In an exclusive interview with HindustanTimes.com, one of these veteran creatives, Sharad Devarajan, went into great detail about Spider-Man: India’s yesteryear big screen debut and hopeful live-action dreams. The founder and CEO of Graphic India, a pioneering Indian character entertainment company, also opened up about the latest season of the Hotstar Specials epic animated project he created alongside Jeevan J Kang and Charuvi Agrawal. Furthermore, the media entrepreneur introduced his brand-new venture, Toonsutra, which gained immense popularity within months of its launch earlier this year.

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On Pavitr Prabhakar’s cinematic debut through Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

While live-action MCU films have majorly fumbled in the multiverse domain, the animated Spider-Verse expansion has worked its charms across numerous Earths. They have also, in quite a few ways, done diversity right on the big screen. Without pushing out tokenistic representations, the 2023 Marvel blockbuster especially went where most Western superheroes don’t even think of sailing. Finally shattering the live-action borders that majorly stuck to New York while digging into the superhero affinity, the animated hit even jumped geographical borders, bringing Spider-Man: India to us. Actor Karan Soni lent his voice to the original English version, whereas cricketer Shubman Gill voiced Pavitr in Hindi and Punjabi dubs.

Now that we have finally met the animated persona of the Indian Spider-Man, there’s no way that the live-action possibilities won’t be crossing our minds. Audiences first met the Spider-Hero from Mumbai in the Marvel Comic issue Spider-Man: Indian (2004) #1, thanks to co-creators Jeevan Kang, Suresh Seetharaman, and Sharad Devarajan.

Now, even Devarajan is counting on the studios to breathe life into Prabhakar beyond his animated self. “It only took 20 years for Pravitra Prabhakar to jump from that comic we created and onto the big screen – hopefully it won’t take another 20 before we see the live-action version and Pavitr meet the rest of the MCU,” he told HindustanTimes.com.

Pavitr’s co-creator admitted that while the character’s look was tweaked with new costume designs for the big screen, “the heart, character and unique ‘Indianess’ of Pavitr seems to shine through and remain the same.”

Same heart despite cultural differences

The web-slinging vigilante swung into action for the first-ever time in the anthology Amazing Fantasy #15 in the 1960s. Therefore, the character had already solidified quite a legacy while experiencing its booming contemporary popularity when Pavitr joined the web-crawling adventures. Two of the three original Spider-Man movies starring Tobey Maguire also came out before 2004. Inevitably, the Indian team had some big shoes to fill. Devarajan also expounded on the “important design challenge” that was “to make the character still largely recognisable as Spider-Man.… yet still give him unique local Indian design elements.”

While applauding the “exceptionally well done” new design for Pavitr, the industry veteran highlighted some culturally relevant differences between the Western origins and the Indian counterpart. “Unlike the origin, which is deeply rooted in science, our Indian version was more rooted in spirituality,” Devarajan explained. When Pavitr’s story was first served to Indian readers, they saw him “bouncing off rickshaws.” In a parallel vision to the iconic Chrysler Building in Manhattan becoming a common feature in Maguire’s Peter Parker journey and the American Spidey celebrating Christmas, Prabhakar is seen climbing the Gateway of India in Mumbai in the comic. He is also pictured celebrating Diwali with his Aunt Maya.

Despite making these cultural translations for local audiences to find a part of themselves in the Indian superhero counterpart, Pavitr’s creators still stove “to remain true to the underlining core of Spider-Man” written by Stan Lee: “With great power, there must also come, great responsibility!” In their efforts to “take a global hero and make them a really local one,” the Spider-Man: India team resorted to what one could call a “‘reverse globalisation’ approach to exporting a character franchise.”

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Marvel connection

Iconically enough, Graphic India seems to share a long history with Marvel. This unmissable connection has seen the late legend Stan Lee coming on board to breathe life into his first Indian superhero, Chakra, with the company to Spider-Man’s multiversal existence expanding with Pavitr Prabhakar’s origins. On top of that, the Robert Downey Junior-starring Iron Man movie’s writers Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby are now also working with Devarajan’s company for the upcoming Shadow Tiger films. When asked if these developments were purely coincidental or the sign of an actively orchestrated partnership, Devarajan answered that it was “just coincidence and good fortune and recognition of the amazing creative talent behind much of the Marvel universe in the past.”

The Graphic India CEO vividly illustrated his dream of creating superheroes, telling stories through the medium of comics, and Marvel Comics’ instrumental influence in shaping his ideology on this front. “I had the honour of knowing Stan as a friend and mentor for two decades and first met him when I was in my early twenties and then maintained a friendship. I eventually worked with him to create his first Indian superhero, Chakra the Invincible,” he traced steps back to his connection with Stan Lee.

Explaining how his ties with Lee ultimately became one with his love for Indian comics, Devarajan added, “I felt a deep kinship with the characters Stan brought to life so vividly in his work…Through both the western superheroes of Stan’s world, and Indian comics that told stories of powerful gods and goddesses with superhuman abilities. For me, the synthesis of these worlds into my identity was seamless.” He went on, “Often his heroes were the underdog, the outcast…the person who didn’t fit in. Yet, their uniqueness was the true source of their strength. Stan’s heroes taught me to embrace being different and to respect the differences in everyone.”

