Cartoonists of Orissa

Cartoon is an art which usually acts as a visual metaphor to illustrate a point of view on current social and/or political topics. There could be two objectives of cartoon: to create pure humour and to criticise; says Dr. Mrinal Chatterjee.

What is a Cartoon?

A cartoon is any of several forms of illustrations with varied meanings that evolved from its original meaning. In modern print media, a cartoon is a piece of art, usually humorous in intent. This usage dates from 1843 when Punch magazine applied the term to satirical drawings in its pages, particularly sketches by John Leech.

History of Cartoon:

A cartoon (from the Italian cartone and Dutch/Flemish word "karton", meaning strong, heavy paper or pasteboard) used to be a full-size drawing made on paper as a study for further drawings, such as a painting or tapestry. Cartoons were typically used in the production of frescoes, to accurately link the component parts of the composition when painted onto plaster over a series of days. Such cartoons often have pinpricks where the outline of the design has been picked out in the plaster. Cartoons by painters such as Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci are highly prized in their own right.

However, cartoons as we understand now, originated in Italy. Documented evidence seems to point to the Italian brothers Annibale and Agostini Carrcci, who in 1590 produced a series of drawings called ritratini carichi (which mean loaded portraits). It is from this term that the word ‘caricature' was born. This art form flourished in Europe in the next hundred years and travelled to neighbouring continents too.

William Hogarth (1697-1764), an English artist is acknowledged as the father of modern cartoons. Around 1700, the period called the ‘Age of Reason' people became very puritan. A kind of seriousness permeated through out, which made life boring. The only reason painting was still in demand was for supplying likenesses. This greatly irritated the young engraver Hogarth who had to make a living by illustrating books. So, he deliberately created a new type of painting which should appeal to his countrymen. His paintings resembled a kind of ‘dumb show' in which all characters play roles and make the meaning clear through gestures and use of stage puppetry. He did everything to bring out what he called the ‘character' of each figure; not only through the face but also through the dress and behaviour. His drawings ridiculed the drunkenness and stupidity of youngsters. Other artists also picked up the style.

Cartoons became popular, but often the cartoonists faced the ire of the rulers. In 1944, a group of Polish cartoonists were executed for drawing against Nazi Fascism. In 1970, Turkish cartoonist Turhan Selcuk was tortured by the ruling military junta.

Why Cartoon?

The art usually acts as a visual metaphor to illustrate a point of view on current social and/or political topics. There could be two objectives of cartoon: to create pure humour and to criticise. The objectives do not operate in ‘either-or’ mode. More often than not, they work simultaneously, in synergy. A cartoon comments. It lampoons. It creates humour/mirth. In fact humour and/or satire are integral part of a cartoon. Without humour cartoon will degenerate into invective. It is the humour which makes the comment, criticism bearable. At times, it is the humour which makes the comment more pithy and apt.

Elements of Cartoon:

Among the elements of cartoon are narrative and satire. Narrative makes the cartoon comprehensible to the reader. It provides the necessary context, without which the reader might miss the punch and thereby the fun. Satire is humour plus ridicule. Without humour, satire degenerates into invective. Humour, thus is an integral part of satire. Irreverence is another important element of cartoon. Cartoons by nature have to be irreverent. It cuts through the social hierarchy and brings down the high and mighty. That ‘levelling down’ creates a feeling of satisfaction and déjà vu among the readers/audience.

Types of Cartoon:

Cartoons are classified as caricatures, comics, gags and illustrations. They can be single panel (stand alone) or strips. Modern gag cartoons, found in magazines and newspapers, generally consist of a single drawing with a caption immediately beneath or (less often) a speech balloon.

