R. K. Laxman Biography 
Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Laxman was an Indian cartoonist, illustrator, and humorist. He is considered as the greatest cartoonist of India. His famous creation is The Common Man. He was born on 23rd October 1924 in Mysore in India as the youngest of the six boys. His father, Krishnaswamy Iyer was a headmaster in a school and his brother R. K. Narayan was a famous novelist of English language.
He was attracted by the illustration in various magazines like Strand Magazine, Punch, Wide World, Bystander, etc. He drew on the walls and doors of his house and was praised by his teacher. The cartoons of Sir David Low appeared in The Hindu also influenced him.
He wanted to join the JJ School of Arts in Bombay after completing his high school studies as he wished to pay focus on drawing and painting. However he was refused admission into the college and so he did B.A. degree in University of Mysore. He started his career as a freelance artist in the mean time and worked for Swarajya and Blitz magazines.
He married Kamala Laxman who was a Bharatanatyam dancer and actress. However they got divorce and he again married a writer named Kamala. He was affected by stroke in 2003 and he recovered from it partly.
He worked in the Times of India for about five decades. He worked as a full time job as a political cartoonist for Free Press Journal. He is known for his illustrations in various books notably for Malgudi stories by his elder brother R. K. Narayan. Later this was filmed as a serial. He has also written some novels.
He received Padma Bhushan Award and Padma Vibhushan Award from Government of India. He also got B. D. Goenka Award from The Indian Express and Durga Ratan Gold Medal from Hindustan Times. He got Ramon Magasaysay Award for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communications Arts in 1984 and Lifetime Achievement Award for Journalism – CNN IBN TV18 on 29th January 2008.
Laxman died at the age of 93 at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune on 26 January 2015, which is India's Republic Day.
Published: N/A
Updated: September 24, 2017
