Remembering Girish Karnad

Girish Karnad’s demise on June 10, 2019 came as a great blow and an irreplaceable loss to the space of Indian theatre and cinema. Here’s how Silver Talkies recalls the theatre stalwart as a down to earth human being filled with fatherly compassion for juniors.

Girish Karnad, the renowned actor, writer, playwright and thespian who passed away on June 10, 2019, in Bangalore left an indelible mark on Indian cinema and theatre. His masterpieces like Yayati, Tughlaq, Hayavadana, Nagamandala and more are stamps of his excellence in the theatre world. Karnad had an extraordinary screen presence and acting skills and could make his presence felt in both intellectual and commercial worlds effortlessly. While we will miss this veteran artist, those belonging to his intimate circuit will miss something more: Karnad’s fatherly compassion for his fellow young actors and him as an amazing human being. Silver Talkies to recall Karnad spoke to people close to him who remember Girish Karnad as not just as an actor and a playwright but also a gem of a person.

Gargi Panchangam, an eminent Bharatnatyam dancer who also happened to be one of the lead actors of Karnad’s national award-winning movie Cheluvi and GS Jayanthi, Karnad’s family friend and costume designer for so many of his movies and plays, opened their heart out to us about Karnad as a father figure and a great friend.

“It is for Karnad uncle that I am here today”: Gargi Panchangam

My amma and Karnad uncle were from the same college – Karnatak University, Dharwad where he did his post-graduation and then went to Oxford. Amma used to dub for Aru akka (Arundhati Nag) in Girish uncle’s movies as she could not speak fluent Kannada. Amma had also played a pivotal role in one of his plays.

Karnad uncle was the one who introduced me to the world of art and brought the artist out of me. I was in my school theatre group and in one of the drama events, Girish uncle came as the judge. On seeing my performance, he wanted me to come to audition for Manas, one of his prime time Doordarshan series that had 13 episodes and was based out of psychologist Ashok Pai’s experience with his patients. I was in standard 9 when I played a teenage girl going through psychotic episodes. Karnad uncle played my doctor and our screen presence was praiseworthy those days, back in 1990 – 91.

It was a year later when uncle wanted me to perform in Cheluvi, one of his well-known movies based out of Ramanujan’s story, A Flowering Tree, where I played the vamp. However, I was in Standard 10th and my school’s principal did not permit me initially to stay away for the shoot as she thought it would hamper my academic performance.

When my request for the leave went unattended, uncle decided to go and talk to my principal. Such was his aura and personality that my principal finally allowed me to go for the outdoor shooting that took place in Kerala. Uncle had assured my parents and principal that he won’t let my academics go down and for the entire two months I was away for the shoot, uncle used to sit with me every day after the shoot and help me with my science and maths chapters. That’s how he was, exactly like my father and I was never made to feel a new-comer to the world of movies. He never let me feel so.

Karnad uncle was my support in all spheres. He had come to my first solo Bharatnatyam performance – Rangaprabesha and advised me to continue with my dance. I was always drawn more towards academics and he stood by me and inspired me when I decided to go for my masters with molecular genetics and worked in the research wing in Stanford University. Although he was sad that I shifted to California post marriage, he had always been my guiding partner.

Although our idealism differed, that never came between our way of seeing art. He was a brilliant playwright and loved literature from the bottom of his heart. I owe both my artistic and academic career to Karnad uncle.

“Despite being the star himself, he made everyone around him feel special”: GS Jayanthi

I met Girish for the first time in a friend’s house and then caught up with him again at a success party post Cheluvi shooting at his house itself. My husband who is a theatre critic and Girish were friends and they knew each other pretty well from earlier as he used to review most of Girish’s plays.

It was on one of my birthdays that he first read out his play ‘Fire and Rain’. Later he was dropping me home when we spoke about my son, Chaithanya and his area of interest in making documentaries. Chaithanya was then doing his film studies. Girish seemed to be very happy with my concern about my son’s interest and he asked for Chaithanya’s photographs. He gave my son his first break as an assistant director and eventually Chaithanya became his associate director as well. Girish has been an inspiration for my son and whatever he could become today as a director, he owes it to him.

On the same day we spoke about my son, Girish had proposed me to do the costumes for his plays. Since then, I had done costume designing for most of his plays like Yayati, Fire and Rain and more, several of his films and telefilms where Chaithanya was also a part. Girish was an extremely humble and helpful person. Although he was the most talented star himself, he would make all of us around him feel so special.

I am still attached to Belaku, an NGO run by his wife, Saras and I am one of the trustees there. I have known him and his family for so many years and he will always remain as one of the greatest friends in our lives.