Veteran writer and translator Chandrakanth Kusnoor died of natural causes in Belagavi on Saturday. He was 90. He suffered from age related illnesses, family sources said. His last rites were conducted in the wee hours of Saturday.
A multi faceted personality, he earned significant fame as a writer, translator, novelist, poet, playwright, painter, and art critic and institution builder.
He is among the few artists to have won awards from the Karnataka Nataka Academy, Karnataka Lalitha Kala Academy and Karnataka Sahitya Academy for his work.
A polyglot, he worked as a cross translator between Kannada, Marathi, Hindi and Urdu. His translations of the works of U.R. Ananthmurthy and Srikrishna Alanahalli into Hindi were well received.
He is hailed by literary historians as the first person to introduce the Haiku format of poetry into Kannada.
He was also among the pioneering abstract writers in Kannada. His plays like Dindi, Vidushaka, Ratto Ratto Rayara Magale and Ani Bantu Ondu Ani, were widely performed.
His biographical novel Gohar Jan chronicles the growth of professional theatre music tradition.
He was also an abstract painter and converted his home in Channamma Nagar into a mini art gallery. He continued to paint till the very end, said artist Balu Sadalage.
Mr. Kusnoor’s non fiction work on art criticism Kale- Anubhava- Anubhava forms essential reading for young artists
He hailed from Kalaburagi where he worked as a college professor for some years. He had settled in Belagavi after his retirement as the deputy director of Kannada and culture. Along with friends, he founded Ranga Madhyama in Kalaburagi and Gulmohar Belgaum Arts Group in Belagavi. The state government had honoured him with the Karnataka Rajyotsava Award.
