Even today, we imagine demons to be dark, heroes to be fair, Ram is clean shaven, heroines have no fat. We must never forget the visual impact of ACK. How do they answer when they had never ever even considered the question? They want to know why and more importantly - so what? Parents, who focussed on education to get themselves jobs, are at their wits end. The 70s generation accepted the stories without question. No one wonders why a god has four hands or why a goddess kills a buffalo.
Mythological tales are supposed to be reflective they gently shape your view of life. Mythology is assumed to be prescriptive and instructive it are not. Most people assume mythology is a parable, a story with a moral ending it is not. The greatest challenge, however, is not external. Somehow it does not feel like Ramayana, at all. In attempt to make the story relevant, one gentleman called Gotham (Gautam?) in consultation, I am told, with Deepak Chopra (!) and Shekar Kapur (!!!) created a series of comics imagining a futuristic Ramayana where Ram has a six-pack, Hanuman looks like an ape, Dandaka looks like a dark Amazon jungle, and everyone looks like they have just attended a heavy metal concert. But parents cannot expect to outsource value-education to ACK alone. Despite selling over 90 million copies in 20 languages, ACK faces a huge challenge. In the remotest village, thanks to internet and cable television, one can access stories from around the world. First it was Mumbai Doordarshan then it became National television. Everything was controlled by the Government. When ACK came into the lives of children, the only thing on television were the weekly black & white shows: Chayageet, Krishi-darshan, Marathi movies on Saturday and Hindi movies on Sunday. ACK has tried going on television but the televised version does not have the same magic. The American and Japanese comics have overrun the child’s imagination. Today, parents tell me that they buy ACK for their children, but the children prefer television. Today, things are not so bad, but I keep hearing this need to make mythology ‘relevant’ for the modern child. In 1967, in a quiz contest, the children could answer questions from Greek and Roman mythology but they did not know the name of Ram’s mother in the epic Ramayana.
Had it not been for him, would I have immersed myself into mythology, I wonder? Those moments came into my life because of this one man,and for that I, and many more, will be eternally grateful. I remember waiting for that monthly dose, admiring the art, relishing the story and imagining myself in those mythic worlds. He is the man who brought mythology to a whole generation of Indians through ‘immortal picture books’ or Amar Chitra Katha (ACK). Published in Devlok, Sunday Midday on March 06, 2011.
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