Mario Miranda
Encyclopedia
Mario Miranda (born in 1926) is an Indian cartoonist
based in Loutolim
in the India
n state of Goa
. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan
in 2002, and Padma Shri
in 1988.
Miranda has been a regular with The Times of India
and other newspapers in Mumbai, including The Economic Times
, though he got his popularity with his works published in The Illustrated Weekly of India
.
In a 1999 "slide show" on the work of Mario Miranda, the site says: "Nobody is better equipped to capture vignettes of Goan life than Mario Miranda."
Goa-based editor Manohar Shetty has praised the prominent cartoonist for "his eye for detail, his skills as a draughts-man, and the total absence of malice."
to Goan Catholic parents of Goud Saraswat Brahmin origin. His ancestral surname was Sardessai, before the family converted to Roman Catholicism in the 1750s. At an early age when his mother saw him drawing his home walls, she brought him a blank book, which he calls his "Diary". He even started getting into trouble at school, for sketching Catholic priests. Mario Miranda's early cartoons presented vignettes of Goan village life, a theme he is best known for even today.
Meanwhile his talent was noticed and his friends encouraged him to make postcards and draw for them, which earned him extra pocket money.
As a cartoonist, he got his first break with The Illustrated Weekly of India
which published a few of his works. His drawings & cartoons also brought him an offer to work at the Current magazine.
A year later, the Times of India offered him a slot, even though they had rejected him at first. Thereafter, his creations, such as Miss Nimbupani and Miss Fonseca, appeared on a regular basis in Femina, Economic Times, and The Illustrated Weekly of India
.
Miranda's life was offered the Fundacao Calouste Gulbenkian Scholarship, which enabled him to travel to and stay a year in Portugal and this time in Portugal, according to Miranda, helped him to broaden his horizons.
After a year in Portugal, Miranda travelled to London, England and was to spend five years there, learning as well as doing jobs for newspapers and even worked in. of television animation, at Independent Television.
Miranda's cartoons were featured in the LILIPUT, MAD (once), and PUNCH (twice) magazines. This supplemented his finances, and enabled him to travel around Europe, interacting with other cartoonists, gaining considerable knowledge and exposure. This led to his meeting of Sir Ronald Searle, whom Miranda considered as his mentor.
Thereafter, Miranda met another artist, Habiba Hyderi; soon both got married and had two sons, Rahul and Rashid.
, the creator of Peanuts
) and met Herblock
, the editorial cartoonist of the Washington Post.
He was awarded the Padma Shri
in 1988, the Padma Bhushan
in 2002 and All India Cartoonists's Association, Bangalore, honoured him with a lifetime achievement award.
He has held solo exhibitions in over 22 countries, including the United States, Japan, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, France, Yugoslavia, and Portugal.
Miranda's cartoons grace the walls of one of South Mumbai's most famous hotspots, Cafe Mondegar, in Colaba.
Miranda also featured in the "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
" video, which included a host of India's most notable personalities in arts, films, literature, music and sports.
Over the year he has published several books, including Laugh it Off, Goa with Love, and Germany in Wintertime.
Besides his own books, he has illustrated books of Dom Moraes
(A Journey to Goa), Manohar Malgaonkar (Inside Goa) and Mario Cabral e Sa's (Legends of Goa).
He is an avid traveller, and loves listening to music.
, a village in Salcete, Goa
, with his wife, younger son and their pets. This house also features in 1985 Shyam Benegal
film, Trikaal
.
Even though retired, Miranda's work is seen regularly in Mumbai publications and he gets invited to travel to countries like Mauritius and Spain, and draw their local cultures.
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
based in Loutolim
Loutolim
Loutolim or Loutulim is a small town in Salcette taluka of South Goa district in the state of Goa, India.-Geography:Loutolim is located at . It has an average elevation of 32 metres .- History :...
in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state of Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
in 2002, and Padma Shri
Padma Shri
Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
in 1988.
Miranda has been a regular with The Times of India
The Times of India
The Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
and other newspapers in Mumbai, including The Economic Times
The Economic Times
The Economic Times is an English-language Indian daily newspaper published by the Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.. The Economic Times was started in 1961. It is the most popular and widely read financial daily in India, read by more than 8 lakh people...
, though he got his popularity with his works published in The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India was an English language weekly newsmagazine publication in India. It started publication in 1880 and ceasing publication in 1993...
.
In a 1999 "slide show" on the work of Mario Miranda, the site says: "Nobody is better equipped to capture vignettes of Goan life than Mario Miranda."
Goa-based editor Manohar Shetty has praised the prominent cartoonist for "his eye for detail, his skills as a draughts-man, and the total absence of malice."
Early life
Mario Joao Carlos do Rosario de Britto Miranda, was born in DamanDaman District, India
Daman district is one of the two districts of the union territory of Daman and Diu on the western coast of India, surrounded by Valsad District of Gujarat state on the north, east and south and the Arabian Sea to the west. The district has an area of , and a population of 113,949 , which increased...
to Goan Catholic parents of Goud Saraswat Brahmin origin. His ancestral surname was Sardessai, before the family converted to Roman Catholicism in the 1750s. At an early age when his mother saw him drawing his home walls, she brought him a blank book, which he calls his "Diary". He even started getting into trouble at school, for sketching Catholic priests. Mario Miranda's early cartoons presented vignettes of Goan village life, a theme he is best known for even today.
