Thursday, May 20, 2010

Selling Books vs Promoting Indian Culture

No one starts a venture to make a loss. So how does Vimanika differ from other comics publishing houses? The one significant difference we have with our counterparts is our vision.

What is the vision of Vimanika comics?

The vision of Vimanika Comics is to promote Indian mythology and culture among Indian Kids and youth. The kids and the youth are the future of the country. The culture they imbibe shall be instrumental in determining the identity of our nation.
Look around. In a bid to appease our western counterparts we have belittled our own civilization. We don’t take pride in our culture. Our history is full of exploits of warriors and wisdom of sages. Yet we choose to look up to imported superheroes as role models. Vimanika hopes to reverse this trend. We shall pursue our goal relentlessly until the mission is accomplished. Our stories will have a contemporary feel without diluting the ethos of these stories. The research tem comprises of scholars who have devoted their life exploring the Indian Culture.

So as a reader what is your role? How can you support us in our mission? Is it enough to buy the books? No; never.

Imbibe the virtues depicted by our glorious ancestors. Eg. Karna is the epitome of sacrifice. He is hailed as a great warrior despite being vanquished. Spread the word about our culture. Introduce them to the world of Vimanika where the culture is represented in the true form.

Let us leave a better legacy for our future generation.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Evolution of Vimanika

I have been fortunate to be a part of a revolution called Vimanika since its inception. I met Karan even before the zero editions of the Moksha and the Sixth were released. You tend to size up the other person in your first meeting and I did the same. To me Karan was running a one man show. He was enthusiastic and passionate about his work but still a greenhorn. I asked him to diversify and venture into different genres. He refused and struck to Indian mythology. I thought he is taking a big gamble but he proved me wrong.

This led me to analyse the core philosophy of Vimanika. They wished to promote Indian culture and instill a sense of pride among its audience. They believed that superheroes in our mythology are better role models than the fictional super heroes created by western counterparts. Their philosophy has so far won them numerous awards and more are to follow.

After the initial reverses in team composition, finally team Vimanika has a settled look to it. The story telling is getting better with each title and the artwork has jumped several notches. The buzz around each title is getting bigger and this stands as a testimony to Vimanka's soaring popularity among its fans. Exciting new titles are about to make their debut. “I am Kalki” has been officially announced and the teaser promotion has generated a lot of interest among the fans.

What do we expect from team Vimanika? For sure, you can expect Avante grade artwork, engrossing storyline and more in depth & authentic knowledge of our glorious past. The revolution in Indian comics industry has been initiated. Sit tight, as we embark into a journey to our glorious past.

(The opinion in this post has been made by an avid fan who has studied the Indian comics industry from close quarters for the past few years.)

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Official Launch of Karan Vir's Dashaavtar at Oxford Delhi

Karan Vir's Dashaavtar and Moksha was launched at Delhi on April 10 at Oxford book store by Mr. Gurcharan Das Gupta, a reknowned Indian author and Mr. Karan Vir Arora, CEO of Vimanika Comics. Judging by the response of the fans and the media, the event was a resounding success.

Mr. Dasgupta stressed on the need to look up to our indigenious and virtous heroes in todays world when the moral values have reached a nadir. He also lamented the fact that Indians are hesitant to embrace their own culture and the glorious past. He applauded the efforts of Mr. Karan Vir Arora for recreating the Indian mythology with authencity and style and predicted a bright future for Vimanika Comics.

Mr. Karan Vir thanked all the loyal fans who were waiting eagerly for the launch of Dashaavtar. True to his promise, he unveiled a visual delight of Indian art and an authentic form of storytelling. During the interaction session he shared his passion for Indian Mythology and Indian superheroes emphasising their relevence in their current scenarios. The enthusiastic fans interacted on a host of topics ranging from style of artwork, future titles, plot lines and the message conveyed in these Graphic Novels. Gaurav an enthusiastic fan aged only eight showed his comics strips on mythological characters which drew a wide applause from Mr. Karan Vir and the Vimanika team.

The eager fans jostled for their autographed copy of Dashaavtar and Moksha with a few lucky ones managing to get personal snaps with Mr. Karan Vir. The event was covered by the leaders in print and electronic media.

After the successful delhi launch, the action shifts to Chandigarh. Catch all you Vimanikans in Chandigarh.