K. N. Guruswamy
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K. N. Guruswamy or Kanekal Nettakallappa Guruswamy (1901–1990) was a liquor businessman and newspaper publisher from
Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
,
Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
.


Founder

He founded The Printers (Mysore) Private Limited, the company that publishes ''
Deccan Herald ''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by K. N. Guruswamy, a liquor businessman from Ballari and was launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Printe ...
'', ''
Prajavani ''Prajavani'' (Kannada:''Voice of the People'') is a leading Kannada-language broadsheet daily newspaper published in Karnataka, India. Having a readership of over 2.01 million, it is one of the largest circulated newspapers in the state. His ...
'', '' Sudha'' and '' Mayura'' in 1948.


Deccan Herald ''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by K. N. Guruswamy, a liquor businessman from Ballari and was launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Printe ...
and
Prajavani ''Prajavani'' (Kannada:''Voice of the People'') is a leading Kannada-language broadsheet daily newspaper published in Karnataka, India. Having a readership of over 2.01 million, it is one of the largest circulated newspapers in the state. His ...

Deccan Herald ''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by K. N. Guruswamy, a liquor businessman from Ballari and was launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Printe ...
was launched on June 17, 1948. According to Gautham Machaiah, its owners purchased a dance club -- Funnel's owned by an Irish couple. The intention was of starting a movie theatre (there were already two other theatres on either side -- Plaza and Liberty) but then opted for a newspaper, despite having "zero experience in journalism or print business". Soon after this, a Kannada-language daily
Prajavani ''Prajavani'' (Kannada:''Voice of the People'') is a leading Kannada-language broadsheet daily newspaper published in Karnataka, India. Having a readership of over 2.01 million, it is one of the largest circulated newspapers in the state. His ...
was also launched.


Businessman of Ballari (Bellary)

Founder K.N. Guruswamy (1901-1990) was the eldest son of a prominent businessman of Ballari (
Bellary Bellary, officially Ballari, in the eponymous Bellary district, is a city in the state of Karnataka, India. History Bellary was a part of Rayalaseema (Ceded Districts) which was part of Madras Presidency till 1 November 1956. The Ball ...
), who later shifted to Bangalore, and the family belonged to the
Ediga Edigas or Idigas is a Hindu toddy tapper community in Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The traditional occupation of Idiga people was that of toddy tapping. They are mostly concentrated in the Malenadu and Shivamogga districts. Simila ...
community, which was traditionally involved in toddy tapping. They won excise contracts and expanded their business across (then known as Mysore, now Karnataka). Bangalore was then under the Mysore kingdom, ruled by the Wodeyers, and lacked an English newspaper in those times. The then Diwan of Mysore, Arcot Ramaswamy Mudaliar, is believed to have been instrumental in convincing Guruswamy to start an English-language daily and he launched the firm The Printers (Mysore) Pvt Ltd. Justice P P Medappa, later the state's chief justice, suggested the name ''Deccan Herald''.


Media investments

Of the Rs 500,000 capital, some 75% came from Guruswamy. Other shareholders were K. Venkataswamy, Moola Rangappa, M K Swamy and Dondusa, according to Machaiah. He documents the challenges of getting it started. ''Deccan Herald'' was initially launched as an eight-page tabloid paper, priced at one ''anna''. It later became a broadsheet. ''Deccan Herald'' launched a sister daily in Kannada, called ''Prajavani''. T. S. Ramachandra Rao was its first editor. It has played a prominent role in the world of Kannada newspaper journalism. Subsequent publications launched by the group include lifestyle magazine ''Sudha'' (initiated in 1965 and edited by E.R. Sethuram) and the literary magazine ''Mayura'', launched in 1968. Only in 1956, eight years after launch, was the newspaper able to break even. Earlier, Guruswamy had to depend on bank loans and selling all but three of the 35 buildings he had purchased from proceeds of his excise business. Guruswamy moved out of from the liquor business by 1986.


Other enterprises and initiatives

Among the other links online are the K.N. Guruswamy and Company, incorporated in Karnataka in 1970 with an authorised capital of Rs 20 lakh (two million rupees).The K.N.Guruswamy Memorial Trophy, for horse-racing in Bengaluru, has been covered on online racing channels. The K.N.Guruswamy Educational and Charitable Trust is also present. The Ashram School was started by K.N.Guruswamy.


Philanthropy

The 2012-launched Nettakallappa Aquatic Centre (NAC) -- named after his heir and nephew -- is currently (as of September 2020) managed by the K. N. Guruswamy Educational & Charitable Trust, which focuses on education and sports. This centre is based at the Uttarahalli Main Road, in
Padmanabhanagar Padmanabhanagar is a posh residential locality in South Bangalore, India, covering an area of 1.68 km2 It's one of the zones of BBMP. Padmanabhanagar has a very famous park called Lakshmikanta Park. This park houses Lakshmi Kantha temple. ...
,
Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
61. Nettakallappa supported sporting associations including those related to badminton, mountaineering and athletics during the early days of sports in Karnataka.


Family and heirs

Guruswamy, being without an heir, adopted his brother K.N. Anjanappa's son K.A. Nettakallappa, who became a well-known journalist but died young at the age of 47. Nettakallappa and ''Prajavani'' editor Ramachandra Rao are credited with playing a pioneering role in founding the Press Club of Bangalore. Nettakallappa's sons -- K.N. Hari Kumar, K.N. Tilak Kumar, and K.N. Shanth Kumar -- have been at the helm of the publications. The publications adopt a policy of "objectivity, integrity, impartiality and truth flying high". Its tagline currently (2019) is "The Power of Good."


References

1901 births 1990 deaths Indian newspaper publishers (people) Businesspeople from Bangalore {{India-business-bio-stub