"The Common Man", cartoonist R K Laxman passes away

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Legendary cartoonist R.K. Laxman (24 October 1921 - 26 January 2015), creator of the iconic "Common Man" has died today after a brief illness.  Through his iconic character of 'The Common Man', Laxman has held a mirror to the society by creating satire targeting politicians for more than five decades. However, of late he has stopped sketching political cartoons.

He was honored with Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1984, Padma Vibhushan in 2005,  Lifetime Achievement Award for Journalism in 2008 and Pune Pandit Award (Scholar of Pune Award) in the year 2012.

Laxman, brother of late novelist R.K. Narayan, is survived by writer wife Kamala, retired journalist son Srinivas and daughter-in-law Usha.

About the Common Man

• The Common Man is a cartoon character created by Laxman, which appears in the daily comic strip "You Said It" in The Times of India, which started in 1951.
• The Common Man was featured in a commemorative postage stamp released by the Indian Postal Service on the 150th anniversary of the Times of India in 1988. 
• The Common Man was the mascot for the low budget airline Air Deccan.
• 2 Statues of the Common Man were installed in Pune and Mumbai

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