Noted Marathi poet Narayan Surve dies at 83

One of eminent Marathi poets who was honoured with Padma Shri Narayan Surve passed away in Thane on Monday, August 16 after a brief illness, family sources said. He was 83.

A self-made man, Surve was orphaned soon after his birth. He lived on the streets of Mumbai and earned his daily bread by doing odd jobs. A quick learner, he taught himself to read and write and in 1966 published his first book of poems "Majhe Vidyapeeth" (My University).

Also a social activist, Surve worked in the workers' union movement in Mumbai and supported himself as a school teacher.

In the 1970s, he was often hailed in India and the erstwhile Soviet Union as a proletarian poet. In 1998, he was awarded Padma Shri for excellence in literature and education. Politicians expressed grief on Monday over his demise, saying that Surve's death was a loss to Marathi literature.

Full report here IBNLive