Shankar, up close

There was this lovable but naughty boy who roamed in the groves and swam in the ponds of a hamlet in Kayankulam, Kerala. In time he went on ...

There was this lovable but naughty boy who roamed in the groves and swam in the ponds of a hamlet in Kayankulam, Kerala. In time he went on to become the great cartoonist, K. Shankar Pillai, fondly known as Shankar 8212; a name synonymous with laughter through cartoons. In the world of books, his name is familiar as the one who pioneered children8217;s literature in India.

To me, however, he was a dear father-in-law. I remember the time when his son announced that he wanted to marry me. Shankar rang up all the people he knew and told them proudly,8216;8216;I am getting a Gujarati daughter-in-law!8217;8217; He encouraged me to write and it was a skill thus honed that helped me, ultimately, to write a biography on him which came out in 1984.

He welcomed me into his home so fondly that I never felt like a stranger, ever. He also often embarrassed me to bits by saying in company, 8216;8216;She can sing and dance and write and direct. And she is a Gujarati and a shrew. She can make a lot of money for me!8217;8217; Shankar8217;s wife, my Amma, was also a wonderful human being. So caring, she would feed me until I had to beg her to stop. She was the real pillar of strength in our home. Shankar would not have survived a minute without her. He, on his part, would introduce her as 8216;8216;one of my wives8217;8217;. Amma would reminisce about their courtship days as also their early years in Bombay, before their move to Delhi in 1932.

Shankar8217;s day began at 5.30 am. Even before we were up, he would have had his massage, bath, breakfast and have left for work. His office at the Children8217;s Book Trust was like a shrine and he would go around all the rooms after having drawn his cartoons. He was so fond of his dolls that if he saw anyone mishandling them while cleaning them, tears would roll down his eyes.

In the evenings I would accompany him to Connaught Place where we would walk the whole roundabout. What struck me was his acute observation of people. Sometimes, the people we saw metamorphosed into characters in his cartoons!

Another place be loved going to was the South Indian vegetable market at Karol Bagh. He would buy vegetables in huge quantities, leaving poor Amma to tackle them later. Shankar also loved entertaining. He would have at least two to three parties a week and invite home diverse people 8212; from diplomats to politicians to artists. Food was lavish and always cooked in Kerala style. He was very proud of his home state.

Here was a man who kept dreaming up things as a hobby. Collecting dolls became an obsession, writing and illustrating books for children, a passion, and exposing human follies through cartoons, a way of life.

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Shankar did not just dream and stop at that. He chased his dreams until they surrendered. I salute his memory on his hundredth birth anniversary.