Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condoled the demise of veteran actor and playwright Girish Raghunath Karnad who passed away at a Bengaluru hospital at 6.30 am today.
Saddened to learn about passing away of iconic actor, litterateur, playwright, Padma Shri #GirishKarnad. He will be missed in the world of literature and cinema. May his soul rest in peace.
— Naveen Patnaik (@Naveen_Odisha) June 10, 2019
“Saddened to learn about passing away of iconic actor, litterateur, playwright, Padma Shri Girish Karnad. He will be missed in the world of literature and cinema. May his soul rest in peace”, the Odisha CM tweeted.
Girish Karnad was a Padma Shri awardee as well as Padma Bhushan for literature.
The playwright was born in Matheran in 1938. The Kannada writer made his acting and screenwriting debut in a 1970 release called ‘Samskara’. The film won the President’s Golden Lotus Award.
Besides, Karnad had also acted in the classic television show ‘Malgudi Days’ where he played the role of Swami’s father.
Karnad’s plays have been translated into English and several Indian languages and directed by directors like Alyque Padamsee, Ebrahim Alkazi, Arvind Gaur, BV Karanth, Zafer Mohiuddin, Satyadev Dubey, Shyamanand Jalan, Amal Allana, Vijaya Mehta and Prasanna.
He also hosted the science magazine Turning Point on Doordarshan in the early 1990s. He also served as the Director of the Film and Television Institute of India (1974-1975).
He died at the age of 81-years-old.