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ABSTRACT
The essay traces the growth of comics anthologies in India after Independence to the present time. The post-millennial works are particularly interesting as they break away from conventional subjects and experiment both in terms of content and form. The ideological trigger that most often draws the collaborators together results in subversive shorter pieces that allow the creators to express themselves in an unfettered way. This trajectory of evolution also provides a context to the personal experience of the author, a key member of the Longform Collective. The journey from Drighangchoo, a comics magazine that originated in Jadavpur University, Kolkata to Longform: An Anthology of Graphic Narratives Vol 1 is a long one, full of trials and tribulations. The processes and the work-flows that are involved in the making of Longform while it sought to cater to readers across the country and abroad are discussed here which in turn provide a robust template of how such potential collaborations can happen in future.
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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
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Pinaki De
Pinaki De is a multiple award-winning graphic illustrator-designer who regularly works for renowned publishers like Penguin Random House, Harper Collins, Hachette, Routledge, Primus, Oxford University Press, Singapore University Press (NUS), Bloomsbury, Orient Blackswan, Worldview, Pan Picador, Simon and Schuster, Permanent Black, Alchemy, Sage, Roli, Sahitya Academy, Rupa and many others. He has designed almost 500 book covers t0 date. He is the winner of PublishingNext prize for the best book cover design in India twice in 2017 and 2019. His book cover for ‘Kalkatta’ by Kunal Basu won the prestigious Oxford Bookstore prize for the best cover design in India at Jaipur Literary Fest 2017. His layout design on Satyajit Ray’s archival manuscripts has drawn accolades from all across the globe. A Charles Wallace Trust Fellow, his Ph.D. is on comics theory. Pinaki is one of the editors of the prestigious annual magazine ‘Longform’ (Published from Harper Collins, 2018) which is generally regarded as the first global comics magazine from India. He is the Indian comics advisor of Mangasia, the biggest ever exhibition on Asian Comics curated by Paul Gravett for the Barbican, London. His book -length comics on Partition is due next year. Pinaki juggles his creative work with academics as he has a day job as an Associate Professor of Raja Peary Mohan College, Uttarpara, West Bengal, India.