Today Google Doodles Anant Pai 82nd Birthday

Google, always google.

Search giant Google is celebrating 82nd birth anniversary of Indian educationist Anant Pai (Uncle Pai), who was born 82 years ago on September 17,1929 and died February 24,2011 at age 81.

Google Doodles Anant Pai 82nd Birthday logo on this occasion and have positioned a special Doodle with cartoon character, in the occasion you hover your mouse over it, Google Doodles Anant Pai a note pops-up that says- “Anant Pai’s 82nd Birthday.”

Google Doodles Anant Pai 82nd Birthday

Anant Pai (September 17,1929 – February 24,2011)

Anant Pai popularly known as Uncle Pai, was an Indian educationalist and creator of Indian comics, specifically the Amar Chitra Katha series in 1967, along with the India book House publishers, and which retold conventional Indian folks tales, mythological stories, and biographies of historical characters. In 1980, he launched Tinkle, a children’s anthology, which was began underneath Rang Rekha Features, India’s first comic and cartoon syndicate, that lasted until 1998, with him as the Managing Director.

Today, Amar Chitra Katha, sells about three million comic books a year, in English and more than 20 Indian languages, and has offered about one hundred million copies since it inception in 1967 by Anant Pai, and in 2007 was taken over by ACK Media.

Image via Wikipedia

Early life and educationBorn in Karkala, Karnataka to Venkataraya and Susheela Pai, he lost his mother and father at the age of two.On the age of twelve, he got here to Mumbai, where he studied in Orient College, Mahim. He studied chemistry, physics and chemical know-how on the University of Bombay Division of Chemical Expertise (UDCT now UICT) and was a dual diploma holder from the University of Bombay.

Early career

Endowed with a passion for publishing and comics, his failed attempt at making a children’s magazine (Manav, 1954) was adopted by a career as a junior executive in the Times of India books division, putting him in the thick of affairs when Indrajal comics was launched by the Times Group.

The Amar Chitra Katha years

The idea behind starting a comicbook collection dedicated to Indian tradition and historical past came to Pai from a quiz contest aired on Doordarshan in February 1967, during which individuals could easily answer questions pertaining to Greek mythology, but were unable to answer to the question “Within the Ramayana, who was Rama’s mother?”

He left his job and started Amar Chitra Katha the same year, with the help of late G. L. Mirchandani of India Book House, when most other publishers from Allied Publishers to Jaico had rejected the concept. Later, he took on the role of writer, editor and publisher. The series went on to become a publishing milestone for the Indian comic book scene, selling over 86 million copies of about 440 titles.

In 1969, Anant Pai founded Rang Rekha Features, India’s first comic and cartoon syndicate, and started the children’s magazine Tinkle in 1980. His involvement with the above, and the rapport he shared with his readers earned him the title “Uncle Pai”.

Anant Pai was admitted to a hospital regarding the treatment of a bone fracture following a fall from a staircase. After some days, when he was recovering, he suffered from a massive heart attack on 24 February 2011 early in the morning. He died later that day around 5 PM.

[Source: wikipedia]