2016-10-24 Mon

Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Laxman was an Indian cartoonist, illustrator, and humorist. He was best known for his creation The Common Man and for his daily cartoon strip, "You Said It" in The Times of India, which started in 1951.

R. K. Laxman was born in Mysore on 24th October 1921 in Tamil speaking Iyer family. The youngest of six brothers, Laxman had as his older brother, the legendary R.K. Narayan, the creator of Malgudi. Laxman made caricature and sketches for his brother’s writing early in life. R.K. Narayan’s Dodu, the Money Maker, based on Laxman, won him a literary award.

R.K Laxman’s trademark is his portrait of the Common Man — a small figure with a bulbous nose, caterpillar eyebrows, the bushy hair behind the ears below a bald pate, and a mustache like a brush. His dress is unchanging — a dhoti, long shirt, and checked coat. This famous illustration found its place on a stamp, issued on the 150th anniversary of times of India.

He was a winner of many awards, including the Padma Bhushan in 1973 and the Padma Vibhushan. Laxman suffered a stroke in 2003 but that did not put him out of action. He continued working with one hand, although the lines were not as sharp, and the Times sent someone home to pick up the cartoons.

We at Mintage World pay tribute to legendary R.K. Laxman, on his birth anniversary. He will always be in our hearts as a common man.