Shankar's Weekly

Shankar's Weekly was an Indian satirical magazine published between 1948 and 1975. It was founded and run by Keshav Shankar Pillai, a pioneering political cartoonist. The magazine has been compared to the UK's Punch.[2]

Shankar's Weekly
Cover art of the last issue of Shankar's Weekly
EditorKeshav Shankar Pillai
FrequencyWeekly
FounderKeshav Shankar Pillai
Year founded1948 (1948)
Final issueAugust 31, 1975 (1975-08-31)[1]
CountryIndia
Based inNew Delhi
LanguageEnglish
OCLC1774460

The weekly printed its first issue in 1948 after Pillai left the Hindustan Times following pressure from Times editor Devdas Gandhi to stop publishing cartoons critical of C. Rajagopalachari, a prominent Congress leader. The magazine was launched by Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, with whom Pillai shared a close friendship, even though Pillai described the magazine as "fundamentally anti-establishment".[3]

Shankar's Weekly became a platform for aspiring cartoonists across the country. Prominent cartoonists who published in the weekly include R K Laxman, Rajinder Puri, Kevy, Kutty, Bal Thackeray and Yesudasan. The magazine invited contributions from readers in a designated space.[4] Many cartoonists, such as E. P. Unny, published through the readers' column. According to Unny, Shankar's Weekly was the "homing ground for the second generation of Indian political cartoons".[5] Shankar allowed a variety of styles to function together despite himself being a very powerful leader with certainty for the craft. There was no common house style; a variety of personal styles were created by the cartoonists.[5] However, Shankar was very particular on the tools used for drawing: he insisted on the use of the brushes rather than pens.[6]

In 1975, two weeks into The Emergency, the magazine shut down after having run for 27 years. According to the founder, the Emergency was not the cause of the closure. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi wrote a letter to Pillai on hearing of the closure, stating she will "miss the journal".[7]

References
  1. "Must Read: 'Shankar's Weekly' final editorial". Indian Journalism Review. 18 May 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  2. Rao, P. V. L. Narasimha (2011). Style in Journalism. Readworthy Publications. p. 102. ISBN 978-93-5018-025-9.
  3. John, Rachel (26 December 2019). "Shankar, the political cartoonist to whom Nehru said 'Don't spare me!'". ThePrint.
  4. Khanduri, Ritu Gairola (October 2014). Caricaturing Culture in India: Cartoons and History in the Modern World. Cambridge University Press. p. 111. ISBN 978-1-107-04332-9.
  5. Unny, E. P. (15 November 2016). "In Conversation with E.P. Unny" (Interview). Interviewed by Shruti Ravi. Sahapedia. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  6. Balakrishnan, Vinod; Venkat, Vishaka, eds. (2019). Conversations with Indian Cartoonists: Politickle Lines. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 192. ISBN 978-1-5275-4293-8.
  7. Purie, Mandira (December 15, 1975). "Cartoonist Shankar Pillai decides to close down his political journal Shankar's Weekly". India Today. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
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