JOIN USKannada theatre loses artiste with many talents
G Channakeshava, who died at 49 on Wednesday, was best known for his work in theatre, but he had other talents as well.
‘Channa Sir,’ as his fellow artistes fondly called him, was a designer, artist and also wrote for online literary blogs. He had been ailing for some months.
“He had three distinct talents. As a graduate from Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, he had a formal education in the visual arts, and he was also a theatre graduate from Neenasam. He was also intensely involved in literature. He was a rare personality with great depth of knowledge in all three fields,” says Vivek Shanbhag, well-known novelist and playwright.
When Vivek was editing the literary journal Desha Kaala, Channakeshava was in charge of the design. “He was at the centre of the quarterly. In the 18 years that I knew him, we worked on many projects together,” he says.
Ganesh Shenoy, founding member of theatre group Sanchaya, says Channakeshava was one of the more modern voices in the community. “He never tried to commercialise his art, and he was a quiet person who let his art speak for him,” he says.
In 2020, Channakeshava started a mobile eatery with fellow artistes Sidhaartha Maadhyamika, Lakshman K P, Anil Revoor and Chandra Ninasam. “As freelance artistes, we already live uncertain lives, and the pandemic only made it worse,” says Sidhaartha.
The mobile canteen was run out of an Omni van. “It was his idea to combine food and art. While serving food, we would perform small sketches and plays. It was our attempt at keeping the performing arts alive. Sir would always bring a creative angle like this to every project,” he says.
Channakeshava had launched Lokacharita, a platform for young minds to discuss literature, cinema and art. “The second Sunday of every month, he would organise a gathering at MES College in Malleswaram and invite people from different fields to share their expertise. It was an initiative he passionately supported for seven years,” says Vivek.