http://www.saveindiancomics.org/

India has a long tradition of comic readership. Stories from mythology and folk-tales have appeared as children’s comic books for decades. India’s comic industry took off when the The Times of India launched Indrajal Comics in the mid-1960s.  In further course of time, Amar Chitra Katha, Diamond Comics, Tinkle and so on have established vast distribution networks countrywide. The comic industry was at its peak in the late 1980s and early 1990s. However with the influx of satellite television and the gaming industry, it has perhaps one tenth readership today.

On this backdrop, at the recently concluded Comicon, in today’s times of Pokemon, Doraemon  or the Powerpuff Girls, we were happy to find a stall that was trying to remind the visitors about our very own Super Power Dhruv, Chacha Chaudhary or Nagraj. The gentlemen who were handling the stall told us that they wanted a revival of interest in Indian comic characters that many of us have grown up with. To this end, they run the Save Indian Comics website where a fan may even sign a petition.

Given that many Indian comic artists are following the west in their depictions (a Lord Shiva with a six pack) and moving to electronic medium to create their drawings, the sense of monotony has set in. Therefore, it is appropriate and timely that our very own super heroes be revisited and popularised.

Way to go – Save Indian Comics!