Vasant Shankar Kanetkar

Vasant Shankar Kanetkar (20 March 1922 – 31 January 2000) was an Indian Marathi-language playwright and novelist from Maharashtra. He was born in the town of Rahimatpur in Satara District, Maharashtra. His father, Shankar Keshav Kanetkar, was a poet who wrote poetry under the pen name Kavi Girish and was a founding member of a circle of poets named Ravikiran Mandal. Vasant Kanetkar was educated in Pune and Sangli. After passing M.A. exam in 1948 from Sangli, he joined as a lecturer in Nashik in 1950. He received wide admiration from the audience after his play 'Raigadala Jevha Jag Yete' (रायगडाला जेव्हा जाग येते). He kept the Marathi commercial theatre vibrant and live for more than two decades. Five of his plays received best play award of the year given by Maharashtra State Government. In 1966, Kanetkar received a Filmfare Award for Best Story for the Hindi movie Aansoo Ban Gaye Phool, which was an adaptation of Ashroonchi Zhali Phule. Kanetkar received a Padma Shri award in 1992 for his literary accomplishments.