Maharaj Kirtan

[Jenelle Centeno]

NivruttiKashinath Deshmukh (born 9 January 1972) is an Indian kirtankar and social educator from Maharashtra, India. His shows typically involve humorous routines that poke fun at societal ills and malpractices.[1][2]

Indurikar was born on 9 January 1972 to a kirtankar father.[3][4][5] He grew up in Indori village in Akole taluka of Ahmednagar district and adopted the demonym Indorikar/Indurikar as part of his stage name.[6][7] Indurikar earned a B.Ed. degree from the Gokhale Education Society's College of Education in Sangamner, Ahmednagar district.[8][9] He initially worked as a teacher and started performing Kirtans at the age of 22.[4][10]

Indurikar is known for interlacing humorous relatable examples in his kirtans and thus is able to quickly strike a cord with the audience. First cassette of his kirtan was released in 2003 and soon became famous over the social media.[11] Indurikar, along with a group of associates, employ musical instruments Taal and Mridang, but their usage is minimal.

According to Sadanand More, a historian as well as a kirtan writer, Indurikar does not fit within the hierarchy of Sant Parampara and Warkari sampradaya. He added that Indurikar's objectification of women and substandard jokes are indicative of base-level mediocrity.[12][13][14]

In February 2020, Indurikar received strong backlash for one of his statements that his made during his sermon in Ozar (budruk) in Ahmednagar. The preacher had reportedly said that "If a woman has intercourse on the even date, a boy is born. If a woman is on an odd date, a girl is born .... If intercourse is done at an inauspicious time, the child that is born would bring a bad name to the family. If the timing (of intercourse) is missed, the quality of output (child) will be sub-standard."[17][18]

An Anti-superstition NGO Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti sought to file case against Indurikar claiming his remarks on timing of intercourse and gender of child violated the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act as well as the anti Black-Magic Act.[19][20] His kirtan in Kolhapur was abruptly cancelled.[21][22] Women's rights activist Trupti Desai threatened to throw ink on his face if a case wasn't filed against him soon.[23]

Indurikar apologized in a handwritten note saying he was tendering an apology if anyone's sentiments were hurt by his remarks.[24][25][26][27] He added that some people unhappy with his work were causing additional trouble for him.[28] While answering a notice from the health department, Indurikar flip-flopped claiming that he made no such statements and there was no event held on dates in question.[29]

Indurikar lives in Ozar (Bk) in Sangamner taluka in Ahmednagar district with his wife Shalinitai Deshmukh and two children.[4] He is the founding president of Dnyaneshwar Mauil Bahu-uddesiya Sevabhavi Sanstha in Ozar (Bk), Sangamner.[5][24][33] He runs a school in the village and is a known philanthropist in his region.[33][34]

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