IN PHOTOS: Love Marathi literature? This Borivali bookshop has diverse offerings
Updated On: 21 October, 2023 03:53 PM IST | Nascimento Pinto
Over the last 23 years, the Ambekars – Arvind, Arti and Anant have been busy catering to Marathi literature enthusiasts in the Mumbai suburb with their vast knowledge and a sizeable collection to keep them going
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Over the last 23 years, the Ambekars – Arvind, Arti and Anant have been busy catering to Marathi literature enthusiasts in the Mumbai suburb with their vast knowledge and a sizeable collection to keep them going
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Having always been around books, the Ambekars entered the book-selling business when Anant`s mother Arti was a librarian at a Marathi-medium school in Borivali East. At the time, the headmistress Suhasini Kulkarni encouraged her to pursue a librarian`s course, and soon after told the family to put up an exhibition for Marathi schoolbooks and literature at the school as people from outside of India were visiting the school for a seminar.
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Since Arti`s brother ran a bookshop in Girgaum, the headmistress went along with the family and selected the books with them. At that time, Arvind says they had no idea of how to display the books. Kulkarni, whom they consider as their mentor, taught the couple how to set up the stall, exhibit the books and how to place them so that it will catch people`s eye.
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From them on, they started putting up stalls in various neighbouring schools on the day of the results, as well as annual days. The growing demand over the years made them put up stalls for exhibitions at Vidyamandir School in Dahisar, Suvidya School and Paranjape School, as well as Parle Tilak in Vile Parle, and St Anne’s School. Over the years, they have worked with SSC, ICSE and CBSE schools and provided them with books.
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While they also keep English books, Anant has observed that Marathi literature books are such that if people search for them on the Internet, they will not find all of them. However, if one goes to the shop’s counter, they will get it. The second-generation bookseller says even if people buy books online, one only gets to see the cover, they don’t get to see what’s inside.
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In Marathi literature, apart from Mehta Publishing, the Ambekars say the popular publishers are Mauj, Mirror, Dharmik, Joshna, Anmol, Rajhans, Popular, Continental, Saraswati, Menaka Prakashan, Sadhana Prakashan and Prasad Prakashan, and most readers pick up books from them.
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Unlike many others, the family was able to sail through the Covid-19 pandemic because they had taken a license from the Maharashtra Government to sell school textbooks some years ago. It helped them sell the books soon after schools opened in 2020. Along with school books, they also keep other kinds of stationery items that are required by students in the area.
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