Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar founded the Kirloskar Natak Mahal in 1880. This was a breakthrough performing company which gained instant recognition in the Marathi theatre. After the death of Anna saheb, the company presented a range of plays of Govind Ballal Deval and Shripad Krushna Kolhatkar in addition to Kirloskar’s Shakintal and Saubhadra. Kirloskar played a pivotal role in using and popularising the Hindustani and Carnatic classical as well as folk music in all his compositions. The Kirloskar Natak Mahal continued to tour across Maharashtra, Karnataka and the Maratha princely states in the north India. It was in 1885 that ‘Annasaheb’ alias Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar left for his heavenly abode at a young age of 42 years.
Popularly known as Annasaheb Kirloskar, Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar was born on 31 March 1843. He was a Marathi playwright from the Indian state of Maharashtra. Born at Gurlhosur in Belgaum district to a Karhade Brahmin family, Annasaheb Kirloskar moved to Pune for pursuing further education at the age of twenty. With a firm interest in theater, Kirloskar was also well-versed in the Sanskrit literature.
