Honoring Karnataka's Icons: A tribute through postal stamps

India Post has a long-standing tradition of commemorating distinguished personalities through postage stamps, paying homage to their contributions across various fields. Karnataka, a land of rich cultural and historical heritage, has produced several eminent figures who have shaped the nation’s destiny in governance, science, literature, arts, and social reform. Here are some of Karnataka’s most celebrated individuals who have been honored by India Post..Sir Benegal Narsing Rau (1887-1953) hailed from Karkal in today’s Udupi district. He was a civil servant, jurist and diplomat and statesman known for his key role in drafting the Constitution of India. He was also India’s representative to the United Nations Security Council from 1950 to 1952. In 1988, on the occasion of his birth centenary, the Government of India issued a postage stamp in his honour..Basaveswara was a great social reformer in the 12th century. He was a man ahead of his times and led a crusade against caste system and untouchability. He questioned the superstitions and social evils which prevailed in the tradition-bound society. Through short but pithy sayings called vachanas he propounded his progressive thoughts, preaching equality and fraternity. On the occasion of his 800th death anniversary celebrations which concluded in August 1997, the Department of Posts issued a special postage stamp..Bellary Raghava studied at Bellary High School. He founded the Shakespeare Club in Bellary and played in Shakespeare dramas. He was associated with another dramatist from Bellary, Kolachalam Srinivas Rao and portrayed main characters in the latter's group “Sumanohara in Bangalore. In 1990 he founded the Amateur Dramatic Association of Bangalore. On October 31, 198, a commemorative stamp was issued by the Postal Department on the occasion of his birth centenary..C V Raman (1888-1970) the Nobel prize-winning scientist has a long association with Bangalore. In 1934 he established the Indian Academy of Sciences with headquarters in Bangalore and continued his association with this Academy till his death. In 1933 he was appointed the director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. From 1948 till his death he was the director of Raman Research Institute, Bangalore. Postal stamps featuring Raman were issued in 1971 and 2009..Devanahalli Venkataramanaiah Gundappa (1887-1975) popularly known as DVG hailed from Mulbagal in Kolar district. Kannada literature's best-known work is “Manku Thimmana Kagga” wisdom poems. He founded the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs on August 15, 1948. at Basavanagudi in Bangalore. To commemorate his birth centenary, a commemorative stamp was issued in 1988..Dr Narayan Subbarao Hardikar (1889-1975) was a freedom fighter and Congress politician who founded the Congress Seva Dal. Hardikar was born in Dharwar and studied medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Calcutta and then went to the United States for higher education. He founded the Karnataka Health Institute at Ghataprabha. A commemorative postage stamp on his birth anniversary was issued on May 13, 1989..Dr Rajkumar (1929-2006) born Muthuraj was a versatile stage and cinema actor in Kannada. In 1954 he got a break to act in the film "Bedara Kannappa” in which he adopted the screen name, Rajkumar. He acted in 206 films playing roles such as mythological characters, historical personalities, folk heroes and social characters. A commemorative postage stamp was issued on November 1, 2009..Field Marshal K M Cariappa (1900-1993) was born in Shanivara Santhe in Coorg (Kodagu) district. He was the first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. He received his formal education at the Central School in Virajpet and Presidency College, Madras. A commemorative postage stamp was released on January 15, 1995. Incidentally, his hobby was stamp collecting..Mahakavi Muddana (1870-1901) was a Kannada poet, writer and a Yakshagana artist. He hailed from Nandalike in Karkala taluk of today’s Udupi district. His best-known works include Ratnavati Kalyana (Yakshagana), Sri Rama Pattaabhisheka, Adbhuta Ramayana and Sri Ramashwamedha. Suffering from poverty and poor health, Muddana died at the age of 31. A commemorative stamp was issued on November 1, 2017..Kittur Rani Chennamma (1778-1829) was the queen of Kittur, the former princely state in Belagavi district. She led an armed force against the British East India Company in 1824 in defiance of the doctrine of lapse though she was finally defeated and died imprisoned. She became a folk hero in Karnataka and a symbol of the independence movement in India. A commemorative postage stamp on her bi-centenary was issued on October 23, 1977..Kuppali Venkatappa Puttappa (1904 – 1994), popularly known by his pen name Kuvempu, is regarded as the greatest Kannada poet of the 20th century. He was the first among Kannada writers to be decorated with the Jnanpith award. Kuvempu studied at Mysuru University in the 1920s, taught there for nearly three decades and served as its vice-chancellor from 1956 to 1960. For his contributions to Kannada literature, the Government of Karnataka decorated him with the honorific Rashtrakavi ("National poet”) in 1958 and Karnataka Ratna in1992. His epic narrative Sri Ramayana Darshanam is a modern rendition of the Ramayana. He penned the Karnataka State Anthem Jaya Bharata Jananiya Tanujate. A commemorative stamp as a part of the series, “Eminent Writers” was issued on May 31, 2017..Purandara Dasa is the most popular among the Haridasas of Karnataka. His mother tongue was Kannada and was an erudite scholar of Sanskrit. He laid the foundation of Carnatic music and contributed greatly to the form and content through his originality and compositions. A commemorative stamp on his 400the death anniversary was released on January 14, 1964..Siddavanahalli Nijalingappa (1902-2000) was a senior Congress politician and the Chief Minister of Karnataka between 1956 and 1958 and once again, between 1962 and 1968. He played an important role in the Indian freedom movement and Karnataka Unification movement. He received his education at A V School, Davanagere, Central College, Bangalore and Law Colle, Pune. A commemorative stamp on his birth anniversary was released on December 31, 2003..Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (1861-1962) was an engineer, scholar, statesman and the Dewan of Mysore from 1912 to 1918. He is the recipient of Bharat Ratna in 1955. Every year, on his birthday, 15th September is celebrated as Engineer’s Day in India in his memory. He is best remembered for the instrumental role he played in the construction of Krishnaraja Sagar Dam in 1924. India Post issued a postage stamp on 15th September 1960 on the occasion of his 100th birthday. As an exception, a postage stamp was issued on a living personality..Tipu Sultan (1750 – 1799), also known as Tiger of Mysore, was a ruler of the Mysore Kingdom and a pioneer of rocket artillery. He introduced a new coinage system and calendar and a new land revenue system which initiated the growth of the Mysore silk industry. He deployed the rockets against advances of British forces and their allies during the Anglo-Mysore Wars. Napoleon Bonaparte, the French commander-in-chief, sought an alliance with Tipu Sultan. A commemorative postage stamp was released on July 15, 1974, as a part of personality stamps series..Vishnuvardhan (1950 – 2009), born Sampath Kumar, was a popular Kannada cinema actor. He appeared in over 220 films in Kannada, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam. He made his debut in the 1972 film Vamsha Vriksha in a supporting role. The same year he played the lead role in Puttana Kanagal's Nagarahavu, and was recognized as 'The Angry Young Man of Kannada Cinema'. He has played a variety of roles in different genres. A postage stamp on Vishnuvardhan was released on May 3, 2013, as part of the series “100 years of Indian cinema.”