Narayan Debnath creator of "Nonte Fonte" passed away

Eminent Indian cartoonist Narayan Debnath, creator of "Nonte Fonte" and "Bantul the Great", passed away in Kolkata on Tuesday (January 18) morning. He was 97 years old at the time of passing.

The legendary cartoonist was suffering from prolonged illness while getting treatment at a private hospital. 

The veteran cartoonist was admitted on December 24 and was immediately put on ventilator support.

He was behind the creation of comic characters which have become timeless creations. 

Narayan Debnath holds the record of the ' longest running comic series by an individual artist', for "Handa Bhonda", which ran for 53 years.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condoled the death of the cartoonist.

"Extremely sad that the noted litterateur, illustrator, cartoonist, and creator of some immortal characters for children's world, Narayan Debnath is no more. He had created Bantul the Great, Handa- Bhonda, Nonte- Fonte, figures that have been etched in our hearts for decades," she tweeted.

"We were proud to bestow upon him Bengal's highest award Banga Bibhusan in 2013. His passing away is certainly an immeasurable loss to the world of literary creativity and comics. My deepest condolences to his family, friends, readers and countless fans and followers," Mamata added in another tweet.

He was awarded the Padma Shri for his contributions on January 26, 2021. The Daily Star