tribals - 3.14 and Dalits of all religions - 2.42(Hindu Dalits had higher TFR compared to Budhist Dalits). [1]

[edit] Divisions

Main article: Districts of Maharashtra

Divisions of Maharashtra

Maharashtra is divided into thirty-five districts, which are grouped into six divisions: Aurangabad Division, Amravati Division, Konkan Division, Nagpur Division, Nashik Division, and Pune Division. These are official revenue divisions of government of Maharashtra.

Geographically, historically and according to political sentiments Maharashtra has five main regions: Vidarbha or Berar (Nagpur and Amravati divisions), Marathwada (Aurangabad Division), Khandesh and Northern Maharashtra (Nashik Division), Desh or Western Maharashtra (Pune Division), and Konkan (Konkan Division).

[edit] Principal cities

In contrast to the agrarian economy that characterises India, Maharashtra stands out, with the highest level of urbanisation of all Indian states[2]. The mountainous topography and soil are not as suitable for intensive agriculture as the plains of North India; therefore, the proportion of the urban population (38.69 per cent) contrasts starkly with the national average (25.7 per cent).

The state has one metropolitan city, two mini-metropolises and many large towns. Mumbai is the state capital, with a population of approximately 9.926 million people. The other large cities are Pune, Nasik, Nagpur, Aurangabad and Kolhapur.

Mumbai: Mumbai is the financial and commercial capital of India. It has the largest proportion of taxpayers in India and its share markets transact almost 70 per cent of the country’s stocks. Mumbai offers a lifestyle that is rich, cosmopolitan and diverse, with a variety of food, entertainment and nightlife available in a form and abundance comparable to that in world capitals.

Pune: Pune, the second largest city in Maharashtra, and also the 7th largest in India, is the state's cultural capital, with a population of 4.0 million people. About 170-km from Mumbai by road, Pune was the bastion of the Maratha empire. Under the reign of the Peshwas - key ministers in the Maratha Empire - Pune blossomed into a centre of art and learning. Several far-reaching revenue and judicial reforms were also initiated in the city. Shaniwarwada, Saras baug, Aga Khan Palace, Parvati Temple, Khadakwasla Dam, Sinhgad are the most visited places by tourists in Pune. 'Ganeshotsav', a festival of Lord Ganesh is celebrated in Pune with lot of enthusiasm and worship. Chitale Bandhu Mithaiwale's 'Bakar Wadi' and 'Amba Burfi' are famous all over the world.

Nashik: One of the holy cities of the Hindu tradition, Nashik lies on the banks of the sacred river Godavari and has a population of about 0.725 million people. It is believed that Lord Rama, hero of the great Indian epic, the Ramayana, spent a major part of his exile here. Nashik is also a temple town, with over 200 temples. The miraculous Infant Jesus Shrine where catholics and people of all faiths come to seek some miracle is situated at Nashik Road.

Nagpur: The nerve centre of Vidarbha (eastern Maharashtra), Nagpur - the 'orange city' as it is known - is located in the heart of India, with a population of about 1.7 million people.Nagpur is a growing industrial centre and the home of several industries, ranging from food products and chemicals to electrical and transports equipment.

Aurangabad: Malik Ambar, the Prime Minister of Murtaza Nizam Shah II, and the then ruler of the Deccan (central parts of Southern India), founded Aurangabad in 1610. The city has a population of about 0.593 million people.

Kolhapur: In southern Maharashtra, on the banks of the river Panchganga, Kolhapur is an ancient town known for its exquisite palaces and forts. In 1945, archaeological excavations close to a hill near Kolhapur revealed the existence of an ancient town dating back to the times of the Roman empire. Today, Kolhapur is a modern city with a population of about 0.419 million people and a thriving industrial infrastructure.

Solapur: Solapur is one of the big city in Western Maharashtra. It is famous for 'Solapuri Chadari', 'Shengadana Chatni'. 'Siddheshwar Temple' of Lord Shiva is the attraction of tourists.

[edit] Transport

Mumbai-Pune Expressway

MSRTC's Asiad and Volvo bus

The Indian Railways covers most of the Maharashtra and is the preferred mode of transport over long distances. Almost the entire state comes under the Central Railways branch which is headquartered in Mumbai. Most of the coast south of Mumbai comes under the Konkan Railway. Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation buses, popularly called ST or MSRTC, link most of the towns and villages and have a large network of operation. These buses, run by the state government are the preferred mode of transport for much of its populace. In addition to the government run buses, private run luxury buses are also a popular mode of transport between major towns.

