Nirnaysagar Press, Bombay, occupies a unique position in the history of Sanskrit learning and education in this country. There had been efforts and organizations in different centres like Banaras and Calcutta tor bringing into print Sanskrit Classics which had been preserved for long in manuscripts in paper and palm-leaf; but when we consider the stages of improvement from the lithograph prints of the earliest stages in Banaras to the excellent and attractive editions of the Nirnaysagar Press, Bombay, one can realize the extent of advancement in the art of printing and the facility and aid which the printed books gave to the of Sanskrit study, not only in the institutions — schools, colleges and Universities — but also in the traditional Pathashalas and in the houses of Pandits. In fact, Sanskrit study and education in the classics of Sanskrit literature may be said to have grown with the publications of the Kavyamala and other Sanskrit works brought out by the Nirnaysagar Press.

The history of the Nirnaysagar Press and its founder Jawaji would read like a romance to those of this generation who do not know how that Press came to be founded. Jawaji came of the humblest family which could afford no education and what he achieved contributed perhaps most significantly to the spread of knowledge in the three fields of Sanskrit, Marathi and Gujarati. He started life rubbing types for Rs. 2/- a ninth and became eventually the Founder-Proprietor of the most outstanding Devanagari Press of the country, having on its establishment 400 workers.

With his experience in types and type-casting, Jawaji founded a type foundry of his own in 1864 and five years later established the Nirnaysagar Press where he printed works with the types cast by him. As different from the Devanagari of Uttar Pradesh and Bengal, those of Jawaji’s had a distinct character, shape and beauty of their own in all the sizes and in Roman and Antique. These Nirnaysagar Publications — say of the Brahmasutras or of the Bhagavad Gita — with several commentaries and the series of diverse types used in them, with variations text, quotations, pratikas, etc., had a distinct personality of their own with the text and commentaries clearly demarcated and the ink-impression very distinct and free from diffusion and the whole thing very pleasing to the eye and helpful to the mind of the reader.

Through the Kavyamala, both in its works-series and in the collection of minor works called Guchchakas, the Nirnaysagar Press had brought into print almost all the leading works in poetry, drama and criticism and had also unearthed many a rare minor work lying in manuscript collections in Jaipur, Tanjore and other centres. But for these publications, the knowledge of Sanskrit literature and its contributions, their variety, etc. would not have been realized by the scholars. The work of the Press became much enlarged by the anxiety of outside bodies and scholars desiring to take advantage of its excellent typography and getting their works printed at that Press, the most notable example of this being the Valmiki Ramayana and the Mahabharata of the Southern recension and works of Dvaita Vedanta undertaken by the pioneers of Kumbhakonam who sought the help of the Nirnayasagar Press for their publications. Several Jain works were also brought out through the Nirnaysagar Press. In several Shastras, for a long time, the Nirnaysagar editions were the only ones available for teachers and students.