Editorial cartoons are a type of gag cartoon found almost exclusively in news publications. Although they also employ humour, they are more serious in tone, commonly using irony or satire. The art usually acts as a visual metaphor to illustrate a point of view on current social and/or political topics.

www.nilambarrath.com | 2 Depending on the size and position in the publication, cartoons can be classified as pocket cartoon and stand alone cartoon. Pocket cartoons (horizontal in shape, with the length bigger than its breadth- thus looking like a pocket) usually appear in the lower half of the front page. It usually relates to some recent event or issue. Stand alone cartoons are usually bigger is size, and relates to more important issue/incident than what is dealt in pocket cartoon. A series of cartoons with a single theme- showing a sequence is called cartoon strip.

Cartoons are now extensively used in television. Development in animation technology has made the task of drawing moving images comparatively easier.

Cartooning in India:

Political cartooning in India is a British import. “The Punch magazine was a major source of inspiration, till the likes of Rabindranath Tagore and Nandlal Bose indianised the art”, said Vijay Narain Seth (Vins), a well-known cartoonist in an interview with Priya Pandey.1 But the credit of popularising cartoons in India goes to K Shankar Pillai (popularly known as Shankar) and his Shankar’s Weekly published from Delhi. In fact Shankar’s Weekly was as popular in India as the legendary Punch. The first generation of Indian cartoonists, including R. K. Laxman and Abu Abraham, was greatly influenced by Shankar’s Weekly. It set a benchmark for standards for younger aspirants.

Shankar’s Weekly folded up in the seventies. But it created a demand for cartoons and also inspired a whole generation of artists to become professional cartoonists. As a result a bunch of cartoonists emerged in the media scene. India never has a dearth of subjects for cartoon (and probably never will). The cartoonists have had a field day so far subject for cartoon is concerned. Another reason for the growth of cartooning in India in 70s and 80s was the support they got from the media house and public. A fairly tolerant social and political milieu ensured fair amount of independence for the cartoonists to practise their art. Some of the cartoonists working in mainstream newspapers became very popular with the readers; in fact they became house hold names. Among them mention must be made about R. K. Laxman, Mario Miranda, Ravishankar, Abu Abraham, Sudhir Tailang, Gopikrishnan, Shubham Gupta, Shekhar Gurera, Maya Kamath, O. V. Vijayan, Pran Kumar, Mohan Sivanand and Kutty. Bal Thackeray was also a good cartoonist before he joined politics full time. Today every region in India has its own breed of cartoonists who have become cult figures among their readers.

1 Priya Pandey, Cartooning is a dyeing art, The Tribune, Sunday June8, 2003, http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030608/spectrum/main4.htm

www.nilambarrath.com | 3 Cartooning in Orissa:

Orissa has had a long history of caricature. Humour and satire occupy an important place in Oriya literature. But unfortunately, there is no documental evidence as to when cartoons first appeared in media in Orissa. It appeared that Niankhunta (Editor: Godavarish Mohapatra), a satirical magazine in the line of Shankar’s Weekly first started to publish cartoons regularly. Samaja and Prajatantra also used to publish political cartoons occasionally in 50s. Omkar Nath Panigrahi of Bolangir used to draw fine cartoons in 40s. Faturananda (Ramchandra Mishra) the well-known satirist was a fine cartoonist. He used to draw cartoons in his magazine Dagara till his eyesight failed. Dibakar Mishra of Talcher (founder of daily Khabar) used to draw cartoons in the Samaja in 70s and 80s. He used a penname: DKM. Satirical magazines like Niankhunta and Durmukha used to print several cartoons. In fact socio-political cartoons with highly satirical content were its major attraction. Niankhunta ceased publication long back. Durmukha continues to publish and cartoons are still its major attraction.

