JAY JOSHI
The recently released movies from Marvel and DC comics received an overwhelming response in India, proving that superhero films have an audience in India. On comics front, India is home to jewels such as Amar Chitra Katha, which boats the sale of more than 100 million copies in over 20 Indian languages. Many other comics such as Devi, the story of a goddess coming to modern world to fight a resurrected evil, or the Indian avatar of Spiderman (named Pavitra Prabhakar) have also been around. However, the characters and storylines have not moved out of the books and into movies the way Western ones have.
Given the long tradition of storytelling and mythology that india has, combined with writing talent that has found recognition on international stage, why are there no Indian comics with nationwide appeal, stature, and cultural impact like that of the West? While reflecting on the question, writers, artists, and readers around Goa noted a number of factors that have stopped pan-Indian superheroes from emerging.
“Creating such superheroes needs a combination of creativity and capital, along with effective advertising” says Kiran Budkuley, former professor of English at Goa University, and an eminent Konkani writer. “There is no denying that these things are present in abundance in our country, but these elements merely existing, and them coming together are two different things. We need enterprising minds who can organise these elements to create good content.” she says.
An artist and graphic designer from Ponda, Viraj Bhandankar states that there are a number of Indian comics, but the way they are presented needs to improve. “We have a lot of mythological stories and characters which could provide great material for comics. However, the indian presentation skill and illustration style needs to improve. We need to present Indian characters in a more polished and appealing way. You cannot compare illustrations on Indian books such as Chandamama or Champak to brightly coloured Western comics.” Bhandankar elaborates. “We do have talent here, but if an artist is to deliver high-quality work, he will expect high salary. If the payments are less, artists will deliver poor quality output despite having the potential.”
Rohit Chari, an artist from Panaji also underlines budget and other concerns. “If you look at the production quality, Western movies have huge budgets. Secondly, they have become well-established brands over the years,” Chari states. “If you talk about storytelling, many Indian films tend to copy storylines from Western films. Maybe if we could develop more original stories with good quality, it could work for India.”
Upon being asked whether he himself has thought about creating such comics, Chari said working on aspects such as plot lines, character-development, etc is a lengthy and time-consuming process, and it could only be done if one is sure to get good returns.
On the other hand, Vivek Menezes, a Miramar-based writer and co-curator of Goa Arts and Literary Festival, recognises the gap in this field, but remains optimistic that it will eventually be filled. “Comics are very new to India. With the exception of Amar Chitra Katha, there’s barely enough produced since 1947 to fill a bookshelf, let alone the huge libraries of countries like US and Japan. There’s also not much market for them, or any books. Most writers of any kind struggle to make a living. So not being on the level of Marvel is no surprise. However, it will happen because India brims with wonderful stories and storytellers. The mobile phone and short videos are tools for Indian comics writers and animators to really impact the world.” says Menezes.
Swaraj Kanekar, a student at PES college Ponda is an avid fan of animes and comics. “I think people aren’t really interested in developing Indian comics industry yet. I would certainly pick an Indian comic book if it has a good storyline and appealing look and packaging like that of the Western books, but that not being delivered,” says Kanekar.
While India is making great strides in filmmaking it is indeed a mystery as to why comics sector has not garnered the same attention and popularity from the audience as well as business people. If we have money to spend on shooting fabulous song sequences in exotic foreign lands, we can certainly spare some to develop good homegrown comics.
