Gods go Digital
Mythological heroes don digital avatar in comic book to reach out to readers globally, next title to focus on Shiva.
India’s cornucopia of folklores about heroes, sages, gods and demons has always found concretisation in many heavy textbooks. But mythology is more fun when read in an illustrated format. Perhaps this idea drove the creators of Vimanika Comics to churn out mythical tales in a snazzy graphic format. The art, then, attains the highest importance.
The publication sources artists from social networking sites like Facebook and Orkut. Karan Vir Arora, CEO, Vimanika Comics, says, “I just knew that we had to bring out something that would be realistic, appealing and appeasing globally. So, I thought of inspiring my artists to do an art style that is a mix of mainstream comics and Indian art.”
The latest offering from Vimanika, titled
I Am Kalki
, tells the story of the god Kalki who comes to Mumbai to combat corruption, environmental and social issues. Several other gods like
Agni, Varuna, Indra, Vayu, Bhoomi,
among others help Kalki in his endeavour. Three books complete the main series.
The Golden Book
, the first of the three, introduces the gods. The second one,
The Silver Book
, focuses on the sages, and the last in the series,
The Black Book
is about the demons.
The content decides the art for the comics. “We do the illustrations depending on the character sketch,” Ratnakar Singh, creative head, Vimanika, says, adding that most of the work gets done digitally.
Singh informs that the art depends on the target readers as well. “If a comic is aimed at high-school kids, the style will obviously be different. For Kalki, we chose a style that is realistic fantasy. We researched Western comic book art and presented the right blend of Indian and Western art,” he says. Presently working with a team of 35 artists, Singh admits that art is only a medium to convey a concept. “We had to show the characters as they are, because it’s a serious story,” he says.
The next Vimanika tale has already been decided. Arora informs, “Our next title is on Lord Shiva. In the meantime,
Book II of
The Sixth — Legend of Karna
and
The Silver Book of I Am Kalki
will be released in January next year.”