WE ALL ARE GREAT FANS OF THE WRITINGS OF VAPU. HIS DAUGHTER CARRIED FORWARD HIS WORK TO THE BEST OF HER ABILITY AND BELIEVE ME SHE IS AS GOOD AS THE FATHER. IN A WAY, THAT IS NOT SURPRISING AS SHE MUST BE CARRYING A LOT MANY OF HIS ‘GENES,.BUT HEY, HALT. THE LINEAGE DOES NOT END HERE. ON THE CONTRARY, WE HARDLY REALIZED THAT THE DAUGHTER HAS INHERITED SOME OF THESE LITERARY QUALITIES FROM HER MOTHER AS WELL. YES, VASUNDHARA, THE WIFE OF VAPU, WAS A LOVER OF WORDS. SHE ENJOYED READING THEM BUT SHE ENJOYED IN GETTING INVOLVED WITH THEM WITH GREAT INTENSITY. THE PRESENT BOOK IS A COMPILATION OF HER REVIEWS OF 21 DRAMAS WHICH WERE IN FULL BLOOM A FEW YEARS BACK, FORTY YEARS TO BE PRECISE. MANY OF THESE DRAMAS ARE AS FRESH TODAY AS THEY WERE THEN. UNLUCKILY, SOME HAVE BECOME A STORY OF PAST AND FORGOTTEN AS WELL. THAT APART, VASUNDHARA HAS PRESENTED HER VIEWS EXCELLENTLY WELL, WITHOUT A PREJUDICE IN HER MIND. SHE HAD AN OBSERVANT NATURE. SHE WAS SURE ABOUT HER FEELINGS. SHE WAS WELL AWARE OF THE ‘GOOD AND BAD’. SHE WAS FIRM AND DID NOT HESITATE TO PRESENT HER FEELINGS. THE CONSEQUENCES WERE NOT DENIED AS WELL. SHE WAS A VERY GOOD SPECTATOR AND LOVED TO WATCH THE DRAMAS. SHE PREFERRED TO BE SEATED IN THE TENTH ROW, ALWAYS…THE BEST PLACE TO SEE A DRAMA FROM, NOT TOO CLOSE, NOT TOO FAR AWAY.THIS BOOK WILL SURELY BRING BACK THE LOVING MEMORIES OF THE BYGONE ERA.
‘ज्ञानेश्वरांनी गायली गीता’, कारण त्यांच्या ‘पाठी पुण्याई उभी’ होती. अनेकांना नशिबाने ‘हिमालयाची सावली’ मिळते. ती असल्यावर ‘संसार हा सुखाचा’ होणारच, ‘कुंकू जपून ठेवावं’, पण ते ‘पद्मश्री धोंडीराजा’सारख्या व्यक्तीसाठी नाही. ‘सखाराम बार्इंडर’सारख्या माणसासाठी, तर नाहीच नाही. वय वाढलं तरी ‘म्हातारा न इतुका’ अशी माणसं असतात. कुणा पोराला विचारावं लागतं की, ‘पप्पा सांगा कुणाचे?’ जीवनप्रवासात भेटते एखादी ‘माता द्रौपदी’, एखादी ‘मीरा मधुरा’ भेटते, एखादा ‘भल्याकाका’, ‘धुक्यात हरवलेल्या वाटेवर’, ‘अशी पाखरे येती’ व ‘अंतरीच्या नाना कळा’ देऊन जातात. क्वचित ‘एखादी तरी स्मितरेषा’ उमटते. म्हणते, ‘शाब्बास, बिरबल शाब्बास!’ पण या सर्वांमध्ये श्रेष्ठ ठरतो, तो ‘नटसम्राट’ आक्रंदतो, पोरका होतो, धावा करतो, घर हवं, मरण हवं; पण तेव्हा ‘यमाला डुलकी लागलेली’ असते.