Was feeling a little down today, what all with this heat and all. So to get refreshed decided to head over to my first love and that is reading comics. Since long, I've not read anything new in comics specially Indian comics industry.
As you might already know that I am a big comics lover and run one blog for preserving and uploading old Indian comics as well as another blog where I translate English and Some other language comics in Hindi and post them for reading. Since long I've been buying and collecting old Indian comics which were used to published and are now not available easily. You might already know that in India there are only few comics publication in operation. So while I continued collecting old comics, I also decided to support these newer publications and buy their comics, and my first selection was holy Cow Entertainment as I'd already heard few good things about it from my fellow comics lovers.
So this month I bought all their issues which are published till now [1 or 2 are missing which I'll buy soon] and received them few days back. Today when I decided to read something I picked up one of most famous series of Holy Cow Universe, titled Aghori. I finished its first story line "Origins", and picked up my laptop to write something about it. But be ware as I am not a professional reviewer, and I am not sure how must you'll find this post interesting.
Ok! First thing first I am a big lover of DC/Vertigo comics series 'Constantine' and Its dark word and has since long hoped for something like that in Indian comics, but off course with Indian touch. And that is where this series gets my first point as it explores the dark world thorough the character of Aghori named 'Vira', who is a troubled soul and is trying to find his son whom he abandoned before his birth due to some unusual circumstances 12 years back and wants to help him.
Writer Ram V, who as per the information given in the comic was writing for the first time for any comics series has created a good world full of demons and dark powers.
I wouldn't go much in the story as it is better you read it yourself.
Fistly I'll talk abouth the story, Writer Ram V has created a good arc and as he himself accepts which is more towards philosophical way then mythological sens. In the story he has tried to depict and ordinary man in Aghori Vira who is troubled by his own deeds and wants to save his son. Thorough the various story lines in the arc he has also depicted various wrongs in our world when we kill the love in the name of honour or When a father can kill his own child just because she is a girl or a man can do anything out of greed. But he also showed that there is goodness in the world like friendship, as Ashwin a stranger helps the Aghori thorough all his troubles or Kindness, which Inspector Khare showed towards Vira after knowing his story. In the four part series [I should say 8 part, as was informed over the phone by CEO of Holy Cow Mr. Vivek Goel] he has created a journey of the man who fights the evils of the world in his quest to find his son.
Then the art. I loved It. I think it is good we are getting western world style art now in India too. Some people might not agree with me and can say that the older style of comics art was better but i like this full page more dynamic are with amazing use of colouring. A art is done by Vivek Goel and Gaurav Shrivastava mostly, and I must say they've done an amazing work.
Now I move towards printing. Yet paper quality is good. But what irked me sometimes was the selection of colour of text and type of font at some places, as sometimes they were hard to read due to bad taxt colour selection in the Panel. Also book binding or should i say sticking of the pages i not satisfactory as some pages came of during my first reading itself. I hope they take care of these things in future.
All in all it was an interesting read. Would sure start 'Aghori: Bloodline' series very soon.
Next time I'll be back with the story lines too in my reviews.
You can buy these from the official website of Holy Cow Entertainment here. They are on sale at present.
