Excerpts
Why comics? What is it about this genre that appeals to you?
Ranjit: I have always enjoyed going through both books and comics. The fact is you can have mature content in comics as well. You can have philosophical dialogues, a dramatic point of conversation, and anything else and it all comes through visually. That's a huge bonus. The difference between comics and books is the means of interaction and I'd argue that comics give you more space to imagine. That's what appeals to me about the genre.
Maharjan: While I was growing up I didn't like books a lot and comics actually helped me with my reading habit. I was really into pictures and in comparison, the black and white textbooks vs. comics, I always found the latter to be more engaging. Then again, it would be a shame if somebody thought comics were just about pictures. The visually appealing storytelling and the narrations are equally fascinating. So really, what's there not to like?
Why do you think comics aren't popular here in our country?
Manadhar: I think it has a lot to do with the prejudice people have for this genre. People tend to believe that comics are for kids and kids only. When the truth is comics are like movies. They have films for kids and adults alike, don't they? It is the same with comics as well. Just take the newspaper comic strips for instance. They are heavily politically influenced. Similarly there are many graphic novels out there that deal with a variety of subjects, but most Nepalis aren't aware of it. These stereotypes really hurt the popularity of this medium.
So as folks who are interested in this field, how do you plan to progress?
Amatya: I believe a steady side job is necessary because we pretty much need to start from scratch and create a market. So far we have had illustration books targeted at young kids. So they have had limited story content as well as a small target group. We (Ranjit and I) plan to go a step further and carter to teens as well as adults. For this I think, we need to create a point of conversation. We need to find topics and storylines that will attract all age groups. That's our plan. It's a good theory but we will have to see if it works or not.
Chhantal: At Otaku Next, we publish comics. We began just before the earthquake so there were some disturbances but now we are back on track. We have around 7-8 artists and writers. We are all students, the youngest is 15 years old and the oldest are in their early twenties. We started out because we knew there were Nepalis who were into the likes of Anime and Manga but there was no platform or social event to bring them together. We all work here because of our own interests. We haven't earned profits to pay our contributors. At the moment it is only about getting our work out there. We can see the potential for growth so we plan to continue with more editions. Hopefully in a couple of years, we will have reached a new level.
What do you think needs to be done to help this comic culture flourish in our country?
Ranjit: I believe one of the major factors will be collaboration between writers, artists and publishers. For all those who are interested, the first thing to do is research and see who all are out there and collaborate. This will not only help improve the standard of work but eventually also help build a market.
Further, we could do with more opportunity to display our skills. Newspapers tend to publish comic strips everyday. However, instead of Calvin and Hobbes why not get local artists to create something? I have only seen Preena Shrestha's Peas in a Pod so far. But I believe even that has been discontinued now.
Manandhar: Another thing we can do is create comics based on our local setting. Right now what we are doing is really introduced by western influence of DC or Marvel or the Japanese Anime or Manga so only young people who are into the sub culture can relate. If our artists were to base their comics on all things local from settings to plots, anybody at any age or from any background can enjoy it and that would be immensely helpful.
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