Remembering Girish Karnad: Five interesting facts about the cultural icon

Girish Karnad's cultural impact can never be undermined. As a towering figure in Indian cinema and theatre, Karnad's significance as a playwright, filmmaker, and social thinker looms large on the current society. He never minced his words and spoke only with conviction, even if it meant a backlash, and despite his status as one of the biggest icons of his generation, he remained as approachable as ever until his untimely passing in 2019. So, remembering him dearly on his 83rd birth anniversary, here's a small list of interesting facts about his illustrious career.

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Girish Karnad grew up in the town of Sirsi of the Karwar district and was exposed to Yakshagana theatre from a very early age. With the region being the epicenter of regional folklore and art, Karnad's early days were spent immersed in vivid tales of mythology which shaped him to become a playwright in the later years.

"The stories were so vivid that the characters from mythology seemed to be part of us, living with us, and breathing the same air as us. As kids, we were never alienated by Rama or Krishna but we felt very close to them, as though they were characters in any newspaper story. I think this is common to many of my contemporaries who grew up in such places". - Girish, in an interview many years ago

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Interestingly, Karnad had left for England with an intention to never return to India. His time spent at Oxford was to bring him closer to a world that once belonged to the likes of T.S. Eliot (one of his idols) but Karnad later revealed that England offered him just the contrary. He felt he never belonged to the world and nor were his preoccupations or cultural roots any relevant to the society there. Also, he had already written Yayati before he moved to Oxford, and the fact that the play would never achieve any significant status in that place meant that he had to come back to his homeland for good. "Oxford intensified my love for India," he would say in an interview and what followed (after moving back) is a career filled with many more creative accomplishments across multiple crafts.

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Girish Karnad served as the director of the Film and Television Institute of India from 1974 and 1975, and quite coincidentally, future acting marvels Naseeruddin Shah and Om Puri would enroll for the acting course at the same time. A story goes that Om Puri was rejected at the auditions for not having an "attractive face" but Girish Karnad intervened as the director and overruled the decision. Om Puri was later admitted to the institute on Karnad's insistence who found the former to be an inspired performer. Interestingly, Naseeruddin Shah and many of his peers had staged a long protest at the institute around the time over a few disagreements but the two (Shah and Karnad) would later go on to work alongside in many films and remain close friends till the latter's passing.

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Despite his penchant for playwrighting and the stage, Girish Karnad's foray into cinema met with tremendous critical acclaim and success. As a filmmaker and screenwriter, Karnad managed to win as many as eight awards combined and two for his achievements as a documentarian (in the "Non-Feature" category). He has also won seven Filmfare awards (both Hindi and South combined) along with six Karnataka state film awards.

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Shankar Nag began his acting career in cinema with Girish Karnad's 1978 epic 'Ondanondu Kaladalli' - a medieval tale about the warrior Gandugali. The film was a stellar artistic success with critics across the globe lauding the efforts; it was released at The Guild Theatre in New York City in 1982 and was later included in the famous Milton S. Eisenhower lecture series at the John Hopkins University for its contribution to cinema. About a decade later, Nag would direct Girish Karnad in his iconic Malgudi Days' TV adaptation wherein Karnad played W.T. Srinivasan - a lawyer and Swami's father in the story.

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