Bala Kanda launch

Exciting news! Amar Chitra Katha is planning to launch Bala Kanda, the first volume of the Ramayana, during Navaratri, which begins in early October. Meanwhile, there will be a cover launch at the Comic Con in Hyderabad on September 22. Looking at the Comic Con schedule, I'm all agog. It's a long time since I outgrew comics (as a staple diet, that is), but the remembered joy is still with me and I'm looking forward to seeing what goes on when comic fans get together.

Being the first of the seven books of the Ramayana, the Bala Kanda sets the tone for the entire work. Initially, I was flabbergasted to see the sophisticated storytelling techniques used by Valmiki. For instance, the narrative is actually a story within a story within a story! It is also very exciting to realize that these events are being related by a rishi who lived in those ancient times. No one really knows how ancient, but the Mahabharata itself is over 5000 years old according to Aryabhatta; and the Ramayana was already ancient at that time. It has been a wonderful learning experience for me to read and try to convey simply the thoughts and deeds of Valmiki’s immortal characters. Equally fascinating is the research into various aspects of the Vedic civilization: the comics include fact pages on the Vedic gods, rituals, social structure, education, food, weapons, etc.

In a comic, the illustrations are as important as the text, if not more so. It is part of the scriptwriter’s job to visualize each scene and provide cues for the artist. I have tried to faithfully convey Valmiki’s descriptions to the artist. I remember the Editor, Reena Puri, once telling me that Zoheb was trying very hard to make Dasharatha’s queens “smile like lotuses”! I will post some of the illustrations once I get permission from ACK -- look out for them! Meanwhile, here's a picture of the artist, smiling a bit like a lotus himself! It's been a thrilling experience for me to see the world of the Ramayana spring to glorious life at the skilful hands of Zoheb, Prakash, Adarsh, Silambarasan and Sivajith.

I've also been very lucky in finding an expert to vet the text and make sure there are no bloomers: Mangala Kumari, a Sanskrit teacher who lectures on the Ramayana. She has become a good friend over the last couple of years, as has Reena Puri -- an unlooked for bonus when this opportunity knocked at my door.