Legendary stories get a graphical touch in Amar Chitra Katha’s new entrant ‘Dhyan Chand- The Wizard of Hockey, 64 pages graphic novel that was launched yesterday by Minister of State for Human Resource Development Shashi Tharoor at Dhyan Chand stadium in New Delhi.
Priced at INR 100, this graphic novel is the first title of ACK in the sports genre and centers around Dhyan Chand’s passion for hockey and the way he lived and breathed the game.
Speaking to AnimationXpress.com’s Zeenia Boatwala about the decision of presenting ‘Dhyan Chand’s life in a graphical medium, Reena Puri- Editor, Amar Chitra Katha, says, “We had decided to write on sports personalities and when the scriptwriter, Luis Fernandes suggested Dhyan Chand, it was an immediate ‘yes’ as he is an icon in the world of Indian sports and a truly inspiring figure.”
A year’s time has been taken to create this graphical piece, which is scripted by Luis Fernandes, illustrations done by Harsho Mohan Chattoraj, Colorists are Ramesh, Adarsh Achari, Prakash S, Assistant Colorist is Silambarasan K, Lay outing done by Sivajith S. and Edited by Reena I. Puri.
With this graphic novel, the vision of the team was to bring out the story of an icon, which they believe would be a role model for today’s generation. For writing the story, Luis referred to Dhyan Chand’s autobiography along with various other books and articles to know more about his life.
Reena Adds more, “We are conveying a story that must be read and understood by each individual in his own way”
When asked about the gripping aspect of this book, Reena indicates that she finds the whole story gripping but, highlights one aspect by saying “Dhyan Chand’s growth as a player and a human being is brought across excellently.”
Reena nods to the fact that this graphic novel is a blend of story of courage, determination and focus. Here, we ask more on the color tone used for the novel, “Harsho gave us pencils of each page which he would ink after we had checked it for visual accuracy.”
For instilling the look and feel, the team made use of Adobe Photoshop and Corel Draw for Illustrations and Coloring and Adobe InDesign for Layouting. Available now at leading book stores and also online at www.amarchitrakatha.com, this book for sure will leave a motivational aura around you.
“Every biography is a challenge because the onus is on us to represent the person correctly. But when it is done well there is a feeling of great satisfaction and all the hard work is worth it,” concludes, Reena