Marathi and its importance

Marathi a New Indo-Aryan language is the primary language of Maharashtra, the third largest state of India. Marathi is the fourth dominant language after Hindi, Telugu and Bangla. Marathi ranks 19th in the list of most spoken languages in the world. According to the 2001 census, there are 96 million speakers of Marathi.

The Marathi language is a descendant of Maharashtri Prakrit descended from Sanskrit. It has a long and sacred tradition, though it is difficult to date the earliest scriptures. It is said that the first inscription in Marathi dated AD 983 is at Shravanbelgol in Karnataka. Mukundaraja 'Viveksindhu', Mahimbhatta's 'Leelacharitra' and Saint Dnyaneshwar's 'Bhavartha Deepika' (Dnyaneshwari) were the early texts in Marathi. Since then a gigantic flow of outstanding literature is throbbing in the hearts of people. Marathi language is enriched by the writings of profound philosophers and saint poets such as Dnyaneshwar, Naamdev, Eknath, Tukaram, Ramdas, Bahenabai, etc. social reformers and thinkers such as Mahatma Phule, Agarkar, Tilak, Ketkar, Ranade, Savarkar, Babasaheb Ambedkar etc. Marathi literature is found abundant in all forms of stories, novels, biographies, essays, dramas, history, poetry, saint literature, folk-literature, dictionaries, science, magazines, newspapers, etc. From colonial period, Marathi theatre is considered as a unique attribute of Marathi culture. Presently, Marathi is considered as the only language in which a literary event called Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan (All-India Marathi Literature Meet) is held every year at various locations around the globe.

Location

Pune is a city located in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. With a population of 3.5 million, it is the ninth-most populous city in India and second largest city in the state of Maharashtra. It is located roughly 120 kilometers east of Mumbai at an altitude of 560 meters above sea level. It is situated at the eastern edge of the Western ghats on the Deccan plateau.

Pune was once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire established by Shivaji Maharaj. In the 18th century, Pune became the political centre of the Indian subcontinent, as the seat of Peshwas who were the prime ministers of the Maratha Empire were based here. Pune is widely considered the cultural capital of Maharashtra. Pune has a reputation for its several esteemed colleges and educational institutions-- the reason why it is called the Oxford of the East (or 'Oxford of India'). It has a very strong presence in the automobile sector and is on its way to consolidate its position as the 'Detroit of India' too. Once referred as a 'Pensioners paradise' it is now home to many software and IT companies.

The Program

The syllabus is designed according to the students' proficiency level. The medium of instruction for all classes is Marathi.

	9-10	10-11	11.00 - 11.15	11.15 - 12.15	12.15 - 1.15
Monday	Grammar Review	Literary Reading		PT	Writing - Composition		Journal Error Correction
Tuesday	Grammar Review	Oral Presentation - Narration	Tea	Listening - Audio / Film preparation	Magazine Reading	Lunch	Zero hour
Wednesday	PT	Newspaper Reading	Break	Film Viewing/ Vocabulary Review	Film Viewing/ Language Games	Break
Thursday	Grammar Drills	Monolingual guest / Guest Lecture/ Local trip preparation		Listening - Video / Film Review	Writing - Translation/ Dictation		Local Trip
Friday	Oral Presentation - Situational Conversation	Monolingual guest / Guest Lecture		PT	Weekly Test	Student - Teacher meeting, next week preparation	Local Trip

Advanced Reading Course in Marathi

The aim of this reading course is to help the students to read the texts in their related field of interest.

• Eligibility - minimum one year of Marathi study.
• Duration - one semester (Fall or Spring)
• A screening test will be conducted to understand students proficiency.
• The classes will be conducted for three hours daily from Monday to Friday. (Two hours for reading classes and one hour for discussion and writing.)
• Grammar review classes will be conducted for the first two weeks.
• Special guest speakers will be invited to speak on the particular topic of interest.
• The students should mention in the application the name and details of the text to be read.

 

Texts which can be chosen:

• Texts related to various disciplines such as Religion, History, Anthropology, Archaeology, Literature, Philosophy, Sociology, Politics, Education, Music etc.
• Old Marathi religious texts such as Dnyaneshwari, Bhavartha Ramayan, Daasbodh, Leelacharitra etc.
• Historical correspondence, documents, (which are available in book form), history written in literature form (Bakhar)
• 19th and 20th century texts (articles and essays written by various social reformers, leaders, thinkers and philosophers such as Lokmanya Tilak, Agarkar, Mahatma Phule, Dr. Ketkar, Rajwade, Dr. Ambedkar etc.
• Modern Marathi Literature - Novels, poems, articles written by well known writers, poets.
• Folk literature such as lavani, povada, bharud etc.
• Dalit literature.
• Literature in various vernacular forms.

