Visionary, pioneer and godfather

To Kartik Rajagopal, who passed away recently.

Kartik Rajagopal

‘Kartik’ Rajagopal, as he was fondly called in the fine arts circle, passed away last Sunday. Artists and those who were associated with him pay their tribute:

Kathadi Ramamurthy (Actor): If amateur drama groups are still thriving in Chennai despite competition from other modes of entertainment, it is because of ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal . At the inauguration of all of our plays, his first question would be, “When are you planning to inaugurate your next play?” He was such a pace setter. Above all he was a gem of a person and always gave his opinion, be it negative or positive, in a humorous way.

Visu (actor and playwright): ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal was the Pillaiyar of both professional and amateur drama groups of Chennai. I never began any work related to drama without prostrating before him. He was the first person to recognise inherent talent and would go all out to promote the artist.

We had to give our play’s script to him well ahead of the inauguration. Half way through the script, he would call to confirm the date of the inauguration. His comments covered both the negative and positive aspects of the new play from the audience’s perspective.

‘Crazy’ Mohan (actor and playwright): I became ‘Crazy’ Mohan after my plays became hits at the Mylapore Fine Arts Club, where they were inaugurated thanks to ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal. Although he was my father’s class mate, our bond grew stronger after he watched a few of my plays. It was in 1975 when I staged my first play at MFAC, and ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal said in a lighter vein that we were nothing but a sack of gooseberries, meaning we lacked cohesion and sent us on a hiatus. After six years, our new play was successfully staged with his blessings and there was no turning back. I owe my success as a dramatist to Kartik Rajagopal. show of a play but the very first show was always a Sukha Prasavam (normal delivery) with Mr ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal at the helm. It is an irreparable loss to the entire drama fraternity.

L. Sabaretnam (Chairman, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai Kendra and Chairman, Kartik Fine Arts):

We have lost a great man. He was always for innovation and his farsightedness was amazing. His vision took Kartik Fine Arts forward. Nothing could come between him and the organisation.

N. Vijay Siva (musician): I was a child artist of Sangeethanjali drama group when I first met ‘Kartik’ Rajagopal as secretary of MFAC. In fact, he was also a good friend of my father’s, who was the secretary of Sangeethanjali group. He was open minded, always willing to experiment. He would monitor everything from back stage. Another admirable quality was his ability to stay abreast of the latest in the fine arts field. When he founded Kartik Fine Arts, our bond deepened. He respected the principles of others and never used his position as organiser to dominate.

S. Chandrasekaran (Treasurer, Kartik Fine Arts): I have been associated with him for almost 30 years. For many of us, it was on-the-job training in running a cultural organisation. Discipline in every aspect, be it fixing an artist or commencement of a programme, was his watch word. He insisted that we follow the schedule strictly, irrespective of the status of the artist. He was a pioneer in introducing drama festivals and awarding stage artists. Brick by brick he built Kartik Fine Arts which is in its 39 year.