EXCLUSIVE: Ancient stories revamped // VIMANIKA COMICS

By sanj.k | March 27, 2012 at 9:47 pm | Comments | art, the latest | Tags: Amar Chitra Katha, Dashavatar, Karan Vir, Moksha, SIXTH, VIMANIKA, VIMANIKA COMICS

As a kid I didn’t just read Marvel and DC comics, it wasn’t just about the adventures of Batman and the X-Men but something more, enter Amar Chitra Katha. These comics were different, they taught morals, ethics and authentic stories in a magical way.

Fast track to now and a fantastic new series of comics have been unleashed on to the market doing what Amar Chitra Katha did but telling the story through fantasy and stunning art without compromising morals and wisdom of the ancient stories.

In 2008, the pioneering comic book brand, VIMANIKA COMICS was launched giving these epics were given a massive face-lift bringing them into the 21st century. The brain behind VIMANIKA is Mumbai-based comic aficionado and entrepreneur, Karan Vir.

After the America based – Virgin Comics (now Liquid) released their Vedic inspired stories, VIMANIKA COMICS has made it their duty to bring the art of story-telling back to India. Through this media they want to enthuse the youth to read more about the antiquities of India and connecting them back to their rich heritage and culture.

So far, VIMANIKA COMICS has released titles such as SIXTH, based on the tales of Karna from the Mahabharata, Moksha, Dashavatar, and the latest addition to the portfolio – Lord Shiva and his legend which actually makes a foray into the world of music, providing chilled out tracks like Shiva Tandav and Shiva Mantra ideal for yoga, meditating or simply chilling out to.

VIMANIKA definitely has components of a seriously charismatic venture to win over our minds and ears.

Check out VIMANIKA COMICS on Facebook

NADA BRAHMA caught up with CEO, Karan Vir for an EXCLUSIVE interview:

NB: What was the inspiration behind creating VIMANIKA COMICS?

KV: It’s not one thing that motivated me but there are a couple of things to start with:

Educating the youth of our nation & around the world of our culture, heritage and most importantly our spiritual values.
Also to share the art of narration and visualization to the world which my brother indoctrinated in me from the childhood.
We want our graphic novel titles to be created into full fledged live action movies & animated movies. For example, Frank Miller’s 300/Superman & Batman.
Extrapolating our Indian Mythology mixed with the art of narration, colouring, art of packaging & presenting it to the people effectively. In other words, to create a platform to present our heritage of ancient India and not only the stories but pantheon of gods, goddesses and heroes. Presenting the Indian mythology in a very pleasing manner to the youth of India and the youth of world as well.
We at Vimanika thought of filling the vacuum that was created by comic publishers that were unable to create and present Comics & Graphic novels in a cutting edge style which is today present in countries like America, Japan and Europe, that’s how the idea and the dream came about to become the DC comics of India in next 5-10 years.
Comics are a platform where you can produce your own stories and watch them take birth in front of you in a short span of time as compared to movies, which take more time and money to be created as compared to a comic, only that in comics the pictures don’t move, otherwise everything is the same, and with that we also want to encourage two things to the youth today 1) A habit of reading 2) Inspiring them to have courage and hope .
Finally the main inspiration was the Legendary character Karna from Mahabharata I wanted our today’s Y & Z generation to know about him, initially I wanted to make a movie but the lack of funds or experience held me back to take a dive into it. So I thought why not make comics/GNs on him? The stories will be copyrighted & I will get the response from the market too! I use to read many Indian comics like ACK & realised that we needed a makeover because in comparison to the international market we were nowhere near.

NB: What makes VIMANIKA stand out from other comics like Amar Chitra Katha and Virgin (Liquid) Comics?

KV: 3 things -

The Art & Colour
Authenticity & Originality of the content
Our Imagination & the art of storytelling.

NB: Out of the VIMANIKA range, which one is your personal favourite and why?

KV: I have 2 personal favourites: The Sixth – The Legend of Karna & Shiva – The Legends of the Immortal.

The Sixth being the true story of the Legendary “Karna” from Mahabharata he was, has and will be my all time favourite. This is because his true life events is not just a story but and inspiration to me. Anyone can relate with Karna, he was the true underdog 5000-3000 yrs ago. So ancient yet so relatable, so courageous yet so emotional. His life has been a bedrock of setbacks but the best part was how he overcame them no matter what the circumstances a true example of a Self made Millionaire of that time. I can just keep talking about him and never stop this all for now. You will notice one thing in India there are more males with the name Karan like I than Arjun, there must be a reason behind this dont you think?

As for Shiva, he is my God and I full heartedly follow him. I love him, they way he lived his life. The part that he is so relatable inspite of being the God of Gods overwhelms me. I pray to him for everything in my life & he grants my wishes. He does not talk much but shows it through his actions, he is the all Bholenath who comes to you if you really ask for him. He is all loving & all destructible with a flick of an eye. I always envision him watching over countless universes with an ease of a Lion walking in his territory. I visualise him all the time around me, I am but a small part of him.

NB: What can we expect from VIMANIKA in the future?

KV: We have lots of things in pipeline for future plans. In the terms of titles we are getting ready to launch the graphic novels ‘Shiva The Legends of The Immortal Book II’ in June 2012 and ‘Dashaavatar Vol 2′ in July 2012. We are also launching The Vol 2 of ‘I am Kalki – The Red Book Vol 2‘ next month April 17^th 2012 on our 4^th year Anniversary! I am also authoring a Novel based on The Legend of Karna which again will be called The Sixth it will be in 3 parts the 1^st part is set to be released in the next 2 month. We will also be coming out with our own Vimanika comics App on Ipad & Android platforms which will be powered by Cloud 9 Comix a leading Digital publisher in Australia. In terms of internet you will be able to read our Comics through our website too in the near future. We would be introducing more titles on various smart phones & tablets with our partner Zero Sum. We would also be getting into the Gaming industry, will update you more on that front in the near future.

We are in talks with leading production houses in India and abroad to make movies based on our titles in live action & 3D Animation. Since we have launched our apparel line too with our very own character based T-shirts this is just a tip of the iceberg & there will loads to expect from Vimanika in the near future!

NB: Do you have any advice for up-and-coming comic writers and artists?

KV:

Dare to dream big.
Believe in the power of visualization.
Do not get dejected what people say.
Take rejections positively as a new opportunity.
Never give up on your dream.
Never make the same mistake twice.
Always create a trend than to follow one.
Create a service or a product which is out of the box.
Be a good communicator.
Exercise 3 days a week!
Please shed the Attitude, when you reach a level then show it that too a little J

Finally earnestly believe in God because I believe nothing happens without his stamp of approval.

NB: Where can readers purchase VIMANIKA Comics?

KV: They can purchase us online through Flipkart Infibeam & Dial a Book .

Offline we are available in all Leading book stores Like Landmark/Odyssey/Oxford & Crosswords (India) we are also available in Railway stations & Airports in standalone book shops Pan India. We are in talks with leading publishers in Europe & soon will be available Pan Europe. Digitally we are available on Ipads & Android platforms also all Smart phones & Black berry play book Tablets. On the whole we are trying to have our presence felt everywhere.

If you are based outside of India, you can purchase these comics straight from the VIMANIKA COMICS site!