Marathi field trip Marathi- Marathan running event Marathi student at book centre Marathi student enjoying Marathi student in class Marathi student in news paper Marathi student purchasing cloths Marathi students at field trip Marathi students enjoying on trip Marathi students with local communities Marathi student on field trip Marathi student participating in Local Marathon Marathi student playing with cow baby Marathi student purchasing Kolhapuri shoes Selfie Marathi Students

HOUSING INFORMATION

AIIS assists students in finding local accommodation within a reasonable commuting distance of the Language Program center. Depending on the size of the Program and the availability of suitable accommodations, students are sometimes housed in furnished apartments, but more commonly live in "paying guest" or "home-stay" arrangements in private homes, preferably with families who speak the target language. Detailed guidelines will also be sent to students once they are accepted into an AIIS Program.

Marathi Learning Resources

Dear AIIS SLP Konkani/Marathi/Pali/Prakrit/Sanskrit/Sindhi Participants,

Greetings from AIIS-Pune and heartiest congratulations for joining in AIIS Language Family.

Mr. Anil Inamdar, Administrative Officer [Mobile No.8308195791 Email ID-aiispune@aiis.edu.in] will meet you at the Pune airport/Pune Railway station/Pune Bus Stand, as per arrival details communicated by you.

Please note the below given address of the Hotel wherein; overnight initial stay (on twin sharing basis) for all participants has been arranged for the one overnight [10/6/2024) stay on your arrival, as per institute rules (Check Inn 12:00 Check Out 8.30 a.m.) with Complimentary breakfast arrangement).

PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation
766 Bhandarkar Road, Opp. to Girikand Travels
Next to Good Luck Chowk, Pune - 411 004
Phone No. 020-25664747/020-25664949

Lunch/Dinner (excluding 10/6/24), Laundry, Personal Phone Calls and earlier arrival charges as applicable shall be paid by the student directly to PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation, at the reception.

As per the schedule given on the AIIS Website there will be an Orientation sharp at 9.00 a.m. on the 11/6/2024 in the A-3 Conference Hall, Third Floor, PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation. The student shall have the breakfast in the PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation and join the A-3 Hall. A car will be arranged by the Institute for your pick up from the PYC to AIIS. After orientation and lunch with families, students will be moved to Flats/Host families in the car arranged by AIIS on the 11/6/24..All students will come to AIIS for the regular classes at American Institute of Indian Studies, Deccan College Campus, Yervada, Pune from 12.6.2024 till the program concludes, including those who have made their own arrangement of housing at Pune.

The institute has asked PYC for providing an accommodation for those students who would be arriving early in Pune and would like to stay there on chargeable basis. The students who will make their own arrangement of stay prior to 10/6/23 are welcome to Stay at PYC on twin sharing basis on the 10/6/23.

The students will be on their own, till the check in on 10/6/23 and they should ensure coming to PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation A-3 Conference Hall) for Orientation on the 11/6/23.

After Orientation as per schedule, there will be a lunch arranged by the Institute on the 11/6/2024 for all the students, teachers of AIIS, invited guest orientation speakers and host families/apartment owners (between 12:45 to 2:00 pm) at PYC Hindu Gymkhana & Sports Foundation on the above given address and the students shall be moved to the host families/flat/apartments (between 2:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.). Assistance and guidance will be provided by Sanskrit Program Teacher & Host Family Coordinator.

MUMBAI TO PUNE:

A good option for getting to Pune from Mumbai International Airport is KK Travels. They operate a limousine (well, a large car) shuttle service between drop-off points in Pune and the domestic and international terminals in Mumbai. The cars run 24/7, and you can book them via e-mail. One seat (with luggage in back) costs Rs. 1500/-and they will drop you off anywhere in Pune City. Cars are clean, drivers are courteous and they put your name on a signboard and wait for you. They stop at one rest area along the Mumbai-Pune expressway for bathroom, etc. Many AIIS scholar use this company regularly. They are equally good for transport in the other direction. They know exactly how long the drive will take in order to get you to the terminal at the proper time of your departure and arrival of flight. Those student who want to come from Mumbai to Pune by road can contact M/s KK Travels on Mobile No. 9371099797 , 9370599797, 9011979797, 9860100100, 9822979797, 9527507979, 9767100001 and email ID mumbai@kktravels.com, kktravels@kktravels.com or they write to aiispune@aiis.edu.in by giving requirement such as pick up time/date/address/flight no and time to enable us to arrange a reliable car service. If any participant wants to stay in Mumbai, they may contact following hotels.

HOTEL AIRPORT INTERNATIONAL

Nehru Road, Ville Parle (East), Mumbai - 400 099. INDIA Phone: ( 91-22 ) 26182222 Fax : ( 91-22 ) 26183333 E-mail : reservations@hotelairportinternational.com Website - www. hotelairportinternational.com

Hotel Transit Near Domestic Airport, Vile Parle (East) Mumbai - 400099. Maharashtra. INDIA. Tel: +91 22 26128882, 66930761-3 Fax: +91 22 26105785 E-mail:reservation@hoteltransit.in, transit1@vsnl.com Website: www.hoteltransit.in

Please arrange to send scan copies of Passport and Visa (in separate PDF format) and colour photo (passport size colour photograph in jpg format of max 50 KB size) by email. Each participant will carry 6 passport size colour photographs hard copies. Please carry Photo ID in USA [Driving Licence or University Card, Library Card] and your bank account details [in case of need, a statement may be asked for online registration] with you.

