Mario Miranda

ART/CULTURE

By Mario Miranda from 1st November – 

28th November, 2012

At AKS Art Gallery from 11am to 8pm

Mumbai :  Mario de Miranda, was an Indian cartoonist based in Loutolim in the Indian state of Goa. Mario’s World is an Exhibition which mainly showcases his travels in Europe, but also his most popular work. There will also be a section of Mario’s Original Pocket Cartoons on sale. The Exhibition is being organized by the MarioGallery and has been Curated by Gerard da Cunha

Mario de Miranda was born in 1926 in Portuguese India in an aristocratic landlord family. He was born in Damao ( a port  800 km north of Goa) where his father was the administrator. At the age of  6, he returned to his ancestral home in Loutolim and did his early education- studying in Portuguese at the village school.

This period of his life was very warm and happy and to prevent, Mario from continuously defacing the walls, he was given colour pencils and paper. He then moved to Bangalore to study at St. Joseph's high school, periodically returning to Goa for the school holidays.

His next stop was Bombay for his college education. He spent a day in the J J School of Art, disliked it and joined the St. Xavier College to study English literature. He spent his days in a Bombay which was in the throes of the freedom struggle. The story of these times is recorded in his diaries of 1946 and 1947.

After graduation, he returned to Goa and took a sabbatical where the daily diary he kept, moved into color and became much more complex and inventive. He returned to Bombay in 1953 and began freelancing as a cartoonist and on the basis of his Diaries, landed a job at the Times of India working in the Illustrated Weekly and Filmfare. He developed a unique crowd scene with a sea of many animated character. He also mastered the pocket cartoon and began capturing the social life of the city.

He was a great success but in 1959 was bitten by the travel bug  and went on a short holiday to Lisbon and was awarded a years  scholarship by the Gulbeinken Foundation to draw whatever inspired him . He had a grand time, but within a year became restless and moved to London working very successful as a cartoonist and illustrator.

In December 1961 Goa was liberated from Portuguese rule and Mario decided to return to India and he rejoined his old job with the Times of India and got married to Habiba Hydari an Art teacher. These were the most productive years of his life and besides his day job; he penned many books which increased his fame. Among them were Sketchbook, A little world of humor and Goa with love.

With his growing stature, he got invited to many countries such as USA, Germany, France, Japan, Australia etc to sketch and exhibit. During these trips, he experimented with composition and new styles, enriching his repertoire.

He also illustrated many books of well known authors, where the illustrations held centre stage. His historical sketches captured the essence of a period. He then began receiving many national and international honors.

In 1996, Mario returned to live in his Ancestral home in Goa and began drawing away continuously on many diverse projects, besides sending his cartoons to the daily newspaper. Mario passed away in December, 2011 and is survived by his wife Habiba and sons Rishaad and Raul.