Ishwar Petlikar

Ishwar Motibhai Patel (9 May 1916 - 22 November 1983), better known by his pen name Ishwar Petlikar, was an Indian Gujarati language author and journalist. Born and educated in villages of Gujarat, he taught in schools of villages before settling in Ahmedabad. Influenced by his experiences in villages and cities, his works talk about social culture and reforms. Ishwar Patel was born in Kadava Patel family on 9 May 1916 in Petli village near Petlad in Gujarat to Motibhai and Jiviba. He changed his last name from Patel to Petlikar in dedication to his village. His primary and secondary education was completed from Petli, Malataj and Sojitra villages and passed matriculation in 1935. He completed his teaching training from Vadodara in 1938 and started teaching at Nedra village near Padra in 1938 and then transferred to Saniyad village of Karjan in 1942. He started writing when he was studying. He edited Patidar and Aryaprakash magazines published from Anand. He settled in Ahmedabad in 1960. He was involved in journalism and social reforms in 1944 and continued till his death. He died on 22 November 1983 following heart attack. He was awarded Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1961. He also edited Sansar, a periodical devoted to social problems.