Mumbai has the biggest international airport in Maharashtra. Nagpur is the second city having an international airport. It has regular flights to Sharjah and Bangkok besides large number of domestic connections. Pune has a limited capacity international airport with flights to Dubai and Singapore. Other large towns such as Aurangabad, Ratnagiri, Kolhapur and Nashik are served by domestic airlines. Ferry services also operate near the capital, linking the city to neighbouring coastal towns. Other modes of public transport, such as a seven-seater tempo have gained popularity in semi-urban areas. Maharashtra has a large highway network and recently built the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the first controlled-access toll road project in India. Another major highway linking Mumbai with second capital Nagpur is in the works. Maharashtra has three major ports at Mumbai (operated by the Mumbai Port Trust), the JNPT lying across the Mumbai harbour in Nhava Sheva, and in Ratnagiri, which handles the export of ores mined in the Maharastra hinterland.

[edit] Culture

See also Cultural festivals in Maharashtra & Maharashtrian cuisine

Ganesh Festival

Hindus form the majority of Maharashtra population & the culture of Maharashtra reflects that. There are many temples in Maharashtra some of them being hundreds of years old. These temples are constructed in a fusion of architectural styles from borrowed from North and South India. The temples also blend themes from Hindu, Buddhist and Jain cultures. The temple of Vitthala at Pandharpur may be considered the most important to the Maharashtrian Hindu population. Many of the temples are tourist attractions with the most famous amongst them being the Ajanta and Ellora Caves near Aurangabad. A famous example of Mughal architecture is the tomb of the wife of Aurangzeb called Bibi Ka Maqbara also located at Aurangabad. The landscape of Maharashtra is dotted with many forts, like Raigad and Pratapgad which played an extremely important part in the establishment of the Maratha empire and also sea forts like the one at Sindhudurg.

The folk music of Maharashtra is of various types viz. Gondhal, Lavani, Bharud, Powada, etc.

One of the earliest instances of Marathi literature is by Dnyaneshwar with his Bhawarthadeepika (popularly known as Dnyaneshwari). The religious songs called bhajans by saints like Dnyaneshwar, Tukaram, Namdev are very poular. Modern Marathi literature has its share of great poets and authors. P. L. Deshpande, Kusumagraj, Prahlad Keshav Atre, Vyankatesh Madgulkar are a few of them. A large number of books are published every year in Marathi.

The theatre, movies and television in Maharashtra are chiefly based out of Mumbai with the actors moving freely between the different media. Some notable names in the movie industry include the pioneer of Indian movie industry, Dadasaheb Phalke,writer, director, actor P. L. Deshpande, actor Ashok Saraf, actor Laxmikant Berde, actor & producer, Sachin Pilgaonkar, Mahesh Kothare and actor, producer & director V. Shantaram. The early period of Marathi theatre was dominated by playwrights like Kolhatkar, Khadilkar, Deval, Gadkari and Kirloskar who enriched the Marathi theatre for about half a century with excellent musical plays known as Sangeet Naatak and the genre of music used in such plays known as Natyasangeet. It is during this era of the Marathi theatre that great singer actors like Bal Gandharva, Keshavrao Bhosle, Bhaurao Kolhatkar, Dinanath Mangeshkar thrived.

Some of the popular Marathi television channels are Zee Marathi and ETV Marathi, with shows ranging from soap operas, cooking and travel to political satire and game shows.

The cuisine of Maharashtra varies according to the region of Maharashtra. The people of the Konkan region have a chiefly rice based diet with fish being a major component for people living close to the sea. In eastern Maharashtra, the diet is based more on Wheat, Jowar and Bajra. All kinds of lentils, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, chilies, garlic and ginger are common ingredients in the cuisine of Maharashtra. Chicken and Mutton are also widely eaten throughout the state.

Women traditionally wear a nine yard sari and men a dhoti or pajama with a shirt. This, however, is changing with women ine urban Maharashtra wearing Punjabi dresses, consisting of a Salwar and a Kurta while men wear trousers and a shirt.

As in all of India, Cricket is widely followed and played. Kabaddi is also played. Children’s games include Viti-Dandu (Gilli-danda in Hindi) and Pakada-pakadi (Tag).

Hindus in Maharashtra follow the Saka era calendar. Gudi Padwa, Diwali, Rangapanchami, Gokulashtami and Ganeshotsav are some of the festivals that are celebrated in Maharashtra.Ganeshotsav is the biggest festival of Maharashtra which is celebrated with much reverence and festivity throughout the state and has since some time become popular all over the country. The festival which continues over ten days is in honour of Ganesha the God of learning and knowledge. A large number of people walk hundreds of kilometers to Pandharpur for the annual pilgrimage in the month of Ashadh.