Education and early cartooning
He studied at St. Joseph's Boys' High School, Bangalore and then did a B.A. in History at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, while focusing on the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). Thereafter he started studying architecture at the behest of his parents, though he soon lost interest.Meanwhile his talent was noticed and his friends encouraged him to make postcards and draw for them, which earned him extra pocket money.
Career
Miranda started his career in an Advertising studio, where he worked for four years, before taking up cartooning full-time.As a cartoonist, he got his first break with The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India was an English language weekly newsmagazine publication in India. It started publication in 1880 and ceasing publication in 1993...
which published a few of his works. His drawings & cartoons also brought him an offer to work at the Current magazine.
A year later, the Times of India offered him a slot, even though they had rejected him at first. Thereafter, his creations, such as Miss Nimbupani and Miss Fonseca, appeared on a regular basis in Femina, Economic Times, and The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India
The Illustrated Weekly of India was an English language weekly newsmagazine publication in India. It started publication in 1880 and ceasing publication in 1993...
.
Miranda's life was offered the Fundacao Calouste Gulbenkian Scholarship, which enabled him to travel to and stay a year in Portugal and this time in Portugal, according to Miranda, helped him to broaden his horizons.
After a year in Portugal, Miranda travelled to London, England and was to spend five years there, learning as well as doing jobs for newspapers and even worked in. of television animation, at Independent Television.
Miranda's cartoons were featured in the LILIPUT, MAD (once), and PUNCH (twice) magazines. This supplemented his finances, and enabled him to travel around Europe, interacting with other cartoonists, gaining considerable knowledge and exposure. This led to his meeting of Sir Ronald Searle, whom Miranda considered as his mentor.
Return to Mumbai
After five years in England, Miranda returned to Mumbai and was offered back his old job with the Times of India, where he worked with noted cartoonist, R.K. Laxman.Thereafter, Miranda met another artist, Habiba Hyderi; soon both got married and had two sons, Rahul and Rashid.
Recognition and fame
Miranda's big break came in 1974, when, at the invitation of the United States Information Services, he travelled to America, which enabled him to promote his art and interact with other cartoonists in the United States and also got a chance to work with Charles M. SchulzCharles M. Schulz
Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
, the creator of Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
) and met Herblock
Herblock
Herbert Lawrence Block, commonly known as Herblock , was an American editorial cartoonist and author best known for his commentary on national domestic and foreign policy from a liberal perspective.-Career:...
, the editorial cartoonist of the Washington Post.
He was awarded the Padma Shri
Padma Shri
Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
in 1988, the Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
in 2002 and All India Cartoonists's Association, Bangalore, honoured him with a lifetime achievement award.
He has held solo exhibitions in over 22 countries, including the United States, Japan, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, France, Yugoslavia, and Portugal.
Miranda's cartoons grace the walls of one of South Mumbai's most famous hotspots, Cafe Mondegar, in Colaba.
Miranda also featured in the "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
"Ek sur" , or "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" as it is better known, is an Indian song and accompanying video promoting national integration and unity in diversity....
" video, which included a host of India's most notable personalities in arts, films, literature, music and sports.
Beyond cartooning
Besides cartooning, Miranda's murals are present on various buildings in Goa and other parts of India. Late in life he took to paintings which receive wide response.Over the year he has published several books, including Laugh it Off, Goa with Love, and Germany in Wintertime.
Besides his own books, he has illustrated books of Dom Moraes
Dom Moraes
Dominic Francis Moraes , popularly known as Dom Moraes, was a Goan writer, poet and columnist. He published nearly 30 books.-Early life:...
(A Journey to Goa), Manohar Malgaonkar (Inside Goa) and Mario Cabral e Sa's (Legends of Goa).
He is an avid traveller, and loves listening to music.
At present
Miranda has now settled in his ancestral home, at LoutolimLoutolim
Loutolim or Loutulim is a small town in Salcette taluka of South Goa district in the state of Goa, India.-Geography:Loutolim is located at . It has an average elevation of 32 metres .- History :...
, a village in Salcete, Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, with his wife, younger son and their pets. This house also features in 1985 Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal is a prolific Indian director and screenwriter. With his first four feature films Ankur , Nishant Manthan and Bhumika he created a new genre, which has now come to be called the "middle cinema" in India although he himself has expressed dislike in the term preferring his work to...
film, Trikaal
Trikaal
Trikal is an Indian movie written and directed by Shyam Benegal, set in Goa during the early 1960s Period. The film starred yester years actress, Leela Naidu, in a comeback role after many decades....
.
Even though retired, Miranda's work is seen regularly in Mumbai publications and he gets invited to travel to countries like Mauritius and Spain, and draw their local cultures.