“Every day, I make him sketch something as daily practice, and he is
improving a lot,” she said like a proud mother, praising her son at his
birthday party. But this is R.K. Laxman's wife, Kamala Laxman, speaking
at his 90th birthday celebrations at their home here.
Mr. Laxman, India's most loved cartoonist and creator of the Common Man,
turned 90 on Monday. Surrounded by his close family, the man, who gave
the country more than four decades of laughs and chuckles, had a tearful
moment while cutting his cake.
“He usually likes to have a quiet birthday, but this time he agreed for a
big celebration on my persuasion,” Mrs. Laxman said. More than 100
people gathered in the afternoon to wish him: friends, family members
and artists.
The gathering was ripe with anecdotes, which reflected Mr. Laxman's love
for life and sharp observations. His daughter-in-law Usha Laxman spoke
of his wish to make her draw, which he later realised was not fruitful.
“However, he is happy that his grand-daughter is an artist like him.”
Among the people present to meet Mr. Laxman were senior lawyer Ram
Jethmalani and Symbiosis International University founder S.B. Mujumdar.
Several cartoonists from the city presented him with their caricatures.
In 2010, Mr. Laxman suffered a stroke, which severely affected his
speech, and limited the movement of his hands. While he is recovering,
Mrs. Laxman makes sure that he does what he loves most: listening to
music and going on long drives. Sketching is not left far behind: it is
because of his passion and Mrs. Laxman's persistent efforts that Mr.
Laxman continues to sketch even today.
The Hindu had the opportunity to peek into the maestro's latest
sketchbook, and the common man still rules his world. A sketch drawn on
October 3 shows the iconic Common Man upset with Lord Ganesha and
turning away from him, an indication perhaps of the tough times that the
common man has to endure and a complaint to the Lord of Success for not
doing enough. “His observations are still as sharp as ever. I make sure
he reads the newspaper and listens to news,” Mrs. Laxman said.
“He does not do any political sketch anymore, but I am sure he would
have loved to comment on the anti-corruption movement,” Mrs. Laxman had
told this correspondent in an earlier interview.
Many websites, including Wikipedia, however, mention Mr. Laxman's birth
date as October 23, 1924. Asked why there was a confusion over the
dates, Mrs. Kamala Laxman said: “The websites have it wrong. I know he
was born on October 24, 1921. He turns 90 today.” She stated that all
these years, wrong information was being circulated. Ms. Usha Laxman
also confirmed his birth year as 1921.
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