SAWANT, A GREAT AUTHOR OF HIS TIME. HE HAS MADE THE PERSONALITIES COME ALIVE. THOSE FROM THE BYGONE ERA AND MYTHOLOGY. THEY MEET THE READERS OF THE 21ST CENTURY AND WE CANNOT BUT GET CONNECTED TO THEM IMMEDIATELY. THE DISTANCE OF ERAS SIMPLY WIPES OFF. THAT IS THE MAGIC THE AUTHOR CREATES WITH HIS WORDS. I HAVE COME ACROSS THIS SPECIAL CHARACTERISTICS THROUGHOUT HIS WRITINGS. ANOTHER IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THIS AUTHOR IS HIS STYLE OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. HE DOES NOT SHUN AWAY WHEN IT COMES TO APPRECIATING THE WORK OF CONTEMPORARY WRITERS. HE IS NOT INTERESTED IN PIN-POINTING THE FAULTS OR FLAWS THAT OTHES MAY HAVE. INSTEAD, HE JUST ACKNOWLEDGES THE MIDAS TOUCH THAT EVERY ONE OF US SEEMS TO POSSESS. THIS TOUCH MIGHT COME IN VARIOUS DIMENSIONS. IT MAY BE DEVOTION FOR SOME AND INNOVATION FOR OTHERS WHEREAS SOCIAL COMMITMENT FOR YET OTHERS. SAWANT HAS PORTRAYED THE HISTORICAL AND MYTHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS EXTREMELY WELL THROUGH HIS NOVELS. HE TREATS HIS SHORT STORIES WITH THE SAME VIGOUR AND VITALITY. AS HIS NOVELS HAVE THE IMMENSE CAPACITY TO MESMERISE US, HIS STORIES ALSO POSSESS THE SAME QUALITIES. सावंतसाहेबांनी उभ्या केलेल्या हजारो वर्षांपूर्वीच्या व्यक्तिरेखा म्हणजे पुराणातली वांगी नसतात, तर २१व्या शतकाशी त्यांचा सांधा असा जुळलेला असतो की कित्येक वाचक त्यातून जीवनदायी प्रेरणा घेतात. ह्या लेखसंग्रहातही सावंतसाहेबांची ही वैशिष्ट्यं तर मला जाणवलीच; पण समकालीन लेखकांच्या लेखनाचं मोकळेपणानं कौतुक करण्याचा त्यांच्या मनाचा खुलेपणाही मला जाणवला. ते माणसातली विकृती शोधत नाहीत- शोधतात त्याला झालेला दिव्यत्वाचा स्पर्श- मग तो भक्तीचा असेल, प्रतिभेचा असेल किंवा सामाजिक कणवेचा असेल. सावंतसाहेबांच्या महाकादंबऱ्यांत तर त्यांच्या लेखणीचं सामर्थ्य वाचकाला भारावून टाकणारंच असतं; पण ह्या छोट्या छोट्या लेखांतील तेज पुंजांचं महत्त्वही मला कमी वाटलं नाही. त्यांच्या कादंबऱ्यांमध्ये त्यांच्या प्रतिभासूर्यानं वाचकांना दिपवून टाकलं; पण ह्या लेखसंग्रहातही त्यांच्या प्रतिभासूर्याचे विविध आकारांचे कवडसेसु&