New comic series set in Mumbai explores the legends of many Indian ghosts

Ever felt so hungry that you could eat a horse Thankfully neither has this writer But if this popular saying about desperate hunger were to be taken at face value there would be a high possibility that you are possessed by Mizoramrsquos ghost AomaowldquoAomaow is found in the folk tales of the Mara people from Mizoram According to these tales a person possessed by this ghost will fall sick feel extreme hunger and at night their head detaches itself from the body and roams the village hunting for livestock to kill and eatrdquo explains Prathamesh Gandhi who cofounded a creative house Unbearable Comics with Vignesh Ramesh and Bajro Narayan DuttaClockwise Vivek Nag Vignesh Ramesh Prathamesh Gandhi and Bajro Narayan Dutta with the bookThe trio published their second volume of Eyes Nrsquo Daggers an Indiabased ghost hunter comic series earlier this year and will follow it up with a third volume set to release in January next yearLurking amid the pages of the series are Indian ghosts some adorable and resourceful while others dreary and fatal like Aomaow mdash all inspired by author Rakesh Khannarsquos supernatural encyclopaedia mdash Ghosts Monsters and Demons of India Blaft Publications And combating these mythical creatures in style are not tantriks but ghost hunters with equally powerful and flattering mystical abilities The series that is brought to life by the three recent graduates who are in their early 20s aims at building up the curiosity around the ghost narrative around IndiaThe plotline revolves around a boy from Mumbai named Darshan whose mediocre life turns upside down when his elder sister returns home from work one night and empties the house of food and even the furniture Before Darshan can take stock of the situation his parents are affected by this mysterious hunger as well Cue the entry of the ghost hunter with a noholdsbarred attitude Ravi who is also the only ghost hunter we meet in the first two volumesldquoThe third volume will introduce you to another ghost hunter Trisha followed by many others as we progressrdquo Ramesh promises The 23yearold continues ldquoOur story was inspired by the ghosts mentioned in Khannarsquos book We will take the series across India as our protagonists meet ghosts from all corners of the country and explore different cultures in the processrdquo The protagonists Darshan and Ravi will now travel to Raigad kicking off their ghost hunting tour across the country in this volume Gandhi sharesThe trio began this project under the guidance of Vivek Nag their former teacher at a media institute in 2022 Nag reveals ldquoI wanted to begin a comics incubator just like we had a gaming incubator in the institute So I asked them to pitch ideas And while all three came up with some innovative ideas they decided to back Prathameshrsquos concept that was inspired by Khannarsquos bookrdquo While he kept tabs on the progress of his students till the first volume was published Nag stepped back knowing that they had it covered ldquoThey have a fulltime job and take time out from their routine to work on this series This reflects their passionrdquo he remarksThe two volumes are packed with entertaining sequences of action punchy dialogues captivating illustrations and mdash this writerrsquos absolute favourite mdash Juju a giant flying purple ghost dog that acts as Ravirsquos vehicle Giving this writer a peek into the upcoming volumes the creators promise us that there might be more to their hero Darshan than meets the eye ldquoThe secret is hidden in the title of the seriesrdquo they tease as they sign offLog on to unbearablecomics digital version