The story of Balasaheb Jatar

This write-up, photo and Family Tree have been contributed by Brig R.V (Raghunath) Jatar.

Ranganath Shriram Jatar, known as Balasaheb in the Jatar family, was born in 1882. He was the second son of Shriram Bhikaji Jatar. Balasaheb was married on 9th Feb 1901 (at the age of 19) to Maijiji Khandekar, daughter of Ganpat Gopal Khandekar, a Jahagirdar from Ujjain. She was known as Ramakaki in the family.

Balasaheb’s Family Tree

The thread ceremony of Balasaheb’s youngest brother, Abasaheb, was also held on this same day.

No details are available of Balasaheb’s childhood or school education in Akola. However, it is known that he had his college education at Deccan College, Pune. The college principal, Mr FW Bain, gave him a letter dated 30th Oct 1907, which was meant as a recommendation for him to join the Police Department of the province (then known as Central Provinces and Berar). The letter reads:

Shriram Jatar Family Tree

This is the Family tree of the oldest, senior Jatars:

The Jatar ancestors before Shriram Jatar can be seen here on an older family tree.

Here is more information on Kashinath (Bapurao), Rangnath (Balasaheb), Nilkanth (Bhausaheb).

(This tree was prepared by Brig. Raghunath Jatar)

About Kumudini Borgoankar nee Jatar

Kumudini Borgaokar nee Jatar was the only long surviving child of Balasaheb Jatar. She was born on Dec 2 , 1908 and died on Feb 14, 1994 in Pune. She attended schools in Nagpur and then Fergusson College in Pune. She was also an Immigrant of USA and lived here off and on (from 1972 to 1976) after her husband’s death in 1971. She returned to India, to be with her mother who died in 1982. Days before her planned return to USA, she broke her hip, in a fall at her daughter’s residence in Dec 1983.

 Contributed by Bal Borgaonkar

Uday Dudhbhate‘s memories:

On the occasion of Narakchaturdashi I have my favourite memory of my grandmother Kumudini Jatar Borgaonkar whom we called Aai. In 1965-66 Diwali I was the only grandchild staying in my grandparents’ Hyderabad house. At that age too Aai got up at 4 in the morning to start Bumb to heat up water & woke me up for Abhangya snan. Not only that she gleefully burst Apatbars while every one was having bath & asked me to burst few she was having bath. I had lot of fun that Diwali.

There’s a saying in Marathi– Grandparents are first friends of a grandchild & Grandchild/grandchildren are last friends of grandparents.

Balasaheb Jatar and descendents

My grandfather, Balasaheb Jatar was, I think the second son of Shriram Bhikaji Jatar. He worked in the Police Department in the province of CP and Berar. He died because of TB around 1920.

His wife, Ramabai Jatar (nee Khandekar), nicknamed Dudhai by us, died in Nagpur in 1982, in her 90s. Their daughter, my mother Kumudinibai was born on Dec 2, 1908, and died on Feb 14, 1994, in Pune. She was married in Gulbarga where my father’s family was located in those days on May 27, 1927.

My father, a Barrister, practised law there and moved to Hyderabad in the early 1930s. There were six of us. One son died in infancy, and the rest (five) of us grew up with our grandmothers and parents in Hyderabad. I was born in 1932 in Hyderabad and moved to the USA in 1959.

I married Manda Purandare, the daughter of Sardar Balasaheb Purandare, in Pune 1963. I have two children: Raj born in Baltimore on May 20, 1965, at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Sonya born in Pune on August 17, 1966, at Banu Coyaji Hospital. Raj has 3 sons, Nicholas born on Sept 24, 1995, Noah born on May 16, 1998, and Evan born on Jan 12, 2000, all in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Raj lives in Mt. Holly Springs, PA 17065. Sonya has two children: Tara Costanzo born on April 25, 2000, and Wyatt on August 1, 2003, in Manassas, Virginia. She lives in Stafford, VA.

Contributed by Bal Borgaonkar, who lives in the United States.