My Tribute to R. K. Laxman
Rasipuram Krishnaswamy Iyer Laxman (Laxman) perhaps is best known for his creation The Common Man. Laxman’s earliest work was for newspapers &
magazines such as Swarajya and Blitz. Whilst still at the Maharaja’s College, Mysore, he began to illustrate his elder brother R K Narayan’s stories in The Hindu, and he drew political cartoons for the local newspapers and for the Swatantra.
When the American cartoonist Ranan Lurie asked him who the best Indian cartoonist was, Laxman flashed back, “I am.” The second, third, fourth, fifth best man on the job? Laxman continued to repeat, “I am.”
As you can expect The Common Man has spoken only once ever in an early cartoon about Nehru. He tells Nehru even as he doesn’t recognize him, “…Don’t know all that Sir, but I’m voting for that man…!”, pointing to Nehru’s statue. Satire is clear as it Nehru- Gandhi debacle that led India into a dynastic nation and stripping away all the freedom struggle with few emotional decisions, for which we are still paying, anyways, moving on.
Common man has represented the mute millions of this country . What you’ll note in the boxes, there is no political comment, only political statement. Can you call this superficial? A Laxman cartoon essentially contains two elements. It is drama frozen at a tipping point with something before and something after it. He puts us on the spot. The common man is helpless in his country, he chokes with frustrations and fury each moment. Laxman’s cartoons convert this rage into humour and a smile.
On being asked if he’s happy with the new government and he harrumphs: “I like all governments; they work for me. If there were no governments, there would be no cartoonists”. The Budget? “The Budget is a bore,” he snaps. “The papers, NDTV are still talking about it all the time. Remember Nani Palkhivala’s Budget analysis? Those were the days.” Laxman doesn’t spare any words when it comes to the media. “Things have undergone a sea change since my early days: packaging has become more important than content”.
Khushwant Singh once wrote in a column: “Both R K Narayan and Laxman conceal enormous self-esteem and inflated egos. I have to concede, though, that neither has anything to be modest about. Laxman is the pillar that sustains The Times of India. The day his cartoons stop appearing on its front pages, Indians who start their day with a smile will have nothing left to smile about.“
After graduation Laxman went to Delhi to find a job as cartoonist. The Hindustan Times told him he was too young, that he should start with provincial papers. The Free Press Journal in Bombay had no such qualms. Laxman found himself seated next to another cartoonist who was furiously drawing a bird in a cage. His name was Bal Thackeray. (“Is that an Indian name?” wondered Laxman who knew only of William Makepeace Thackeray.)
One day the Journal’s proprietor banned him from making fun of communists. So the twenty-three-year old Laxman left, caught a Victoria, and walked into the The Times of India office. From that day “I had a table and a room to myself which I have used ever since.” And used with a freedom unknown to any Indian journalist for as long. Laxman feels oppressed by having to turn out a cartoon everyday.
“Each morning I grumble, I plan to resign as I drag myself to the office. By the time I come home I like my work.”
Laxman plays with every shade of humour — wit, satire, irony, slapstick, buffoonery, tragicomedy. Such versatility dazzles as does his unwearied discipline. Through the long, prolific years the man from Mysore has never hit anyone below the belt. And that makes him India’s most beloved cartoonist… Creating the common man.
Here are few of my favorite strips and also, Thanks to Chittaranjan, you can use this link @ ToI for a date-wise archive of his cartoons. You’ll needs an Indiatimes ID though!







I heard him say that he was going to speak out boldly and reveal some very shocking matters shortly. I think he is retiring soon !


All Images are copyrighted by TOI and Penguin Publishings.

