R. K. Laxman

Rasipuram Krishnaswamy Laxman (b. 1923) was born in Mysore and graduated from the University of Mysore. He is the youngest brother of R. K. Narayan, one of India’s most well-known novelists.

R. K. Laxman is the first name that comes to mind when one speaks of India’s best cartoonists. His earliest work was for newspapers and magazines such as Swarajya and Blitz, and as the illustrator for his brother’s stories. His first full-time job was as a political cartoonist for the Free Press Journal. He later joined the The Times of India, beginning a career that has spanned for over fifty years.

His comic creation of the Common Man, representative of the hapless citizenry of India, has achieved iconic status, being commemorated in stamps and statues. He has also written several short stories, but his fame as a cartoonist eclipses that facet of his creativity.

R. K. Laxman won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for excellence in journalism in 1984.

Works

• The Eloquent Brush: A Selection of Cartoons from Nehru to Rajiv
• 50 Years of Independence through the eyes of R.K.Laxman
• The Best of Laxman series
• Hotel Riviera
• The Messenger
• Servants of India
• The Tunnel of Time