Not too long ago, when the television box was still a rarity in an Indian household and the internet an elusive dream, people would turn to Comics to quench their thirst for stories and fantasies. While names like Chacha Chaudhary, Nagraj, and Champak might not ring a bell to youngsters today, reading these desi comics used to be an integral part of childhood for millennials. Yet, the notion of making a career in comics would raise many eyebrows. 

Comics were a gateway from the drudgeries of life, a pleasurable pastime, not a serious pursuit where one could think of making a career. When Jatin Varma decided to bring the concept of comics convention to India, he didn’t do so out of monetary aspirations. To dive into an unchartered landscape is always a risky venture, but it was Jatin’s unadulterated love for comics and storytelling that convinced him to take the risk. 

On a shoestring budget but high on confidence, Varma organised the first Comic-Con, in a bustling Baazar of New Delhi, and the rest, as they say, is history. Little did Varma that his personal odyssey will swiftly transform into one of the biggest and most-awaited cultural fests across the nation. Barring a brief interlude when the pandemic brought the world to a standstill, Comic-Con has continued its upward trajectory at unprecedented momentum. The 12th edition of the fest will kickstart in Bengaluru next month, before spreading its tentacles to cities like Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Mumbai over the course of the next few months. 

We spoke to Varma about the business of Comic-Con India, the challenges of organising an event of such a grand scale, and the future of comics in India.

 

How did you get into the comics business? Is it something you always wanted to do? Or it was purely accidental?

It was not completely accidental, I always wanted to be in publishing and comics being something that I understood well. This led to the attempt to publish a graphic humour magazine called Random. And that kicked off the journey to where I am currently. 

Did the experience of creating shows like Dare to Date & Love Net for the big media house help you in any way?

As much as working on those shows was fun and exciting, not to mention, helped financially sustain all other creative efforts. It mostly made me be very certain that I would not wish to create something for a third party, that I eventually have no control over. I am very grateful for that experience and happy that it motivated me to do something completely on my own. 

Tell us the challenges you had to overcome to organize the first edition of Comic-Con in 2011. Even though there’s no dearth of comics fans, this concept was pretty new to India. What strategies had you employed to lure the youth of the nation?

It was a massive challenge, both me & my team at that time, had no experience in organizing large-scale events, but we knew how to publish stuff and we had a decent understanding of the comics scene in India at that time. So, the event was created as a personal experiment rather than an actual business effort. 

We were not really sure how many people might turn up, so we used a venue (Dilli Haat) that on any given weekend already had visitors. Social media was new at that time, with less toxicity and more reach, we leveraged it as much as possible, as there were limited funds to spend on publicity. Plus a lot of effort was spent on explaining what this event was, not everyone understood the concept initially. But all of the effort paid off, it clicked, we had a great turnout and response and that got us motivated to do a second show in Mumbai immediately. And the rest is history!

How difficult it was to get new sponsors on-board in the initial years?

It is still difficult at times. But yes more so initially, when to be honest, the show was also finding its identity. We did not actively hunt for sponsorships initially as we were not sure how to integrate sponsors into the event. Internationally, sponsorships for such events are curated very differently, than how it is done in India. After the initial few years, we built the way for sponsors to come in and by that time we were actively being engaged by brands as well. 

One of them was Maruti Suzuki, who got on board very early on and actually supported all our efforts and experiments. It’s been a great relationship with them, over the past many years. 

Comic-Con India now has expanded to cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad last year. How do you ensure each edition of the festival is somewhat distinct and unique?

The overall concept and plan remain the same, but in each event, we get local creators and businesses that add to the flavour. We sometimes also incorporate local acts that make the events more distinctive. But our aim is to bring the same experience to fans all over the country so that no one is missing out on anything. 

How has Comic-Con evolved over the years?

It has evolved many folds, we have a unique brand identity now and it’s a big pop-culture tent, where all sorts of fandoms come together. At the heart of it, is comics and that will remain so forever, but the tent has expanded over the years to include all sorts of elements from pop culture. Be it digital content, streaming, gaming, indie films etc. 

We are also now a clearly defined youth event, while we are family-friendly, our core audience is between the ages of 18-36, and they drive what happens at the events. 

Are there any plans to expand this project to Tier-2 cities across the country?

As of now we still have a few big cities to cover, we will probably try and create a plan for smaller cities in the future. 

 

Since this is purely a fan-led venture, tell us about the importance of innovation and experimentation, to ensure fans have something different to look forward to every year.

It is on the top of our minds 24/7 and this is a fairly large event, which means there have to be incremental changes/improvements each year. It is a large ship that has to be steered slowly in various new directions. So, we start months in advance by trying to figure out what new can be part of the events each season. Some of it is under our control, and a lot of it depends on our partners such as studios, publishers, and creators. 

But we try each year to experiment with something new and post the pandemic, there is a sense of urgency in us to do more events and expand further. 

How do you see the trajectory of convention culture in this country in the next five years?

In the next 5 years, I hope to have a permanent edition in every major city in the country. This is something we hoped to do pre-pandemic, but now that things are back to normal, we are back on this goal. This is extremely key to our growth and future prospects. 

Where do you want to take Comic Con in the next ten years?

That’s way too far! Anything that far will be pure conjecture, I just hope to be reading even more comics then.

Which are your favorite Indian comics?

I grew up reading Amar Chitra Kathas, and Diamond & Raj Comics and I still love them all. But, I love some of the new independent comics that have been coming out over the past few years, from the likes of meta-desi comics, chariot comics, Holy Cow, Bullseye Press, Yali Dreams and many more. 

What do you think about the relevance of Indian classical comics, like Nagraj, Chacha Choudhury, and Tinkle, in the modern age? Do they still hold the same allure among Indian audiences?

They do, but it’s a different scene and audience now. A less simple times, the newer fans are certainly fascinated and the nostalgia of the older fans also drives their interest. I am quite hopeful that these iconic comics will continue to be around for a very long time.