Sri Bimbakhyana by Sandeep Dahisarkar Mahikavatichi Bakhar English Edition by V. K. Rajwade

आज इतिहासाचार्य वि. का. राजवाडे यांची १६१वी जयंती आहे. त्यांनी मराठीत संपादित केलेल्या केशवाचार्यादिकृत महिकावतीची उर्फ माहिमची बखर (१९२४) या प्रसिद्ध ग्रंथाने शंभर वर्ष पूर्ण केल्याबद्दल अपरांत प्रकाशन वाचकांसाठी नवे पुस्तक घेऊन येत आहे. महिकावतीची बखर म्हणजेच श्री बिंबाख्यान हे पुस्तक तब्बल शंभर वर्षांनी पहिल्यांदाच इंग्रजीत येत असून या पुस्तकाविषयी माहिती खाली देत आहे.

Śrī Biṁbākhyāna is a Marathi account that chronicles the changing political history of the island city of Mumbai and its environs. Additionally, it provides an overview of the socio-religious conditions of its Marathi-speaking inhabitants from 1138 CE to 1512 CE, prior to the Portuguese arrival. First published by R. P. Rane in 1877, a second version of this manuscript was later edited in Marathi by distinguished scholars like V. K. Rajwade (1924) and Dr. R. C. Dhere (1973) under the title 'Mahikāvatīcī Bakhara'. Dahisarkar discusses Śrī Biṁbākhyāna's historicity and historical significance after discovering its fourth poetic version in the collection of Bharat Itihas Samshodhak Mandal, Pune. By using this manuscript and a few archaeological sources, he has made an effort to write about Mumbai's lesser-known medieval past. This text gives a brief overview of Mahim, which was renamed as Māhima-Biṁbasthāna after its founder and king, Rājā Biṁba, and concentrates more on the history of Sashti island (Suburban Mumbai).