Chandrashekhar Patil no more: Noted Kannada writer-activist 'Champa' passes away at 82

Celebrated writer and activist Chandrashekhar Patil, who was fondly known as Champa, breathed his last today, on January 10, 2022. The activist passed away around 6:30 am in a private hospital in Bengaluru. He was 82.

Kannada activist Chandrashekhar Patil died in Bengaluru due to age-related ailments. He was reportedly ill for the past few days. He is survived by his wife, Neela Patil, and two children. His family has reported that his body will be brought to his Gayathri Layout house where his last rites will be performed.

As per ANI, Karnataka Cheif Minister Basavaraj Bommai also expressed his grief on the passing away of the renowned Kannada author, critic and theatre personality. In his statement, he mentioned how Champa worked for Karnataka and its native language Kannada. He said, "He was a professor of English at Karnataka University, Dharwad and editor of Sankramana, a Kannada literary publication. He has also served as the head of the Kannada Development Authority and Kannada Sahitya Parishat. Champa's death is an immense loss for the Kannada literary world." He further shared his heartfelt condolences to his family and prayed to the almighty to provide them with the strength to bear this loss.

Who was Champa?

Chandrashekhar Patil was known by his pet name Champa across the country. He was an Indian poet, theatre personality, playwright and intellectual writer. Born in 1939 in Hatimmatur village of Karnataka, Patil was one of the foremost voices of the Bandaya movement, a progressive literary movement that started in 1974 to promote socially-committed literature. Patil was conferred with the Karnataka Sahitya Akademi Award for poetry and the Karnataka state government's Pampa Award.

The social media platform Twitter is filled with Champa's fans mourning his death. An actor and activist wrote, "We have lost progressive intellectual & writer Champa Sir today." He further mentioned how he had met Champa during different events and penned he would miss him a lot. Another user mentioned how Karnataka will miss the celebrated activist and penned his contributions to the state. He wrote, "Condolences on the sad demise of noted Kannada writer Shri Chandrashekhar Patil. His contributions to Kannada literature, Gokak movement, and progressive thoughts are immense." "Karnataka will miss champa," he added.

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