Hindu Mythology Meets Modern Day Comics

A scene from ACK!

It is often said that every story in the world can be found in the Mahabharata, the story of the great war between feuding cousins that forms one of the key elements of Hindu mythology. Like Hinduism itself, the Mahabharata and its sister epic, the Ramayana, are sweeping in scope and constantly evolving, and these collections of fables and parables serve less as historical records than ways to set down rules and maxims to guide our daily lives.

Many versions of the epics exist, especially the Ramayana, which has been adapted and modified by writers and poets over the ages to cater to regional needs and tastes. It is a testament to the tolerance and inclusiveness of Hinduism that such adaptations are both possible and acceptable.

Now a new breed of artists and writers is grappling with these timeless stories, modifying and taking artistic liberties with the epics to make them relevant to their generation. We showcase one such artist, whose irreverent attitude towards the epics nevertheless arises out a scholarly study of them.

Sandeep Sood

Those who have followed the growing presence of contemporary South Asian representations are probably familiar with California native Sandeep Sood. Since 2002, Sood and his collaborators at Badmash.tv have been churning out deliciously fresh South Asian comics that reach thousands of readers weekly.

“ACK!” Badmash.tv’s latest comic strip, was started earlier this year. With the weekly strip making mention of the iPhone to Le Bron James’ controversial career choices, “ACK!” melds the tradition of mythological Hindu characters with relevant pop culture references. “The way I came to understand Hinduism was through comic books [like the Amar Chitra Kathas], so ‘ACK!’ pokes fun at the fantastical mythological stories we read while growing up,” explains Sood, who serves co-founder and lead writer for Badmash.tv, an animation studio based in Berkeley and Pune, India. “In Indian culture, you see very little satire, period,” he adds.

The success of reality TV show Jersey Shore was an unusual inspiration for ACK! “We’ve noticed that television just seems to work better in Jersey,” writes Sood in the blog for ACK! “We wondered ... could it work with the classics? ... What if you took an old Indian epic and moved it to the Garden State? Would it be even MORE EPIC? Only one way to find out. Take two dudes from the Mahabharata and put ‘em in Jersey.” Satire might be commonplace in mainstream American culture, but are Indians ready to allow themselves, and their ancient scriptures, to be the butt of sophisticated jokes?

“I think it’s the perfect time [for this type of creative work],” says Sood. “People are really appreciating the strip and we were surprised to find a bigger response in India than the U.S.” Sood said “ACK!” has received a lot of buzz on Twitter, particularly from readers in India, and about 80 percent of the response to positive and 20 percent is of the “you’re destroying our religion” sort.

Reader outrage over Badmash.tv poking fun at Hindu mythology doesn’t intimidate Sood. “To receive an extreme reaction is a sign that you’re making something worth talking about. I understand the sensitivity around the subject, but it’s my job as a satirist [to push the envelope].”

“I think ACK! is less about religion per se than about the way that religion works as a component of cultural identity,” says Aron Bothman, the illustrator behind the comic strip. “It has less to do with Hinduism than with the particular take on Hinduism that you see in the Amar Chitra Katha comics and how that’s affected the people who grew up reading them.”

Though light-hearted in how he writes about Hindu mythology, Sood is not indifferent towards the weight of ancient scriptures. “I’ve read the translation of the Mahabharata twice and I’d definitely researched this work carefully,” he says. “Obviously I don’t go with the exact historical interpretation. It’s important to look at the texts and interpret them my own way instead of writing about them blindly.”

Sood looks towards “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone for creative inspiration. He says, “I would love to create the first deeply satirical show or movie in India, the South Park of India.”