nice post Chirag.. I love RK Laxman much.. everyday I will see his cartoon then only start reading TOI
Great man.. I don’t know how he was able to churn out quality cartoons everyday
And have you know about Madhi.. a tamil cartoonists.. draws for dinamani.. his work is also really great
I love his cartoon.I have paper cuttings of his cartoons.
Enjoyed this post
Lovely tribute to one of the most loved Indians !!!! Its pertinent to note he is also the least talked Indians… !!!
Kudos Chirag for making us remember him again and realise that the first smile in the morning is courtesy this legend from Mysore !!!!
I didnt know much about him as a person… but after reading what you have written, my appetite is only whetted… !!
super post Anooj !
Awesome post, dude. He is the unsung hero of India. Almost taken for granted. I have wondered to myself many times what will happen to TOI once his cartoons stop appearing. Not sure what honors have been bestowed upon him but he has to be right up there. Thanks for this.
Great post. For so many years, Laxman has provided an outlet to the things the common man feels about – the pain, the agony, the disenchantment with politics.
Loved the cartoons you have posted – especially the ‘groundwater’ one.
super post
brilliant post chirag
i have always respect this man and loved his cartoons
Chirax, What a wonderful tribute! I have always admired R K Laxman’s work esp. on his brother’s Malgudi stories. Thackeray too is a great cartoonist sadly he used his cartoons to spew venom and play divisive politics.
wonderful post!! Isnt there any collection available?
Excellent and informative!! I’ve always loved his work.
Keep Blogging!!
Thank you for this.
I grew up on a diet of R K Narayan, and of course Laxman’s cartoons.
Great tribute dost!!!
he truly was a legend and so was his brother…..
Lovely post Chirag. Loved reading through it. A wonderfully done tribute.
wonderful tribute
Wonderful post! A great tribute to a great cartoonist!
Yep Chirag, I think ppl like these are seriously underrated. He really gets to the pulse of the nation. Never seen a cartoon by Laxman which I couldn’t agree on.
Awesome and brilliant are some of the words that come to mind right now!
loved absolutely loved this tribute of a post:)
RK Laxman …they sure dont make em like that anymore do they?
he rocks totally!
So many of us ahve grown up watching his evergreen cartoons…put the cartoons in any place any time and they will still speak volumes….
He gave a face to the common man…and so many of the facts that ou ahve shared here I had no clue about them so thank you so much dude
I loved the first one!says so much doesnt it?
so many anecdotes here that I was unaware of…thank you…this is one of my fav posts now
seriously:)
thank you for this Chirag
PS-I wote a long comment and it got deleted by mistake
sob!!!
I miss Malgudi Days very much
It was this man who made me realize how powerful a medium a cartoon can be. Excellent write-up! Thanks for making us revisit good times
g
Awesome post and i am a fan of Mr. R K Lakshman’s cartoons too! I wish some day “brainstuck” comes to its level too!
@Sakhi If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride.
@Chirax, Hey, great post. It is hard to imagine TOI without a cartoon by RK Laxman on its front page. Have been enjoying them ever since I started reading newspapers.
That ground level water cartoon is pretty recent. FOr I ahve bokmarked ot for some of my future pot, you know
What a wonderful tribute to a wonderful person!! The cartoon strips were so very refreshing. -http://writerzblock.wordpress.com/
Thanks Chirag for such a wonderful tribute to my favourite cartoonist.
Chirah pls visit my blog
Wow, this is another post, (after that one about India for Indians and foreigners…) that one can come back to many times .
I like RK Narayana also.
He has always been a fixation since I started reading news paper .. beautiful tribute to him..
RK Laxman is truly a man who can make one smile in the work of situations.
Thank you Chirag, for reminding us of him and making me smile first thing in the morning
yup, both laxman and his brother are brilliant. we used to subscribe to TOI for years and his cartoon was the first thing i used to read in the morning..we switched to HT in bbay..because we found the mumbai edition of TOI too page three-ey for our taste. his cartoon is the only this i miss in HT. a brilliant man with a brillian mind indeed.
Chirag! That was a wonderful tribute! R K Laxman is almost an institution to himself isn’t it? His talent is just amazing!!!! We are going to miss out on so much when he decides to retire!
Fantastic Post!!!
I use to read only his cartoon section in TOI earlier…
Simply superb post and a gr8 tribute to gr8 legend
I love RKL. Thanks for reminding all of us of his great talent!
Lovely tribute! Truly a great cartoonist. My dad was an avid book collector and I’ve grown up reading and laughing at the drawings of RK Laxman, Sudhir Dar, Shankar, Abu Abraham et al.
I still cherish the 6 editions of ‘You Said It’ and pore through them whenever I feel down….instant revitalization!
ToI has a date-wise archive of his cartoons over here. Needs an Indiatimes ID tho!
Had no idea who he was. But you know me…I love a good editorial cartoon.
Chirag,
the header is simply superb
Laxman and the common man! A truly nostalgic trip for me. Loved having those cartoons with breakfast for such a long time
Packaging has become more important than the content – How true, for today’s media!
Destination Infinity
chirag u have been tagged please take it up
http://monikamanchanda15.blogspot.com/2009/04/number-game_17.html
He really drew a Laxman Rekha which almost no other cartoonist has been able to cross.
Totally enjoyed the post! Oh yes, I used to watch Malgudi Days too.
Swami and Friends.
Aaah brings back old memories!
The Times Of India was incomplete without the commonman.The commonman Laxman created.
I think you need an immense amount of talent to churn out intelligent piece of cartoons everyday. He is the least talked of and the most creative Indians right now.
The man indeed dazzles with his versatility. Thoroughly enjoyed reading this post!
I sadly, have never heard of this fellow. But
the cartoons are very clever and well done !!!
tagged and awarded!
You Have Been Tagged
a- u need to write a new post..
b- dint i tag u like ages ago?
Haha, awesome.. No Govt, No RK Strips, No Fun.. Life Would Be So Dull.
Where are you?
super amazing….
Nice article but would like to point out that the second and third cartoons( the ones in colour) are by Ajit Ninan and not by R.K.Laxman. Ninan, another great cartoonist of India, was also famous for his character Detective Moochwaala in “Target”, a children’s magazine.
thanks !!! I enjoyed it ..
I see that you’ve been at it!
Bravo!!!!
EVEN IF IT IS IN THE CORNER OF FROUNT PAGE, THE CREATION OF RKL IS REALLY A SINDHOOR-TILAK IN THE FOREHEAD OF TIMES OF INDIA.
Nice ones.
Do you by any chance have more of his cartoons of the 1970s and the 1980s?
Any idea where we can get them online?
Hi,
good write up, But you have not mentioned any thing about his early works in Kannada. in fact he started his cartooning career in kannada humour magagine ‘koravanji’. Koravanji’s Editor Dr M Shivaram started the magagine in 1942.(still its one of the famous humour mag in Kannada) dedicating to hilarious/sattiric articles and cartoons. He encouraged Laxman quite a lot.
And also i would like to bring your attention that the second and third cartoons are by Ajit Ninan and not by R.K.Laxma
-Dattu