The future looks good for writers in Indian languages on the internet. Swami Vishvarupanand has allowed me to provide a font and itrans utility that converts, instantly, your itrans writing into a readable Devnagari script. The details are on my Hindi homepage. The key to success is in the availability of such public domain fonts. If anybody has a font designing software, they can bring about revolution on the internet. Just give those fonts free to the public.

 I wrote one article in SCIM in itrans transliteration scheme to encourage others to write in Marathi language "telaachaa bhaava kaaya?" What's the price of oil? Some people liked it, which made me very happy. I followed up on that theme and developed the kernel of that article into a series. Readers still had problems in figuring out the itrans transliteration scheme. When Arun Gupta and Ninad Pradhan offered free true type fonts, I started my Homepage. I used both of these fonts and converted some of my Sanskrit and Marathi writings in Devnagari script.

Initial attempts were rough and needed more savvy in writing HTML code. Subsequently, I fared little better. The difference is obvious. Instead of rewriting all the articles with better HTML code I prefer to leave them be and concentrate upon the new projects.

Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was born in an untouchable caste called Mahar, in Maharashtra, India. It was a miracle of all times that he rose to the highest position as the chairman of the committee that created the Constitution of India. He suffered great indignities at the hands of other upper classes, especially, Brahmin.

He was to India, what Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. was to the United States of America. He struggled hard to bring recognition to the untouchable class. He started a fortnightly newspaper to inform the society about his struggle. Its title was "bahishkR^ita bhaarata", "Ostracized India" in Marathi. The articles, even though dated, are worth reading for their expose of the then social injustice to the untouchable class. Things have not changed since then. These articles also reveal the truths that are not admitted by the Hindu fanatics and their various front organizations.

I intend to write, as I go, Marathi articles on SCIM forum in Avinash Chopde's itrans transliteration scheme. I feel, strongly, that this kind man has, truly, given us a great gift to express ourselves in Marathi on the internet. He never asked for, or for that matter, received enough respect for his originality and hard work. His scheme of transliteration is phonetic, and thus, can be used by all languages which are phonetically written. If the readers have difficulty in figuring out that scheme, they can see such writing in native scripts here.

If people want Devanagari script on SCIM they simply have to use the same techniques I use. Get your article, written in iitrans, converted to HTML code via Sanseep Sibal's Editor utility, or newly added itranslt utility provided by Swami Vishvarupananda. Send it to SCIM as an attachment. When readers, if they have these fonts loaded on their machines, read the message/post they will see Devnagari writing. The downside of this is that if the readers do not want to or cannot store these fonts on their machines they would see nothing but jumbled up mess. One cannot force anyone to keep these fonts. Moreover most all readers access the internet news groups thru their unix machines or monitors attached to the university mainframe computers. Unless the computer administrators see it fit to allow privately distributed fonts on such machines the readers are helpless.

This page is constantly updated. My writing is more or less whimsical, depending my whims, but. certainly, vigorous. Creativity is always subjective, subjected to availability of time, availability of interesting subjects to write about and subjected to the readers' acceptance. If it is not read it is dead. I may keep on writing and it may never catch on readers' fancy. That is the risk I must take. No pain no gain.