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National Cartoonist Day, May 5: Caricatures, comic strips mesmerise young and old alike
Reprints of well-known works of cartoonists, caricaturists and comic strips illustrators adorn the walls of the ground floor room in the university’s heritage main building
PUNE The Museum of Cartoon Art at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) campus sees several visitors, young and old mesmerised by the art. Reprints of well-known works of cartoonists, caricaturists and comic strips illustrators adorn the walls of the ground floor room in the university’s heritage main building.
This is where Priya Gohad, museum curator, tries to pull her nine-year-old son Yash Gohad, away from the comic section, but the artworks of Indian comics like Chacha Choudhary are hard to resist. “I love the old man with a turban and it is very funny to look at this tall man,” he said, pointing to the comic page on the wall.
This one of its kind museums in the city was inaugurated on March 12, 2022, and has reprints of more than 30 cartoonists of India including names like Shankar Pillai, RK Laxman, Bal Thackeray and Satish Acharya.
“The museum has been set up under the university’s department of media and communication studies headed by Madhavi Reddy, while it was the brainchild of well-known cartoonist and illustrator Suraj Eskay Sriram,” said Priya Gohad.
What attracts most people is the huge collection of vintage cartoons from the pre-independence era of Indian history.
“There is a little bit of everything for the visitors, covering all the style like illustrations, caricatures, editorial cartoons, comic strips, etc, but what attracts them most are the collection of the vintage cartoon from East India Company to the freedom struggle, especially the propaganda cartoons depicting world war find people’s interesting,” said Gohad.
Like Yash, several children spend time reading about the beginning of the Indian comics in the comic section. The museum also has a varied collection of books containing the work of well-known cartoonists and other research material that can be referred to for research purposes.
“We also have workshops and seminars that are conducted to create public interest in cartoons and the art of cartooning. It is open to the public during Heritage walks on scheduled days. In addition, the museum is open to the public from Tuesday to Friday between 2 pm to 4 pm,” said Gohad.
SPPU to organise cartoon competition on May 5
Museum of Cartoon Art has organised a cartoon competition on the occasion of ‘National Cartoonist Day’ on May 5. An exhibition of cartoons by local amateur cartoonists and a cartoon workshop for students will also be held.
The competition is organised by SPPU’s department of media and communication studies. The competition is open to all students of SPPU and its affiliated colleges. The top three students will be chosen for awards and others will be given participation certificates.
For interested students in the age group of eight to twelve, pre-registration is required for the cartoon drawing workshop which will be conducted. Also, there are limited 25 seats for this and the first registrant will be given priority.
Detailed information on cartoon art competitions, exhibitions of local amateur cartoonists and cartoon workshops for children has been given on the official website of SPPU.
