Manohar Rai Sardesai

Manohar Rai Sardesai (18 January 1925 – 22 June 2006) was an Indian Konkani poet, writer and French translator. He received his Doctorat ès lettres françaises for his thesis "L'image de l'Inde en France" from the University of Sorbonne. He has been credited for an upsurge of modern Konkani poetry. Sardesai died in 2006.

Early life Manohar Rai Sardesai was born on 18 January 1925. He passed his matriculation examination in 1942 from the Bhatikar Model High School in Margão. He obtained a First Class First in Bachelor of Arts from the University of Bombay in 1947. He successfully completed his Master of Arts, also with the First Class First in French and in Marathi from the same university in 1949.

Translations He translated many works from French into Konkani. The translations of "La Vie de Vivekananda" by Romain Rolland in 1994 (Vivekananda) and "Les Mots" by Jean-Paul Sartre in 2000 ("Utram"), comprise some of his works. He also produced the Konkani-English Dictionary in 2004 and was Chief Editor for the four-volume Konkani Encyclopedia, published by Goa University in 1999.

Awards and honours The French Government conferred him with the title "Chevalier de l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques" in 1988, in recognition of his services to the French language and culture. Dr. Sardesai also won many awards for his literary contributions and in the teaching profession. Most notable among the awards was the Sahitya Akademi, Delhi for Pisollim. and later became president of Konkani Bhasha Mandal, Goa.

He was also a life member of "Alliance Française de Goa" and Founder President of the University Teachers' Association, Goa.