Girish Karnad: Veteran Film And Theatre Personality Dies At 81 in Bengaluru: Veteran actor and playwright Girish Karnad died on Monday morning in Bengaluru. The 81-year-old actor, who was being treated for a prolonged illness, passed away after multiple organ failure. The funeral will take place today at Kalpalli electric crematorium in Byappanahalli, Bengaluru. Karnad had been ailing for a long time and was seen using oxygen pipe at some of his recent public appearances.
Born on May 19, 1938, in Mumbai (then Bombay Presidency), his critically-acclaimed body of work includes plays like “Yayati”, “Hayavadana” and “Tughlaq”, all of which he wrote in Kannada and then translated to English, losing none of the beauty and poignancy of the original texts.
A prominent figure in the Kannada literary scene, many of his plays drew from mythology and traditional stories to create wonderful insights into modern life from mythology and he helped transform the Kannada theatre scene. A legendary figure, he was also briefly director of the Film and Television Institute in Pune and director of the Nehru Centre in London.
The Jnanpith Awardee was a popular name in the film circle as well as theatre circle. He made his acting debut in a Kannada movie Samskara in 1970. He also worked in Hindi films like Manthan (1976), Pukar (2000), Iqbal (2005), Dor (2006), Ek Tha Tiger (2012) and Tiger Zinda Hai (2017).
Girish Karnad, who was a famous playwright, had predominantly acted in South Indian films in Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada. He was mostly chosen to play negative characters in most of his films and performed it with much aplomb. He was last seen in Kannada in 2018 film Neenillada Male. His notable works in Tamil include 24, Kadhalan, Chellamey.
His most memorable role – that of Swami’s father – was undoubtedly in “Malgudi Days”, a television adaptation of RK Narayan’s timeless and enchanting collection of short stories about the sleepy (and fictional) town of Malgudi in South India.
A fearless social and political activist, Girish Karnad used his literary skills and, in later years, his popularity, as a platform to fight religious fundamentalism and defend freedom of expression. Despite receiving numerous death threats, he never backed down from expressing his views.
In April, he was among some 200 writers from across the country who put out an open letter against the “politics of hate”. In September last year, he was charged for holding a placard that read “Me Too Urban Naxal” at an event to mark one year of journalist Gaur Lankesh’s murder. In 2015 he joined a group of activists protesting the beef ban in Maharashtra.
Girish Karnad was awarded the Padma Shri in 1974 and the Padma Bhushan in 1992. Considered a gifted litterateur, he was also awarded the Jnanpith award in 1998.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to the actor-playwright on Twitter. “His works will continue being popular in the years to come,” PM Modi wrote.
The President of India also paid his respects on Twitter, writing that “our cultural world is poorer today”.
Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar also tweeted his condolences, “Deeply saddened by the news of the demise of Girsh Karnad ji. He will be remembered for his work as a Theater personality, film actor, and director. My deepest condolences to his family, friends & fans. #OmShanti.”
Former Chief Minister of Karnataka Sadananda Gowda also tweeted, in Kannada, saying: “The news of the death of Gyanapitha awardee, senior theater artist Dr. Girish Karnad, was revealed. His contribution to the Saraswat world is vast. Let us pray in the Lord that peace be to the soul”.
The Karnataka government has declared a state holiday for one day and three-day mourning period.
Girish Karnad’s son has conveyed that there should no flowers, wreaths and VIP visitors to his father’s funeral. He has also ruled out a procession.
