Veteran actor, director, screenwriter and playwright Girish Karnad passes away in his Bengaluru residence on Monday (10th June, 2019). He was aged 81.
Girish Karnad was born on 1938 in Matheran, Maharashtra. He received the Bachelor of Arts degree from Karnataka University in 1958 and went to England to pursue his Master of Arts degree in the field of politics, philosophy and economics at the Oxford University as a distinguished Rhodes scholar.
Girish Karnad is the recipient of the prestigious Jnanpith award, India's highest honour in the field of literary work. He was also awarded the Padma Shri and Padma Vibushan awards by the Government of India.
Girish Karnad made his stage debut as playwright with the play Yayati. He went on to write and direct Tughlaq, which is based on the 14th century king, known for his idealistic measures that often ends up being a disappointment. The play had won a lot of praise and was staged in London by the National School of Drama for the Festival of India in 1982.
Girish Karnad made his foray into acting and screenwriting with the Kannada film Samskara, directed by Pattabhirama Reddy. The actor had went on to act in several languages, which includes Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Marathi. The actor is also known in Tamil cinema for his roles in films like Kadhalan, Hey Ram, Minsara Kanavu and Ratchagan.