Headlines
State funeral for cartoonist Laxman
Pune (Maharashtra), Jan 27
In a rare honour, the Maharashtra government has decided to accord a
state funeral to legendary cartoonist R.K. Laxman, creator of the iconic
"The Common Man", here Tuesday, an official said.
Laxman, 94
died in a private hospital Monday evening after a brief illness. His
last rites will be performed with full state honours at Vaikuntha
Crematorium here, around 12 noon Tuesday.
Top political leaders,
media personalities, industrialists, film personalities and others have
condoled his death, besides an outpouring of grief, affection and love
for him on various social networking sites.
President Pranab Mukherjee said he was extremely saddened to learn about Laxman's passing.
"I
feel personal loss because I was both an avid follower and subject of
his cartoons. India will the genium who made the common man into a
national icon. He conveyed important social messages using humour as a
tool and reminded the public that people in authority are fallible and
human," President Mukherjee said in a message late Monday night.
"Honoured
by the government with a Padma Vibhushan, Shri Laxman was a conscience
keeper to the nation through his cartoons. His death leaves a void in
the world of creativity and social commentary which will be difficult to
fill," the president said.
Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao termed
Laxman as "one of the finest cartoonists, caricaturists and the most
effective commentator on issues of national and international importance
to have dominated the news space for such a long time.
"Laxman
understood the joys and sorrows of the common man and articulated the
viewpoints of the silent millions of India for more than five decades
through his eloquent cartoons," Rao said in a tribute.
Chief
Minister Devendra Fadnavis will go to Pune and pay homage to Laxman,
whose body is being kept for public viewing at a private college here.
Shiv
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray whose father the late Bal Thackeray was an
acclaimed cartoonist and friend of Laxman, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena
chief Raj Thackeray, himself a well-known cartoonist, and others are
scheduled to pay homage and attend the last rites in Pune.
The
brother of late English novelist R.K. Narayan, Laxman is survived by
writer wife Kamala, retired journalist son Srinivas and daughter-in-law
Usha.
He had been admitted to a private hospital around 10 days
ago for a urinary tract infection and lung problems, and shifted later
to Dinanath Mangeshkar Hospital.
Laxman had suffered multiple
organs failure, but responded well to the treatment and bounced back.
Three days later, he was removed off the ventilator and shifted to the
intensive care unit.
Renowned for his creation of The Common Man,
which ran for several decades in The Times of India, under the
brand-name "You Said It", Laxman breathed his last late Monday evening
at the hospital.
"He was first admitted to a hospital nearby Jan
16, but his condition showed no improvement. Later, we moved him to
Dinanath Mangeshkar Hospital where he showed a miraculous recovery," his
son Srinivas told IANS.
He added that Laxman's 89-year old wife Kamala took the news of her husband's demise stoically.
"The
past 10 days have been extremely unnerving...the uncertainties of his
health was a concern for the entire family...," Srinivas said from Pune.
Born
in Mysore, now in Karnataka, Oct 24, 1921, Rasipuram Krishnaswamy Iyer
Laxman was attracted to sketching from his early childhood.
He
was first married to Bharatanatyam exponent and film actress Kamala, who
was known in film industry as 'Baby Kamala', and later graduated to
adult roles as 'Kumari Kamala.'
Later, the couple split and Laxman married Kamala, a prominent author of children's books.
His
son Srinivas Laxman, is a senior journalist who specialized in
aviation, space and defence for The Times of India, from where he has
now retired.