Comics are such a merry medium of reading, that in India, it does not only enjoy as being as referred to as children`s literature, but also equally relished by the adults. Comics in India do possess its own generic significance, with the country being successful enough in the global scenario of comic books and reading. The bright or dazzling cover page or even the inside pages, the graphic version of printing a story, the excitement, the adventure, the spine chilling journeys that Indian comics take any reader irrespective of age, is just overpowering! The childhood days in India and the ensuing growing up into young adults, is basically wholly dedicated to devouring comic books day and night. To top it all, Indian comics are not just laced with borrowings from its international counterparts in terms of adventure or mystery; Indian comics have been blessed enough to be surrounded with the Oriental tales and lores, the never never land of forbiddance, or even the unrealistic characters constantly overlapping themselves with the Demon or the Almighty. These are just some of the regular features that might be absent from any international comics, yet, very much apparent in comics in India.
Such aura of fun, frolic, mirth, anticipation and amusement emoting eternally from the colourful pages, is justified by a vista of Indian comics that have proliferated over the years; and this is just not an overstatement! Comics in India had undergone evolution from the adoptions of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata of 1960s, to informative comics for children, caricatures in print media and adaptations of American version of `superheroes`.
Indian comics pertain to those comic books and graphic novels that are integrally affiliated with the cultural ethos of India. India, as is enlightened from ancient Indian history, possesses an extended tradition of comic readership. Indian comics often owns and stretches to an enormous publication, with long ways to traverse to make itself stand proudly by the sides of countries like Japan, France or America. Due to prevalent utilisation of English language, Indian comics and graphic novels are inclined to be more stylistically analogous to western comics, as opposed to the manga (Japanese cartoon strips), manhwa (Korean comic or cartoon strips) and manhua (Chinese comics) of India`s Asian neighbours.
Though the international superheroes like Spiderman, Superman, He-Man, Batman, Phantom, etc. are hugely popular and admired in India, it does possess its own set of super heroes and comic characters that dabble in adventure, mystery, action and suspense - all with a dash of peculiar Indian sensibility. True its rich history and culture, most of the Indian comic hits are mythological stories like Ganesh, Shiva, Veer Hanuman etc. Comic books and cartoon strips in India are available primarily in Hindi, but also published in English and several other regional languages. The most authentic stylemark for Indian comics are its treasure of original stories, splendid artwork with an Indian hand. Amar Chitra Katha, one of the majors, successfully had breached the old parent-child dichotomy over comics by bringing alive the ancient legends of India. Some of the most popular characters and tales incorporate: Akbar-Birbal, Vikram Betaal Tales, Tenali Raman, Hitopadesha, Panchatantra, Ganesh Mahima, etc.
Development of comics in India
Indeed it can be stated that the history of comics in India is very much an interesting and awe inspiring subject, with any reader being mirrored with the evolutionary maturation of cartoons. It is known that on an experimental basis, Pran had first created comical characters like Pinki, Billoo, Chacha Chaudhary in the 1970s. Comic magazine of earlier days, Chandamama is an exceedingly popular and well-liked one. Since 1947, it is being published in an overwhelmingly more than 5 languages. The Vikram aur Betaal Stories have also brought in fame and reputation to this magazine, elevating Indian comics to summit levels. Maxims of religious texts, the stories of martyrs and several legendary and historical personas bloom and blossom in several books on Indian comics since ages. In 1967, the editor Anant Pai of the India Book House had established the irreplaceable series Amar Chitra Katha. They aimed to make the children thoroughly aware about their country`s exceedingly affluent heritage. The life of Lord Krishna was the first in the Amar Chitra Katha series, followed by the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The compilation in contemporary times, translates to 426 volumes. This success inspired other publishing houses like Dreamland Publications and Diamond Comics in New Delhi and Jaico Publishing House in Mumbai to launch innovative themes. The marked change in Indian comics came with the publication of the first Indian comic magazine in the year 1980s. It was named as Tinkle and became quite legendary and celebrated within a short span of time. Most of the characters of the magazine are depicted in the shades of Marathi or Maharashtrian influences. Another much venerated and prominent publishing house of Indian comics is the Raj Comics, producing famous characters such as Nagraj, a Hindu hero ; Doga, Super Commando Dhruva, Parmanu and several others.
Cartoon strips for print media and comic books had also begun to flourish, especially in West Bengal. It is known that Pratulchandra Lahiri had produced two strips for the Jugantar newspaper in Bengali and for the Amrit Bazar Patrika in English. Narayan Debnath had gifted the country with his unique and truly inimitable creations, Nonte Phonte and Handa Bhonda, very much still in circulation and has spawned animated films too! Another one of Narayan Debnath`s creations, Batul The Great, is one of India`s earliest superheroes as it was conceived during the sixties.
Indian comics received its tremendous upheaval with the launching of Virgin comics by Gotham Comics of India, in collaboration with the USA-based legendary company. They are specialised in producing special series of Indian comics in Indian mythology and Indian ancient history.
In the gushing and fast-paced era of computers and internet , it is obvious that Indian comics will adept itself to the sophisticated technologies. Thus, web-comics is also very much in vogue. Badmash is in particular created by and directed at the Indian Diaspora. This format is anticipated to enlarge due to ICT literacy, colossal numbers of white-collar workers and internet permeation into India. Web comics indeed affords a superb platform for artists who do not wish to distribute via the published media.
In the year 2002, the comic industry in India had tried their hands to bring out comic series, depicting the trends of contemporary Indian culture. Slave Labor Graphics of San Jose California, falling into this category, had published Bombaby the Screen Goddess. The comic premised a character by the name of Sangeeta, who doubled over as a compliant daughter by day and as a reincarnated Hindu goddess by night! In addition to the gradual timely development of more mature comics in India, in 2004, India`s first graphic novel, Corridor, was gifted by Sarnath Banerjee, thus ennobling the future of Indian comics of the near future. Indian comics are thus invested and distinguished by its multi-dynamism and embellishment, creating its scope and future to a wide extent.
Graphic Novels in Indian Comics
In addition to the Penguin published Corridor, by Sarnath Banerjee, which was widely publicised as India`s first graphic novel, a subsequent foray was also followed in the path in 2007. However, a 60 page comic, named River of Stories, by Delhi based artist Orijit Sen, was published in 1994 by Kalpavriksh. The graphic novel dealt about the Narmada Dam Projects controversy and seizes importance as the precedent and regarded as one of the earliest graphic novels under Indian comics. Yet another potential competitor for the first graphic novel is G. Aravindan`s `Cheriya Manushyarum, Valiya Lokavum` (Small Men and the Big World), that first came out as a strip in the Malayalam magazine Mathrubhoomi Azhchapathipu, from 1961 to 1973. This was amassed later in book format first by Bees Books in 1978 and then by DC Books in 1996. Some of Deepak Chopra`s books, such as his reiterating of the Kama Sutra, or the life of Gautama Buddha, are also looked at as partly graphic novels, due to their artwork, produced by Virgin Comics. In addition, Kashmir Pending, a graphic novel by Naseer Ahmed, and The Believers, a graphic novel by Abdul Sultan - both addressing sensitive issues on Islamic militancy, were released by Phantomville in current times, Sarnath Banerjee`s company, to irrefutable reviews.
