Goodbye Potter, Hello Kalki

RIP Harry Potter. Kalki our own boy hero makes his presence felt in Vimanika Comics' newest offering

Goodbye Potter, Hello Kalki

RIP Harry Potter. Kalki our own boy hero makes his presence felt in Vimanika Comics' newest offering

In a world tainted by greed, corruption and crime, the arrival of the latest comic book I Am Kalki from Vimanika Comics, a Delhi-based company that mostly creates and produces comics based on mythology, can only be considered timely.

The tenth and final Maha Avatar or incarnation of Vishnu is prophesised to be born in the future and bring an end to this age of destruction also known as the Kali Yuga. The brand, which has also created and produced Dashavatara before I Am Kalki, traces the birth and journey of the super boy who visits earth in contemporary times to fight evil. "The book is Vimanika's take on the legend of Kalki. Though we have stayed true to the basic narrative, we have taken some big leaps of imagination in terms of art, stylisation and plot in this book," says Karan Vir Arora, Founder & CEO, Vimanika Comics.

A team of researchers and script writers worked hard for over six months to create the look and feel of this comic. "Since we deal with a lot of mythology in our comic books, some of the research for this book was already in place," says Karan.

Although a lot of versions exist as to where Kalki will be born, according to Hinduism, his birthplace is Sambhal, a village in Moradabad district of Uttar Pradesh. Another version, according to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, mentions the birthplace as Shambhala, a mythical and mystical kingdom located somewhere in the heart of Asia.

According to the Kalachakra Tantra, Sanskrit for a time wheel, 'Kalkin' is mentioned as the title of the 25th ruler of the mythical Shambhala. This version is believed by Tibetan Buddhists. The time wheel prophesizes that Kalki will be born in the home of a brahmin in the Shambhala village.u00a0u00a0

"We have followed the Uttarakhand version where it is believed that Kalki will be born in the Dev Bhoomi (as Uttarakhand is referred to) or the Land of the Devas in a village called Shambala. We have used the closest version," claims Karan.u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0

Kshtish Padhey, one of the researchers and scriptwriters on I Am Kalki says that along with his teammates, he has researchedu00a0 on a lot of specific references from the Mahabharata and the Kalki Purana, a prophetic tome written in Sanskrit that describes the birth and life of Kalki, the tenth avatar of Vishnu, sometime in a futuristic 4,320th century.u00a0

u00a0"After identifying the basic characters for the plot, we adapted them to present time and universe. We weaved in a rough plot in the current timeline. We also identified segments and milestones that we would like to show from Kalki's imaginary life on earth in the book," says Kshtishu00a0

Though the look of the character was the job of the art department, Kshtish, says that as a writer his contribution was in the detailing. References like Kalki riding a white horse, the descriptions of his facial features which is available in ancient texts were all suggested by him and co writers in the art department.u00a0
Commenting on the look of Kalki, Karan says, "We have tried to keep a cutting edge, sleek and rather lean and mean look for the character. While keeping the Indian theme in mind,u00a0 we have tried to show Kalki as a edgy and young. Though the art is a mix of Indian and European styles, our comic book characters are very Manga in perspective," he says.u00a0

But isn't mythology in a graphic novel format done to death already? Karan begs to differ. He claims, "It is done to death wrongly, not rightly. If you read our books, you will understand how different they are in terms of quality and style." And the appearance of Kalki in a comic book format is only relevant in today's times according to him, since someone does need to put a lid on the imbalance caused by chaos and corruption, not only socially but also environmentally.u00a0

The name Kalki has several stories attached to it. While
some believe that Kalki comes from the Sanskrit word Kalka
which means mud or dirt, the others say that the tenth
avatar of Vishnu's name signifiesu00a0 someone who will destroy
dirt or darkness from this world. Another etymological
derivative of Kalki also suggests a white horse.