Please note that the FRRO registration has been made ONLINE since 1/10/2018. Individual students will have to apply online for registration with FRRO and upload required documents online, as given on the website.

Each student must have Indian Mobile Phone Number and an Email ID for USER registration and online registration.

Documents required to be uploaded online are –
Photo Color photograph (jpeg format
Passport, Visa, C Form each in separate pdf format
Bonafide Certificate & NOC Certificate (issued by Deccan College) separate pdf format
ISFS number will be generated by Deccan College which will be written on the Bonafide Certificate.

The link for online registration is given below:
https://indianfrro.gov.in/eservices/home.jsp The email ID of Mumbai FRRO is given for your information: helpdesk.mum-ivfrt@gov.in, frromum@nic.in, SUPRIYA PATIL YADAV helpdesk.mum-ivfrt@gov.in, In-charge Registration Branch

Those students who have an OCI or PIO card do not need to register.

The C Form submission is also made Online by FRRO. Host Family Coordinator Ms. Meenal Kulkarni (Email ID- sanskritlp@aiis.edu.in) will provide you more information about the same.

The C Form needs to be submitted online within 24 hours of shifting to the host family or an apartment.

The link for online submission of Form C is https://indianfrro.gov.in or Search User Registration Page Indian FRRO On Google https://indianfrro.gov.in/frro/FormC. User Registration for Form 'C' - FRRO https://indianfrro.gov.in/frro/FormC/accom_reg.jsp?

Request Form for User Registration - FRRO https://indianfrro.gov.in/frro/FormC/userregpdf.jsp

The host family or the apartment owner will have to first fill in the User Registration Form for Individual House (if it is not filled earlier). The link to this page is given below.

https://indianfrro.gov.in/frro/FormC/menuuserreg.jsp

Those students who have made their own housing arrangement will have to seek the help of their house owners to complete the C Form and submit the Online C Form copy to us. Sub-letting of the already rented premises to others by Language program students is not acceptable.

Students with Indian nationality need not fill in the C Form.

Deccan College will arrange to create ONLINE S Forms [FSIS] Numbers for all the foreign students participating in the language programs [this is also needed to send monthly attendance, absence to class continuously for a week, update Registration Details, Upload Photo, Update departure details etc].

There is no need to visit Pune or Mumbai FRRO Office. Students can sit at home and do the online registration. The students will be contacted thru email by FRRO Mumbai Central Office, which is controlling FRRO Offices in Maharashtra State.

Please note the AIIS Officers contact details:

Dr. Ms. Madhura Godbole	Head-Sanskrit Language Program	sanskritlp@aiis.edu.in	Phone No.020-26612471,020-26695531 Mobile No.9373301748
Mr. Shantanu Kher	Incharge-Marathi Language Program	marathilp@aiis.edu.in	Phone No.+91 20 2991 2808 Cell No. 9011103732
Mr. Anil Inamdar	Administrative Officer	aiispune@aiis.edu.in	Cell No. 8308195791, Phone No.020-26682932
Dr. Ahtesham Khan	Coordinator (Programs)	languageprograms@aiis.edu.in	Phone No. 0522-4001386
Ms. Purnima Mehta	Director General	aiisdelhi@aiis.edu.in	Phone No. (011)-24625386, 24698930

I hope the above information will meet your requirement. Please get in touch with us in case you need more information. Looking forward to meeting you. With good wishes, Anil Inamdar, AIIS Pune-Team

American Institute of Indian Studies
Deccan College Campus, S.No. 24 Yervada,
Opp. Deccan College Ground, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Road, Pune - 411 006
Phone No. 020-26682932
EmailID - aiispune@aiis.edu.in (new)
Website - aiislanguageprograms.org, indiastudies.org
Cell No. 8308195791

For students interested in taking Modi script classes -

Basic Modi script:
Eligibility - 1 year of formal Marathi training / 1 Marathi Summer Program at AIIS.

Advanced Modi script:
If a student wants to read actual handwritten historic documents in Modi, the student needs to have at least 3 years of formal Marathi training / 2 AIIS Marathi Summer Programs / 1 AIIS Marathi Summer and/or 1 Academic Year or if he/she has learnt Modi with us earlier.

Students should clearly mention in their application that they desire to take the Basic or Advanced course in Modi script. The AIIS faculty is equipped to teach Basic Modi to qualified students. For Advanced Modi, we need to bring in a local expert as an adjunct instructor.