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New Delhi, Feb 8 (IANS) The courageous super heroes and their audacious arch rivals accompanied by timeless cartoons loved by all are back in town as the third annual Comic Con India (CCI) began here Friday amid fanfare. The three-day-event at the Dilli Haat in central Delhi will showcase over 80 participants and several interactive sessions and talks by renowned artists. It will also have exclusive merchandise of several popular books and comics up for grabs. "I believe that lovers of comics and cartoons can be found in any age group. Having said that, most of the comic books, graphic novels and games here are for young adults," Comic Con India founder Jatin Varma told IANS. "Comics are not exclusive for kids as the increase in dark themes and subjects is appreciated by the young adults," he added. "We do have few stalls that are catering exclusively to kids." From booklets to graphic novels, the Comic Con presents a wide range of comics. The annual event celebrates the use of cartoons and comics in the ancient Indian tradition of story-telling. "Though, it's the first day, the attendance is good and the response is positive," said Varma. The event will see launch of 10 new titles including the Hindi version of the popular Tinkle and a graphic novel on Mother Teresa. "The youth today may know her (Mother Teresa) name but very few would know about her life and her saintly deeds. This colourful graphic novel will give them an opportunity to do that," said the publisher, Ashok Namdeo of Campfire Graphic Novels. The stall also had graphic novels on other social heroes like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela etc. For comic book collectors, original and pristine copies of popular vintage comic series Indrajaal are up for grabs with the oldest edition dating back to 1967. It can be bought for Rs. 2,000. "I have been collecting them for over 25 years and finally decided to sell them," said Chandra Shekhar Srivastav who has a book shop back home in Lucknow. Meanwhile, Indian comics like "Angry Maushi," "Superkudi" and "Super Mummy" were a rage as well. "Angry Maushi is the woman which every common Indian woman would want to be to fight the evils in the society," said its creator Abhijit Kini from Mumbai. Maushi is an average Maharashtrian woman but armed with guns and lasers. The illustrations, particularly in the Indian comics were quite influenced by western and Japanese-style Manga comics with elaborate costumes and character details. However, timeless favorites like Amar Chitra Katha and Raj comics titles such as Chacha Chaudhary, Billu and Pinki still drew a lot of connoisseurs. A lot of content creators also showcased their comics as apps for popular smartphones and tablets. Amar Chitra Katha led the pack with all their titles available as apps for iPad. Besides the comics, the Comic Con also hostsd several events such as live entertainment, contests and a Cosplay competition. Cosplay is a Japanese concept where people dress up as their favourite characters and prizes are given for the best costumes. The winner at the Comic Con India would get a free trip to the Middle East Film and Comic Con held in Dubai in April.
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