Though Orissa has had a long history and tradition of caricature, and cartoons have been used in newspapers and periodicals, yet cartoonists have never got the kind of opportunity to work and credit and acclaim they deserve. It is only after 80s that cartoonists got recognition. Some of them became household names. There is a practical reason for this. Offset printing came to Orissa only in mid-80s. Before that metal blocks had to be made to print any kind of visuals. It was expensive and time taking. Hence visuals were avoided unless it was absolutely necessary. Cartoonists did not have much opportunity to get published. After the introduction of off set printing system printing visuals- both photographs and graphics (halftone and line) became easier. It required little extra cost to print ‘halftone’2 photographs and no extra cost to print ‘line’ graphics. Newspapers started printing cartoons in greater number. Sambad was one of the first mainstream Oriya newspapers to have introduced daily pocket cartoon. It was also one of first daily Oriya newspaper to have appointed a cartoonist as its regular staff, a trend promptly followed by other major newspapers. It was in late 80s and early 90s that a bunch of young and talented cartoonists like Sudhansu Deo, Gyan Rath, Kishore Rath, Shilpi Ashok and Kesu Das emerged in the media world of Orissa. Almost all newspapers carried stand alone and daily pocket cartoons. Kishore’s daily pocket cartoon ‘Katakha’ published in Sambad became very popular. The craze for cartoons waned a bit in the next decade. One of the reasons for that could be that newspapers preferred to print photographs in stead of cartoons.

Contemporary Cartoonists of Orissa:

2 Halftone is the reprographic technique that simulates continuous tone imagery through the use of dots, varying either in size or in spacing.[1] "Halftone" can also be used to refer specifically to the image that is produced by this process www.nilambarrath.com | 4 Sudhansu Deo was probably the first regularly appointed cartoonist in Oriya media. Before joining Sambad in 1984 he worked briefly in Prajatantra and then Samaja. He drew excellent pocket cartoons. In fact he was the first cartoonist in Orissa to draw pocket cartoons regularly. He also drew stand alone cartoons on burning issues of the time. He had a lyrical style of drawing like R.K.Laxman. Very soon, Deo became a household name. In late 1988 he left Sambad and went to Delhi and worked for several English newspapers and audio visual media. He also worked as an animation cartoonist for a Doordarshan cartoon serial project. He returned to Orissa and joined Khabar in 2007. He left Khabar in end 2009 to start an animation school. Presently he works as the principal of JBC Academy of Art and Animation.

Among the other cartoonists of Orissa mention must be made of Kishore Rath, (born 1963), a very talented cartoonist working in Sambad since late 80s. A graduate in fine arts from Khalikote Art College, Kishore has set the trend of writing short rhyming verse with pocket cartoon. Kishore has his own unique style of drawing and a sharp sense of humour. A talented satirist, he also composes humourous poems.

Shilpi Ashok (born 1958) has been drawing cartoons for the last twenty years. He used to work in Prajatantra. Since 2005 he has been drawing cartoons in the Samaja. He publishes a cartoon magazine titled Silpi Ashokanka Cartoon Saptahiki. He has also published a compilation of cartoons of noted litterateurs of Orissa, titled Lekhaka Lati.

Balasore based Kesu Das (born 1965) did his graduation in fine art from Khalikote Government Art College and masters from Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapitha, Benaras. He draws cartoons for newspapers and periodicals like Sambad, Dwani Pratidhwani, Samaja, Haribol, Durmukha. He is also an acclaimed sand artist and runs his art teaching school. As an artist he has won several awards like Orissa Lalit Kala Academy award as young artist (1987) and Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata (2000). He has published a work book on how to draw cartoons using Oriya alphabets: Barnamala Saha Sahaja Cartoon Shiksha (1998). He is also actively involved in preserving the languishing folk lacquer art of Balasore, in Orissa through Baleswari Kala Kendra, of which he is the executive director.3

Chudamani Das also hails from Balasore. He completed his fine arts degree from Bhadrak Art College. He began to draw cartoons for newspapers and periodicals like Durmukha, Dhawni Pratidhawini from 2000. He joined daily Prajatantra in 2003.

