Dalpatram

Who was Dalpatram?

Kavishwar Dalpatram Dahyabhai or Dalpatram was an Indian poet writing in the Gujarati language. He was the father of Nanalal Dalpatram Kavi. His literature was most modern at times and his first play Laxmi was inspired by Greek play Plutus, it was the first play in Gujarati.

Dalpatram, who knew no English, was a significant figure in Gujarati literature in the second half of the 19th century.

He was encouraged to pursue literature by Alexander Kinlock Forbes, the magistrate in Ahmedabad who wanted to see Gujarati literature develop, and who had helped found the Gujarat Vernacular Society. At the end of the 19th Century He was entitled Mahakavi by Shahjanand Swami, the founder of Swaminarayan Sampraday.

Unlike Narmad, another prominent Gujarati poet of the same period, Dalpatram supported British rule for the benefits it gave India. Dalpatram also supported social reforms such as opposition to child marriage, allowing widows to remarry. Both Dalpatram and Narmad were the first Gujarati poets to address subjects connected to common life in their verses. Dalpatram's poems had subjects like English law, how to write an essay, and even "trees in a college compound". His verse often reflected his sense of humour.