Bengaluru: Prominent Karnataka-based journalist Ravi Belagere died early Friday after a cardiac arrest at his office in Bengaluru. He was 62, and is survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters.
Belagare, who was an author and television host too, was most notable for being the founder and editor-in-chief of the Karnataka capital’s popular tabloid Hi Bangalore, which he started in 1995 after working for several publications over a decade.
In his columns and reportage over the years, Belagare wrote about the underbelly of the criminal world, political issues of the day, and even celebrity secrets.
He hosted the popular crime show Crime Diary, which was a trend setter in the crime journalism niche. His salutation, “Priya snehithare, namma elarigu, Ravi Belagere da namsakara (Dear friends, salutations to all of you from Ravi Belagere)” was very popular among his viewers.
Belagare also appeared as a contestant on the reality television show, Bigg Boss Kannada. In his last income tax declaration, he reportedly claimed net worth of as Rs 250 crore.
On Friday, several Karnataka personalities expressed grief at Belagere’s demise, including Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa.
“It is sad to hear the news that journalist and writer Ravi Belagere has died. He was well known as a journalist, author and commentator and also ran an educational institute. I pray that God will give his family the strength to endure their grief, to the family, to their fans,” Yediyurappa wrote on Twitter.
ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತ, ಬರಹಗಾರ ರವಿ ಬೆಳಗೆರೆ ನಿಧನರಾದ ಸುದ್ದಿ ತಿಳಿದು ದುಃಖವಾಗಿದೆ. ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತರಾಗಿ, ಲೇಖಕರಾಗಿ, ನಿರೂಪಕರಾಗಿ ಜನಪ್ರಿಯತೆ ಗಳಿಸಿದ್ದ ಅವರು, ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ ಸಂಸ್ಥೆಯನ್ನೂ ನಡೆಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಅವರ ಆತ್ಮಕ್ಕೆ ಸದ್ಗತಿ ಕೋರುತ್ತಾ, ಕುಟುಂಬದವರಿಗೆ, ಅಭಿಮಾನಿಗಳಿಗೆ, ದುಃಖವನ್ನು ಭರಿಸುವ ಶಕ್ತಿಯನ್ನು ದೇವರು ನೀಡಲಿ ಎಂದು ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.
— B.S. Yediyurappa (@BSYBJP) November 13, 2020
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Journalism career
Born in 1958 in Ballari, Belagere started out as a history lecturer. He moved to the Karnataka capital in the mid-1980s when he switched to journalism.
His column Paapigala Lokadalli (world of criminals), for the magazine Karmaveera early in his career, got him loyal readers. He also had a brief tenure with the legendary P. Lankesh, editor of Lankesh Patrike and father of slain journalist Gauri Lankesh.
The journalist won many a fans with his writings. “Belagere always had a spark in him. He was always very outspoken, blunt and conversations were a pleasure as it was filled with facts and anecdotes,” said a senior journalist who identified himself as an ardent reader.
“He would weave words with passion, focus and brilliant writing. He was a man who could charm anybody and once you have met him, you have made a friend for life. His joie-de-vivre personality is infectious,” said his protégé Ajit Hanamakannavar, who is currently an editor at Suvarna News.
Belagere’s journalism was a departure from conventional writing. Through Hi Bangalore, he brought his readers up to date on issues and controversies that regular newspapers didn’t like to publish.
Unconventional and often controversial stories on the underworld in Karnataka, Sanjay Gandhi’s death, the Kargil conflict and real-time reports from Afghanistan and Pakistan all found space in his tabloid.
At one point, Hi Bangalore gained a massive circulation of over 3 lakh copies a week. However, with several other newspapers and tabloids mushrooming over the years, it seemed to have got lost in the crowd. There were plans to shut it down but another row struck the journalist.
A series of articles on the lives of the secret love lives of the Kananda celebrities led to the exposure of Belagere’s own personal life. A former colleague, Sunil Heggarvalli, accused him of engaging contract killers to kill him for his alleged friendship with Belagere’s second wife.
Belagere was booked on charges of attempt to murder and under the Arms Act after firearms were recovered from his residence. But he was later granted bail by the court.
Agni Sreedhar, an underworld don-turned-journalist and businessman, said he would often advise Belagere to not get too cozy with the underworld, but the journalist would do as he pleased and sometimes even “glorified the underworld”.
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Writings
An author of over 90 books that included translations and original work, Belagere was a recipient of the Karnataka Sahitya Akademi award as well as the Rajyotsava award, the state’s second-highest civilian honour.
His work Mandovi, an Indian adaptation of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera, has been hugely popular, said Ashok V. Shettar, associate professor, department of history and archaeology, Karnataka University. Shettar was a close friend of Belagere.
“Our friendship spans over 42 years and one that was long lasting one. He was my senior in the university and we connected over common interests — literature and music. While he wrote poetry initially, I had told him that he should try his hand at prose which was a medium apt for him,” he said.
“Maybe he realised that I was right and he wrote a story called Shalini. I got it published in the university student’s magazine and that was his first published article. Then he began getting published in other famous publications,” Shettar said.
“While he worked for other parties, he did not find the right medium to express his opinions. That is how he founded Hi Bangalore and it was the apt outlet to express his views. He was free-spirited,” Shettar added.
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