Aswini Kumar Rath and Abani Kumar Rath are brothers who work together. In fact they call themselves ‘the only cartoonist brother duo in the world’.4 Aswini has a PhD in

3 www.jaukandhei.com 4 www. aswiniabani.com www.nilambarrath.com | 5 botany. He is working as a Lecturer in Botany in Bolangir. Abani did his M.Sc in Chemistry. He is working as an officer in insurance sector. Their first cartoon was published in 1989. Since then their cartoons have been published in several local, national and international newspapers, periodicals and web sites. They have won many awards and honours. Their cartoons have been exhibited in the prestigious 'First International Saloon of Graphic Humor-Lima-2008, Peru', and won Honourable Mention prize in the 15th, 16th and 17th 'Daejeon International Cartoon Contest in Seoul, Korea in 2006, 2007 and 2008 and Special Mention prize in the '2nd Free Cartoons Web International Cartoonist Festival', China, 2003.

Paresh Nath (born 1970) did his masters in English literature from Ravenshaw College, Cuttack. He had a knack for drawing and illustration from his school days. His cartoons and illustrations were being published in newspapers during his college days. He started his professional career as a cartoonist with Samaja. Later, he worked as a freelance cartoonist for The Indian Express, Delhi before joining National Herald in early 1990s as the Chief Cartoonist. Currently, Paresh Nath's works are reproduced in publications like Bombay Samachar5, the oldest Asian daily published from Mumbai, newsletters of United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA),6 CO-OP HORIZON- a fortnightly periodical by National Co- Op Union of India, Neighbourhood Flash - published from Delhi in five different editions covering urban, metropolitan and political issues (www.nflash.com) and UT Independent - a political publication from Delhi and other union territories. His funny, incisively wise, informative and never malicious cartoon pieces have touched millions of readers and have been reproduced in various newspapers and periodicals such as Financial Express, India Today, Illustrated Weekly, The Sun, Northeast Sun, Free Ads, Evening News, Organiser, Zero Hour, Samayukta Karnataka, The Eastern Times, etc. He has also been associated to various online projects. Paresh has earned worldwide recognition for his work as the winner of the United Nations Correspondents Association Ranan Lurie Political Cartoon Award for the year 2000 in cartoon competition. He was invited to participate in the contest among the professional political cartoonists throughout the world. Paresh has also won the Youth Federation Award and Delhi Sahitya Kala Parishad Award in 1987 and 1991 respectively for his cartoons. He is a member of the panel of jurors for international poster contest of UNFPA in year 1992 & 2000. He is also an empanelled cartoonist of DAVP of information & Broadcasting Ministry, Government of India.

Besides drawing cartoons, he writes humour columns. He is also planning to write books on yoga and mysticism in near future.

5 www.bombaysamachar.com 6 www.unfpa.org.in www.nilambarrath.com | 6 Bijayananda Biswal is not a professional cartoonist. He works as an executive in Indian Railways. Drawing cartoons is a hobby for him. However, he has won several cartoon competition including an international competition organized in November 2009 by Bangalore based Cartoon Academy.

Cartooning in Orissa came of age in 80s. As Sudhansu Deo says, earlier there used to be mostly illustrations with exaggerated features of known figures to evoke laughter. The emphasis was more on illustration than on the theme. It was only after 80s that cartooning was regarded as a separate art form in Orissa.7

Late 80s and 90s saw some young cartoonists maturing into excellent artists. However, the new millennium saw a decline in the quantity and quality of cartoons in mainstream print media. This phenomenon is not exclusive to Orissa. It has been witnessed in other states too. Priya Pande writes about this8:

… There is also the aspect of changing habits of readers. In the earlier days, papers used to be crammed with news matter (particularly on the front page (with the pocket cartoon providing) the only visual relief. Today, not only has colour entered the front pages, the pictorial presentation and design gimmicks have completely edged the cartoon out to total insignificance.

However, cartoon has its appeal and attraction for readers who need a dose of humour. It is still popular. Of late there has been extensive use of cartoons and animation in television in Orissa. ***

Dr. Mrinal Chatterjee is a popular writer and media teacher. He is presently working as the Professor and Head of Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), Dhenkanal, Orissa. He can be contacted at: [email protected] | www.mrinalchatterjee.in

7 In a telephonic interview on January 24, 2009 8 Priya Pandey, Cartooning is a dyeing art, The Tribune, Sunday June8, 2003, http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030608/spectrum/main4.htm

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