Question

Who wrote the first novel in Marathi?
A) The missionaries
B) Baba Padmanji
C) Bardoloi
D) Kandukur

Answer 1

Hint: A novel is a modern form of literature born from print, a mechanical invention. Since these novels were printed, many people could have access to them and thus they were widely read and became popular very quickly.

Complete Answer:
In ancient times, manuscripts were written. This is why only some people had access to them. But in the modern era, with the invention of printing, novels started becoming popular and they were read widely. The novel first developed in England and France. Novels were being written from the seventeenth century, but they really blossomed in the eighteenth century. The traditional gentlemanly and the aristocratic class along with the lower-middle-class such as clerks and shopkeepers in England and France now formed the new readership for novels. As the readership grew and the markets for books expanded, so did the earnings of the authors.

Slowly and gradually as Indians became familiar with the Western novel, the modern novel form also developed in India in the nineteenth century. The development of the print, vernaculars, and a reading public helped in this process. Some of the earliest novels were written in Marathi and Bengali. The earliest and the first novel that was written in Marathi was Yamuna Paryatan (1857) by Baba Padmanji. It used a simple style of storytelling to speak of the plight of widows. This novel was followed by Muktamala (1861) written by Lakshman Moreshwar Halbe. This was not a realistic novel, rather it presented an imaginary ‘romance’ narrative with a moral purpose.

Thus, option (B) is correct.

Note:
The leading novelists of the nineteenth century wrote for a cause. The contemporary culture of India was regarded as inferior by the British. Then again, the Indian writers wrote to create present-day writing of the nation that could deliver a feeling of social balance and the public having a place with their pilgrim aces.