Girish Karnad

Indian actor, film director and playwright Girish Karnad is known for his work in the South Indian cinema and Hindi cinema. He is a recipient of the 1998 Jnanpith Award and the recipient of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by the Government of India. His unique style of combining history with mythology to tackle contemporary issues was much appreciated. Born in Matheran, Maharashtra, he was born as the third of the four children born to his parents, Krishnabai née Mankikar and Dr. Raghunath Karnad. During his young age he was exposed to theater groups, he was an ardent admirer of Yakshagana and the theater in his village. He had earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics and statistics from Karnatak Arts College. After graduation, he went to England and studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Magdalen in Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. He made his screenwriting debut in the Kannada movie Samskara (1970) which had won the prestigious President's Golden Lotus Award for Kannada cinema. He gained prominence for his role of Swami's father in the TV series Malgudi Days. He made his directorial debut with Vamsha Vriksha in the year 1971. Girish Karnad was admitted to a hospital in Bengaluru, India and had passed away on 10th June 2019.

Born on: 19 May, 1938

Born in: Matheran, Bombay Presidency, India

Died on: 10 June, 2019