Lokhitavadi Deshmukh’s ancestor was Vishvanath Sidheye born in 1650 AD, a Konkan Brahmin who had purchased Deshmukhi of twelve villages in Pawas in South Konkan region. Deshmukh is a title given to a person who is in charge of collection of government revenue and receives 10% commission for this work. Vishvanath Deshmukh was blessed with one son in 1690 AD when he was forty years old . He was named Narayanrao. Narayan had four sons, Waman, Govind, Antaji and Laxman. In 1754 all four brothers left Konkan for Pune and received employment with Nana Phadnavis. Laxman was given the responsibility to look after the safety of Gangabai who was preganant and was in danger from Raghunathrao Peshva. But Laxmanro Deshmukh protected her until she gave birth to Sawai Madhavrao Peshva. For this Laxman Deshmukh received as Inam a village in Ratnagiri District- Vanked in Taluka Lanja. Laxman did not enjoy the Inam singly but magnanimously shared the land with his three brothers.Their descendants to this date are found in Lanja. Haripant, son of Govind Deshmukh , second of Narayan’s son is the father of Gopalro Hari Deshmukh, Lokhitavadi. Thus the ancestry is traced from 1. Narayan Vishvanath 2. Govind Narayan 3. Hari Govind 4. Gopal Hari Deshmukh.
Gopalrao Deshmukh wrote some forty books in his lifetime on different subjects. His first was when he was nineteen years of age. It was a translation into Marathi of a book on History of India. Although he wrote it in 1842, its publication was done only in 1878. He was easily the most prolific Marathi writer in the nineteenth century.It is indeed surprising that such a person has not been given due credit in Maharashtra. His writings cover history, society of the times, religion and economics. Being a Judge he came in contact with people and their difficulties. His writings are not merely academic but arise from his own experiences with people of different backgrounds. His writings indicate that his ideas were much ahead of his times.
His “shatpatre” or one hundred letters published in Prabhakar Magazine began when he was twentyfive years old. His criticism of the Hindu society of the time was based on logic and he analysed the society’s decline over centuries in a historical perspective in a crisp reasoning which hurt the sentiments of the settled classes. No one had criticised the decline of standards in society in such clear terms. It was not taken well because the writings were based on a vision and wisdom that was brazen in its unfolding. It has been said that had he not done anything else apart from these one hundred letters, he would have been remembered for his writing these letters. Earlier writers restricted their opinions on religious matters alone and social reform and welfare of people were subjects foreign to the population of those times. His writings were clearly influenced by English literature and this was virgin territory for Marathi Scholars and readership both. Marathi Scholars , mostly Brahmins, detested this criticism as few among them had the courage to accept their own faults. These letters 108 in all were re published from time to time and this kept the flame of renaissance burning for decades. Finally, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar published these letters in his own tabloid “Bahishkrut Bharat”. His focus was on reforming a decadent society and he wanted people to start thinking about those premises which the religious leaders and scholars considered above reproach. He urged readers to think about their ideas on caste, child marriages and child widows, their education and remarriage, their equal status in society and a relook on the values that Hindus regarded as “eternal values”. His logic stands out that a progressive people must be able to distinguish the relative from the absolute. He wanted the priests to imbibe values that are truly ethical , moral and progressive. He was the first to oppose the idea that the Hindu institutions are God given and no alteration can be made in the customs which were then regarded as sacrosanct.