Sir Ramakrishna Gopal BhandarkarKCIEMLC (Marathi: रामकृष्ण गोपाळ भांडारकर) (6 July 1837 – 24 August 1925) was an Indian scholar, orientalist, and social reformer.
Ramakrishna Bhandarkar taught at Elphinstone College,(Mumbai) and Deccan College (Pune) during his distinguished teaching career. He was involved in research and writing throughout his life. He retired in 1894 as the Vice Chancellor of Bombay University. He participated in international conferences on Oriental Studies held in London (1874) and Vienna (1886), making invaluable contributions. Historian R. S. Sharma wrote of him: "He reconstructed the political history of the Satavahanas of the Deccan and the history of Vaishnavism and other sects. A great social reformer, through his researches he advocated widow marriages and castigated the evils of the caste system and child marriage."[3]
In 1853, while a student, Bhandarkar became a member of the Paramhansa Sabha, an association for furthering liberal ideas which was then secret to avoid the wrath of the powerful and orthodox elements of contemporary society.[2] Visits from Keshub Chandra Sen during 1864 had inspired the members of the Sabha.
The members concluded that religious reforms were required as a basis for social reforms. They held their first prayer meeting on 31 March 1867, which eventually led to the formation of the Prarthana Samaj. Another visit by Keshub Chunder Sen and visits of Protap Chunder Mozoomdar and Navina Chandra Rai, founder of PunjabBrahmo Samaj, boosted their efforts.
In 1885, Bhandarkar along with noted social reformers Vaman Abaji Modak, and Justice Ranade established the Maharashtra Girls Education Society (MGE) .[6] The society is the parent body of the first native run girls' high school in Pune popularly known as Huzurpaga.[7][8] The school curriculum included subjects such as English literature, Arithmetics and Science right from its founding.[9] The establishment of the school and its curriculum were vehemently opposed by Nationalist leader Lokmanya Tilak in his newspapers, the Mahratta and Kesari.[10][11]
^P. R. Dubhashi (2000). Building up a new university. p. 45. The Saraswat Samaj has been traditionally cosmopolitan. It has produced great people like Ramakrishna Bhandarkar after whom the Bhandarkar Research Institute of Oriental Studies of Poona has been named
^Rao, P.V., 2008. Women's Education and the Nationalist Response in Western India: Part II–Higher Education. Indian Journal of Gender Studies, 15(1), pp.141-148.
^Rao, P.V., 2007. Women's Education and the Nationalist Response in Western India: Part I-Basic Education. Indian Journal of Gender Studies, 14(2), p.307.
