The comics presented a wide range in genre from slice-of-life humour to surreal inter-galactic action. (Representational Image) The comics presented a wide range in genre from slice-of-life humour to surreal inter-galactic action. (Representational Image) The first-ever Pune edition of the Indie Comix Fest was held at TIFA working studios, Somwar Peth on Sunday. The fest is an open platform for independent artists to showcase and sell their self-published comics. The event displayed the works of over 20 artists in various languages, mostly in English, Hindi and Marathi. The comics presented a wide range in genre from slice-of-life humour to surreal inter-galactic action. While many were influenced by international comics and different styles of sketching, most of the artists included a desi touch to their work through Indian characters or settings. The fest also featured masterclasses and lectures by various artists. Sunil Nampa, known for his political comics often written in English and Malayalam, took a class on Indian politics, as narrated through his comics. Founders Modak and Murthy conducted sessions on comic-making in a group and alternative Japanese Manga, respectively, and creator of Vinay sketches, Vinay Brahmania, took a class on drawing a comic book page. Later in the evening, musical performances by Luv Mahtani, Shohini Maitra, Shelton D’Souza and Karshni Nair marked the end of the event. Comic artists, sketch artists, as well as children and adults interested in comics, thronged the event. “There is so much visual content available and you don’t always know who has created it. I’ve been reading comics for a while now but getting them all in one place is great, especially contemporary Indian writing that is relatively new,” said Prachee Bajania, a student at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), at the event. “It’s about the conversations that the artist and the readers have face-to-face. That intimacy in a concentrated space, every table has that. It’s also about meeting other like-minded artists, readers, growing the culture and freedom of expression,” said founder Bharath Murthy as he discussed the mission behind the fest. Indie Comix Fest was conceptualised by Chaitanya Modak, Bharath Murthy and Aniceto Pereira and first organised in Mumbai in 2017. It later branched out to six more cities — Pune, Delhi, Goa, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Kochi — and has already had two rounds of events this year. The event, while open to all genres and languages, is exclusive to comics and aims to increase the recognition of the comic book art form. For all the latest Pune News, download Indian Express App

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