''The Illustrated Weekly of India'' was an
English-language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
weekly
newsmagazine
A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published magazine, radio or television program, usually published weekly, consisting of articles about current events. News magazines generally discuss stories, in greater depth than do newspapers or new ...
publication in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It started publication in 1880 (as ''
Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, t ...
'' Weekly Edition; later renamed as ''The Illustrated Weekly of India'' in 1923) and ceasing publication in 1993. Also simply known as ''Weekly'' by its readership, ''The Illustrated Weekly of India'' was considered to be an important English-language publication in India for more than a century.
The magazine was edited by
Sean Mandy,
A. S. Raman,
Khushwant Singh
Khushwant Singh (born Khushal Singh, 2 February 1915 – 20 March 2014) was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 Partition of India inspired him to write ''Train to Pakistan'' in 1956 (made ...
,
M. V. Kamath
Madhav Vittal Kamath (7 September 1921 – 9 October 2014) was an Indian journalist and broadcasting executive, and the chairman of Prasar Bharati. He worked as the editor of ''The Sunday Times'' for two years from 1967 to 1969, as Washing ...
, and
Pritish Nandy
Pritish Nandy (born 15 January 1951) is an Indian poet, painter, journalist, parliamentarian, media and television personality, animal activist and maker of films, TV and streaming content. He was a parliamentarian in the Rajya Sabha from Mahara ...
. A. S. Raman was the first Indian editor of ''The Illustrated Weekly of India'', succeeding Sean Mandy. Khushwant Singh took over as editor nearly a year after Raman's formal departure. In between, assistant editor Subrata Banerjee edited the magazine for about 20 months. Cartoons in the latter half of the magazine were by
R. K. Laxman
Rasipuram Krishnaswami Laxman ''Pg. 11 in the source says that Laxman & his brother Narayan were Tamil Iyer Brahmins.'' (24 October 1921 – 26 January 2015) was an Indian cartoonist, illustrator, and humorist. He is best known for his creation ...
and
Mario Miranda
Mário João Carlos do Rosário de Brito Miranda (2 May 1926 – 11 December 2011), popularly known as Mario Miranda or Mario de Miranda, was an Indian cartoonist and painter based in Loutolim in the Indian state of Goa.
Miranda had been a ...
. It is now defunct, having closed down on 13 November 1993.
Many young students of English used it as a regular reading and guide for honing English language skills in vernacular India.
Closing of ''The Illustrated Weekly of India''
In 1993, the publication industry became intensely competitive and the magazines published by ''The Times of India'' were losing money.
Samir Jain
Samir Jain (born 11 March 1954) is an Indian publisher and the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director (VCMD) of Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., also known as The Times Group, a leading media conglomerate with its primary base of operations in India, ...
, The owner of the Times of India group, decided to end the publication of ''The Illustrated Weekly of India'', ''
Dharmyug
''Dharmyug'' was a Hindi pictorial weekly published by The Times Group, The Times of India Group from year 1949 till 1993.
History
The magazine was originally published by a Dalmia Group, Dalmia press in Bombay from 1949, just after independen ...
'', and similar magazines to focus on revitalisation of the newspapers. The move was widely criticised, however Samir Jain was able to turn the fortunes of ''Times of India'' around.
The Indian Media Business, Vanita Kohli, Sage, 2006 p. 34
/ref>
References
External links
at ''Times Group'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Illustrated Weekly of India
Defunct magazines published in India
English-language magazines published in India
Magazines established in 1880
Magazines disestablished in 1993
Mass media in Mumbai
News magazines published in India
Publications of The Times Group
Weekly magazines published in India