BENGALURU : To the world, he was K K Hebbar, the eminent artist who, inclined to the arts from a young age, made a name for himself in Mumbai. But for his daughter, Ranjini Prasanna, he was much more than that. A father who valued family and discipline more than anything else is how Prasanna would like to remember him. Some of these lesser-known aspects will be brought out in this radio series, the brainchild of the K.K. Hebbar Art Foundation. Called Kala Tapaswi K.K. Hebbar, the show will air at 2pm on All India Radio, till December 25.
“In today’s busy life, there is hardly any time for art. We picked radio as a medium because sometimes, more than reading or going through the art, it’s easier to listen to stories to understand someone’s life,” adds Prasanna, a trustee of the foundation.
The series is in Kannada and features 25 eminent personalities, like Infosys co-founder NR Narayana Murthy, cinema personality Girish Kasaravalli, and others, who reflect on the influence that Hebbar had on society. “We kept it in Kannada because we want it to reach the masses. This has been a six-month process to reach out for interviews. There are many like Girish Karnad who was an ardent admirer of his work but, unfortunately, is no more with us,” adds Prasanna.
Remembering her father as a strict disciplinarian, and a family man, Prassana says, “He was never a sweet father, he had his disciplinarian ways. He was strict about the family bonding time. Dinner was at 8pm and we had to be present for it, no matter how busy our day was,” says Prasanna, adding that initially it was difficult for her to appreciate these rules, but understands them better now.
As children, Prasanna recalls growing up with a television even though it was rare for the times. But there was a curfew on timings imposed by her father. “During summer vacations, my father gave us fun assignments, like researching on various flowers and their origins, categorising them and making a booklet out of it,” says Prasanna. As a child, Prasanna learnt the ropes of painting from her father.
“More than anything, he taught me how to observe a painting. One day he showed me his work and asked the place which was depicted. I replied, ‘Ajanta cave.’ He further asked me why I mentioned so. I then realised he had drawn mountains in the sleeping Buddha style which is why I said it was Ajanta caves,” recalls Prasanna.