By Prof. A.V. Narasimha Murthy
The word Mysuru is generally attached to items like Mysuru Mallige, Mysuru Pak, Mysuru Dasara, Mysuru Palace, etc. and this practice has been continued by Mysuru Ranganath popularly known as Ranganna. In fact, he would love to be called Mysuru Ranganna. I do not remember when exactly I met him first but I remember that he came to my house requesting me to accept the Hoysala Award which he gives every year to achievers in various cultural fields including history and archaeology. Though I have received many awards, this Hoysala Award is still green in my memory because it is named after the Hoysalas, a great dynasty which gave Karnataka King Vishunuvardhana. Secondly, Hoysalas patronised architecture and sculpture which is unprecedented in Indian art history. Any VIP who visits Karnataka definitely would like to see Hoysala temples at Belur, Halebeedu and Somanathapura. On any given day, hundreds of tourists would throng the portals of these great temples and foreigners particularly are found in great numbers. These temples make Kannadigas proud. All these thoughts came to my mind when I thought of the Hoysala Award. Ranganna is not a rich man but the Hoysala Award function is arranged in a grand manner. When I asked him how he managed, he simply smiles and says can I not do this much for the sake of Kannada. Now let me come back to our hero Ranganna or Ranganath. It is difficult to believe that he is past fifty as he not only looks young but also works like a youngster. His father, now late, Rajarao wanted him to get a University degree and become a high school teacher. But Ranganna had other ideas. He obtained a law degree and his father was happy that he would uphold law and help poor clients. But his love towards Kannada literature took him to the service of honouring Kannadigas.
