India, a country revolving around Hinduism, its street vendors, train travel, and Bollywood. Where did you get a chance to glance at the subcontinent? The movies Slumdog Millionaire or Enthiron, the song Jai Ho by A.R. Rahman? Looks like I have to talk about the Indian Comics trying to get a new hold.
Indian Comics: Religious Depictions
In India, comic magazines start as early as the 20s. These chitrakatha (picture stories) are for telling morality infused religious myths and folktales. But like many comics, they start in newspapers for the wealthy caste. At least they make these mythological morality tales without getting preachy in Hindi, Urdu, or Telugu. It means a lot more in India’s context. The most influential of these magazines, Chandamama continues into the modern day; for the public no less.
Indian Comics of a New Religion
After WWII, American comic strips like Flash Gordon are syndicated for the Indian public. As they tend to do, the public was inspired to follow up with their own. Easily one of the most notable is R.K. Laxman’s The Common Man representing the hopes and troubles of the average Indian.
But Indian comics only enter a mainstream in the 60s, thanks in no small part to Anant “Uncle” Pai. This man is responsible for India’s most famous comic Amar Chitra Katha, depicting Hindu Mythology in epic detail. Although it does show its age in terms of sensitivity. That’s not all, Uncle Pai was also one of the many creators responsible for the humor anthology Tinkle. It helps that he knew most of them from ACK.
In any case these comics inspire the masses thanks to distribution networks in many languages. Take for example Chacha Chaudhary, the story a wise old man who helps people. The character’s youthful energy and experience, manages to cross generational barriers. Even in these days comics weren’t just for kids.
The Golden Age of Heroes
India in the 70s is a time of cultural, economic, and literary revolution. With people becoming more literate, they rediscover their culture and spread newer ones. From Bengali’s Bantul the Great to Hindi’s Fauladi Singh the campy culture of Indian comics start to diversify. With humor comics like Chaudhary, Tinkle, and Lion-Muthu’s imported Archie Comics gaining traction, a new publisher tries to carve out a niche.
Raj Comics is one of the longest running publishers in India featuring some of its most distinct characters. Super Commando Dhruva and flagship character Nagraj still have huge passionate fanbases demanding for movie adaptations. Why? For one, Dhruva’s flexible with his detective skills, martial arts discipline, and moral/legal code. Nagraj meanwhile is an epic character changing with the times while retaining his identity. It’s practically a testament to how much development happens in India.
With An Even Sooner Iron Age
The 90s meanwhile is where comics rise high only to fall. While the competition with new publishers was healthy, the magazine Uncle Pai and co. started in folded. They just couldn’t compete with the likes of Nagraj. Let alone the satire in graphic novels like River of Stories. But with India now being a place of interest, the US set up shop with its own comics.
This as well as TV, video games, and the internet being on the rise put Indian comics to the side. Don’t get me wrong the rise in technology is always welcome. But only two publishers manage to get through the turn of the century with very few new comics. An exception to this is Bombaby: The Screen Goddess, a satirical product of this time that remains a cult classic. Enough to continue through new publishers and inspire creators to press on with new projects. The Western world certainly tries to get into the Indian Comics game with Spider-Man: India. Even the maestro Grant Morrison gets in with his/their take on a Hindu classic with, Vimanarama.
Not willing to be outplayed, Indian creators use the American footholds to their advantage. Virgin (today Graphic India) put out their best creators to produce well received titles like The Sadhu and Devi. Of course Morrison returns with 18 Days and Avatarex. Oh and Stan Lee shows up for something called Chakra The Invincible.
Indian Comics Fandoms and Revitalization
These guys are certainly lucky with the market not being very favorable. A number of independent creators are lucky enough to dig at people’s heartstrings. That’s the case with Kari anyway. Fortunately, Kari‘s success inspires other graphic novelists to act. At they very least they get a hub in Campfire. This allows for more experimentation in Indian comics and their art form. Need an example? Coinciding with India’s first Comic Con is An Itch You Can’t Scratch, proving once again that cartooning is comic art at its most expressive.
Interestingly, despite the growing presence of American comics and manga, Indian Comics aren’t slowing. These imports have a reputation of taking away investors’ interest in local talent. But some entrepreneurs instead use them as an opportunity like Level 10’s Batu Gaiden. But I think that’s more of an ad to the company’s premier title Odayan. At least until Level 10 rebrands into Nihodo Media for a larger audience.
So Many More
Honestly, there are so many Indian comics coming out, that it’s hard to keep track. So I’m going to focus on the ones people will be familiar with. From Yali Dream Creations is the horror-adventure The Caravan and action-packed Rakshak. On the supernatural side isSpeech Bubble’s TNT and Holy Cow’s Ahgori. And who can forget the Power of Priya franchise? This series empowers survivors of terrible tragedies through empathy and understanding.
Not even the Covid Pandemic seems to stop comics from coming out of the woodwork. If anything, the outbreak is a wake-up call to the challenges plaguing the industry.
What’s Holding Them Back?
Like many comics, the Indian variety are typecast of being just for kids. Series with more mature content are even in the kid’s section. It’s a little insulting and gives off the wrong message. Not that it hasn’t helped in cross media appeal, Graphic India uses this to start small with Chakra: The Invincible. Pretty soon more mature fans come in as they grow up.
As for the real issues… it’s pretty similar to the United States. That’s partly the fault of Diamond Distributions having a monopoly leaning towards niche stores. Because payment in page rates aren’t great, creators often work in commercial art. Even the zines and conventions become a dependence for sustainability. Not even Bollywood movies or short films of Raj Comics’ vigilante Doga can make that big a difference.
Indian Comics Staying in the Loop
To this day, many artists and writers juggle jobs while doing whatever they can to stay afloat. For many fans, it’s a part of their childhood that they throw money at. Others try to create their own comics for newer fans. Every creator in India continues the struggle to stay in the public eye. A lot of creators even get together to form a support platform to lessen financial trouble. Some even take the opportunity to create stories from some of the other ethnic groups like the Gond. Considering that India’s Ministry of Culture goes out of its way to commission comics, a lot of people still believe in the art form.
Hopefully that means there are more opportunities to reach out to audiences. Thanks for coming and as always, remember to look between the panels.