How to be Funny and a Social Activist! An Interview with a Cartoonist, Social Worker, and a Teacher Prabhakar Zalake
Your journey begins as a caricaturist and social worker. What inspires you?
It is believed that a person’s future is determined by the qualities they display in their childhood. पोराचे पाय पाळण्यात िदसतात is a saying in Marathi which means the same. However, I didn’t get a cradle when I was a child but I received a bag as my share. Therefore, as the Marathi saying mentioned above, my future was difficult to predict. In other words, I will be a famous cartoonist in the future, such qualities weren’t apparent during my childhood and no one got the opportunity to determine my future.
One thing is true though, I was fond of painting (that is why I could become an AM: Art Master). However, both painting and cartoonist are different genres. If you’re good at painting, it does not necessarily mean that the artist can be a good cartoonist too. But to become a cartoonist, knowing art is equally important which came to me along with painting.
When did you know that you wanted to be a cartoonist?
I give credit to my uncle for inculcating good hobbies such as reading comic books, listening, watching satire, and reading stories. He used to tell us funny jokes. He used to explain to us the exact humour hidden in wordless cartoons. As he was fond of reading, we too unknowingly developed a taste for reading.
Later I fell in love with great cartoonist Shiv Sena Chief, the Late Balasaheb Thackeray’s Marmik Magazine cartoons. Fluid, strong lines in his paintings, extravagant ideas, nuances in the picture, and the study of anatomy required by the painter, the thick and thin brush strokes in his paintings – I could see a combination of all these beautiful things in his cartoons. I have always had a love of the human form, specifically faces, expressions, and hands. I love how much emotion and character they can portray, and I try to illustrate character and personality in every sketch I make.
At that time, a satirical competition was announced in Marmik. I sent a picture for that competition and what a surprise I got the first prize and my journey as a cartoonist started! Today it continues!
Today, I’m known as this famous cartoonist, but Marmik deserves all that credit. Most of the work has been published and received fame through Marmik. All that I have achieved today and the art that was discovered in me is without any doubt due to Balasaheb’s encouragement and under his brother Shrikant Thackeray’s guidance.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Earlier we were talking about social work and you had a few questions, let me elucidate on it. I believe a cartoonist is also a social worker because he educates society but with brush and strokes. Due to my passion for social work, I started an organization named ‘Dhadpad Manch’ in the eighties around 35 years ago. We organize various social activities with the help of volunteers.
“Dhadpad Manch”, one can easily understand the purpose of the organization but would like to ask about the unique activities you started and are still going on.
One milestone activity under Dhadpad Manch is “Ek Karanji Molachi” that we have been organising for the last 35 years. Every Diwali during Laxmi Puja, we parade the village to collect Diwali Faral from residents of Yeola City. Later, on the day of Padwa, we make the packets and distribute these packets to the poor and tribals from far and wide to make them participate in the joy of the Diwali Festival.
During the nine-day festival of Navratri, devotees undertake a journey to the temple of the goddess in the nearby town of Kotamgaon. The devotees should get their ‘darshan’ without any hindrance, hence for the last 37 years we have started free ‘Charan Seva’ stalls for them.
Besides this what are your hobbies?
A hobby not only brings joy to us but also brings joy to others. Because of my love for painting since childhood, my collection contains paintings by famous painters from the past fifteen years, including caricatures, line drawings, and architectural drawings. My collection also includes unmatched nature paintings by many artists. This is my collection of paintings, but I will tell you about another unique collection of mine. I have set up a small museum in my house, where at the entrance of the old houses from ancient times, you can find Ganapati, Mangal Kalash, Ganesh, and Ridhhi-Sidhhi, as well as various carvings, sculptures, and paintings depicting their significance from the past fifty years. There are also frames with hunting scenes made of wooden boards, artistic compositions with birds, frames with intricate designs, a brave Rajasthani soldier on horseback crushing an elephant under his feet, an elderly smiling Chinese man, a little boy with a toy soldier in his hand, a round pebble-shaped sculpture, and so on.
Along with this, there are different shapes and sizes of locks like winch, elephant, and drum, and other figures to open and shut, skillfully crafted brass pendants in the shape of man and woman, tiger, mother and child, peacock, horse rider, an African woman who performs kandan, a brass cup that can be folded, as well as a half dozen glass vases of various sizes are hung. Many different-shaped moulds can also be found here. The unknown imaginative artists who create these works of art from simple tools are admired for their creativity. The reason behind this is that they have created this art using only basic tools. Art and functionality come together in this sculpture.
Sir, you are turning 85 this month, how many cartoons have you drawn so far? Also, tell us a little bit about the awards.
I am currently 85 years old. Over 10,000 caricatures drawn by me have become famous now and I continue to draw them. As for tips or awards, as I had mentioned earlier, Balasaheb gave me 3/4 awards with regards to that. In a competition held by an institute in Frankfurt, Germany, I was awarded a cash prize of ten thousand rupees for my caricature. I have also published a book called ‘Hasya Prabha Jhalake’ which features these caricatures.
