Marathi Folk legend Shahir Krishnarao Sable died

Marathi folk legend Shahir Krishnarao Sable died on 20 March 2015 in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He was 92.

Shahir Sable was an accomplished singer, writer, playwright, performer, Loknatya (Folk Theater) producer-director.

He was the person who brought Maharashtra’s folk singing and theatre traditions to the centre stage and his songs enriched Maharashtra’s culture. He also made ballads such as Garja Maharashtra Majha and Jai Jai Maharashtra Majha popular.

Trained under the guidance of Shahir Shankarrao, he had changed the traditional form of Lok Natya (folk theatre) and created a new form called Mukta Natya (free drama).
Apart from folk singing he had actively participated in various freedom movements such as the Quit India movement, Goa liberation struggle and Hyderabad liberation and the Samyukta Maharashtra movement.

He also had fought for social causes such as anti-liquor campaigns, financial welfare of folk artists and rejuvenation of folk music.

Popularly known as Shahir Sable, he was born in 1923 in Satara district of Maharashtra and in 1990 became the President of Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Natya Sammelan held in Mumbai and President of Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Shahir Parisha.

For his achievements, he was conferred with Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1984 and Gaurav Puraskar given by Maharashtra government in 1990. He also was conferred with Padma Shri given by the Union government in 1998.