Jnanpith award winner, multi-lingual film actor and noted theatre personality Girish Karnad passed away here on Monday, an official said. He was 81. 

"Karnad died at home at around 8:30 a.m. due to age-related symptoms," an official in the Karnataka Chief Minister's office told a news agency.

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Karnad was a prominent playwright for four decades, often using history and mythology to tackle contemporary issues. His plays have been translated into English and several Indian languages and directed by directors like Ebrahim Alkazi, B V Karanth, Alyque Padamsee, Prasanna, Arvind Gaur, Satyadev Dubey, Vijaya Mehta, Shyamanand Jalan, Amal Allana and Zafer Mohiuddin.

He was conferred Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by the Government of India and won four Filmfare Awards, of which three are Filmfare Award for Best Director – Kannada and the fourth a Filmfare Best Screenplay Award.

(Source: Peeping Moon/IANS)