Amar Chitra Katha - Preserving India's Heritage

chillibreeze writer — Minaal

Ask any kid today about his favorite cartoon character and Bal Hanuman and Baby Ganesha would definitely feature in his/her list along with the Supermans and Spidermans of the world. Popular Bollywood films Mangal Pandey and Rang de Basanti introduced our children and teenagers to the fight for India’s independence and our heroes of yesteryears. The media of films, comics and cartoons, being highly creative, are also appealing and hence capable of inducing a far-reaching impact in educating and creating awareness amongst children about our culture, folk, mythology, and spiritual history .

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Stories retold through these mediums can be made more contextual to fit in with the times to make them more relevant without hampering the basic foundation. This ensures that audiences are captivated and the children are exposed to our great culture and heritage, making it a win-win situation for all - children, parents, business and society as a whole.

The role of Amar Chitra Katha in preserving India’s heritage
Heritage is continuity, a legacy, an inheritance that is passed down from generation to generation. India’s cultural heritage is unique to say the least. It is a blending, a perfect mix of not just different ethnicities but also of their thoughts, beliefs, traditions, rituals, religious and spiritual practices, art forms, food preferences and much more. What roles does this heritage play in the advancement of a country’s progress? Well the same that the roots of a tree play in its expansion and branching out. Today, in a world of blurring boundaries and rapid globalization, it is our deep rooted culture and heritage that can impart a sense of identity and self. It is important to be anchored in order not to drift away. In an increasingly competitive world –a world being torn apart by strife and conflict, heritage is a symbolic haven. A haven where one can travel back into time and converse with the greats who walked this land, where one can sense a unity with his fellow countrymen. Where one can feel safety and harmony and feel a sense of oneness with oneself and the world giving a renewed confidence and inner strength to march out and be appreciated as a confident and positive people.

The cultural heritage and integrity of our country has withstood the tests of time and is yet distinct and unique. As citizens it is our duty to preserve and pass on this wealth to our future generations.

The Amar Chitra Katha series here plays the key role of an aide and an enabler - they have been the bridge where the young minds- minds which are curious and impressionable - have met and interacted with our folk, mythological, historical and spiritual figures. The Amar Chitra Katha series has instilled a quest in these young minds to know more about the people who shaped their pasts and thereby their futures and destinies. These comics have appealed to their imaginations and thus made them receptive to the values being portrayed thereby helping in the holistic growth of people. The hallmark of any children’s book or comic series is its positive attributes of instilling a sense of pride for one’s culture, teaching the values of peace, honesty, integrity, justice, and kindness. Amar Chitra Katha has lived upto this and that in a large way has been its cornerstone for success.

How many of us have actually read our epics like the Ramayana or the Mahabharata? And yet cleverly presented to us in the guise of an Amar Chitra Katha, we have spent endless hours poring over the antics of Baby Krishna or travelled with Ram and Sita in the jungles.

The aesthetically illustrated characters – be it Krishna, Rama and Vishnu, and Arjuna or the beautiful princesses and apsaras - these books have made these characters rich, alluring, and alive. With the addition of historical topics, it became a boon for school going kids to remember dates and events of historical significance which would otherwise have been just something to cram from the history books to pass the exams.

Reading opens your mind to so many other aspects as well. It is not restricted to the storyline and depiction of events solely. The comics provide a peep into the prevalent cultural norms in society during those periods. To a large extent we can say that these comics have also been promoters of national Integration in a way that our school books could never do. Through these comics, we have learnt of the austerity and discipline required in becoming a Rishi, of the respect accorded to gurus and elders, how family traditions were upheld, of the high status accorded to women. The stories tell about the religions followed and the Gods worshipped. They educate about the various rituals and their importance, enabling us to question and understand the rituals we may be practicing even today. We learn that Mother Nature was revered and her beauty preserved thus teaching us about Environment Conservation. We learn about the Gods worshipped and the religions practiced. The ACK comics expose us to region specific traditions, norms, food habits and even the architecture of the times, thus in their own way promoting inter regional awareness and national integration.

Beauty and art were important and intrinsically weaved into the fabric of day to day life. All art forms ranging from dancing to music to paintings and sculptures flourished. Who can forget the Apsaras and Gandharvas in Lord Indira’s court .The beautiful costumes and jewelry worn not only by women but also by men show that grooming and cultivating one inner and external beauty were both equally important- something that today many are trying to achieve and look for to maintain inner harmony.

To sum up the importance of Amar Chitra Katha series in preserving India’s cultural heritage, it would be apt to quote Kahil Gibran: “The lights of stars that were extinguished ages ago still reaches us. So it is with great men who died centuries ago, but still reach us with the radiations of their personalities.” Let Amar Chitra Katha be the medium through which the light shines on us.

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Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in September, 2010. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.

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—About our writer:

Minaal's analytical abilities have been honed by 10 years of experience in corporate communications. She is well versed with the nuances of writing and publishing of inhouse magazines, business writing, report writing, brochures and related customer communication, article writing and web content writing apart from looking at the design and printing process as well. Her interests lie in travel, spirituality, alternate therapies and philosophy.

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