Noted theatre person from Karnataka Prasanna will be presented with the Ammannur Madhava Chakyar Award instituted by the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi. The award that carries a cash prize of ₹3 lakh was instituted by the akademi in 2010 in memory of Ammannur, one of the stalwarts of renaissance in Koodiyattam. However, it was discontinued after a few years. The award was restored later.
Modern theatre
Playwright, director, novelist, poet and documentary filmmaker Prasanna has been an acclaimed presence in Indian theatre for the last four decades. He has made immense contributions to modern theatre in Karnataka.
He was inspired to theatre by the works of B.V. Karanth, noted film and theatre personality. Prasanna quit his education at IIT to pursue his passion for theatre. He is a graduate of the National School of Drama (NSD).
He started Samudaya, a theatre company that works with labourers and common non-theatre people in Karnataka. During the Emergency (1975 to 1977), he wrote and performed various street plays and resistance plays.
After having served as a teacher at the National School of Drama for a brief period, he also worked in the television industry. Uli, Seema Paar, Dangeya Munchina Dinagalu, Ondu Lokada Kathe, Haddu Meerida Haadi, Mahihmapura are some of his noteworthy plays.
He has directed plays for the NSD as well as other theatre institutions of India like Rangamandal, Rangayana and Ninasam. Hamlet, Tughlaq, Ek Lok Katha, Mother Courage and Her Children and Shakunthalam are just a few names from his directorial repertoire.