Years before Lee and Devarajan picked each other’s brains for the Chakra project, they were brought together by the Spider-Man: India chapter. “Though Stan was not directly involved in the project, I remember meeting him shortly after the book was released and being incredibly nervous to discuss what we had done with one of his most iconic heroes,” said the latter. “As I handed him the book and told him about the story, my heart raced as I saw him carefully flipping through the pages with his master’s gaze. When he finally looked up, he had a smile that warmed the room and instantly put my fears at ease. We talked about his characters and his belief that creators around the world could build on the foundations of those stories. As a show of graciousness, he even signed one of the copies to show his support for the project to me – a treasure I keep close to me on my desk.”

After Pavitr Prabhakar’s character came to life in the early 2000s, Devarajan and Lee reunited in 2009 to begin their work on Chakra: The Invincible. “Working with Stan to create a superhero, was like being able to paint a picture with Picasso or write a poem with Shakespeare. It was quite simply one of the greatest joys of my life.”

Shattering pre-conceived notions surrounding animated content

Despite being widely foregrounded through Japanese anime, such content doesn’t always pertain to the younger audience. With troves of TV shows and films depicting mature and R-rated themes, a widespread audience still perceives that animation projects largely target a younger audience.

Like its Japanese counterparts, Graphic India is doing its bit to challenge the notion that animation only produces “cartoonish” results. Devarajan admitted that through The Legend of Hanuman’s launch, his team aimed to transcend these limiting perceptions while attempting to “target older audiences with the story, visual style and writing.” He confessed, “In the same way that filmmakers like Hayao Miyazaki redefined anime in Japan with films like Princess Mononoke, I wanted our audiences to experience animation as a sophisticated form of storytelling that does justice to the complex themes and profound narratives of our mythologies.”

Acknowledging the audience’s modern forwardness to accepting “this shift in perspective for animation,” he pointed out that viewers across India, like those in Japan and Korea, are now embracing “animation as a medium and not a genre.” Citing his own show’s example, he emphasised, “A parent watching The Legend of Hanuman with their child might connect with the deeper philosophical themes, while the child is captivated by the adventure and spectacle. That’s the power of animation – it can operate on multiple emotional and narrative levels, to multiple different audiences and ages, simultaneously.”

Countless production banners are racing towards developing live-action translations of originally animated storylines in the contemporary age despite a sound detestation voiced by the viewers – in most cases. Backing that argument, Devarajan quoted the contributions to The Legend of Hanuman: “…sequences like Lord Hanuman’s journey through Patala Loka or his manifestation as Panchmukhi Hanuman… aren’t just intended to be ‘cool animated moments’ – they’re sophisticated narrative devices that allow us to explore profound themes of Indian spirituality in ways that would be difficult in live action.”

Future of Indian superheroes

With exclusively Indian mainstream superhero mythos still a very new concept, even the pre-existing roster of characters has yet to earn a footing on the global scale. Nevertheless, with Spider-Man: India’s titular character making his cinematic debut in the 2023 film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, these icons are riding the wave of fictional immortality. Not restricting himself to Pravitr Prabhakar’s example, Devarajan established that the superhero related to a “universal psyche” instead of singularly being labelled as a Western product.

Super-powered entities have already “firmly established India through centuries of mythological stories depicting our gods and heroes with supernatural abilities.” Devarajan noted that such Indian-created characters have “the power to be fundamentally different and form a philosophical worldview completely different than a Western superhero paradigm.”

Highlighting how “now is the time for great experimentation and creative risk-taking to bring our own fresh and uniquely Indian ideas to these genres,” he told HT that his company is already working towards announcing an exciting lineup of superhero films soon.

“The rise of the Indian superhero has just begun.”

The Legend of Hanuman + the Superhero foundations

Adding on to the growth of animation as a medium and how they tapped into that sense of evolution through the latest season of The Legend of Hanuman, Devarajan revealed that Season 5 delved further into mature aspects. The exploration of “complex concepts like the duality between immortal beings, the bonds between fathers and sons, and the price of power without purpose” embodies the essence of the Graphic India chief’s vision.

The Indian superhero landscape, though still exhaustive, has delivered great names like Shaktiman, Krrish, G.One and others. Yet the awe-inspiring world of the Hindu God Hanuman has always been a consequential foundation of the Indian comic book culture and animation universe. Despite being overly familiar with the legendary icon’s ever-expansive mythology, the Indian audience has always found its back to him. When asked why viewers keep coming back for more and more Lord Hanuman stories, Devarajan answered that Indian mythologies, including those of Hanuman, hold “morals, lessons, and the universal human truths they highlight remain relevant today, more than ever,” thus granting them a “timeless” identity.

Similarly, Graphic India’s production of the new-age Hanuman TV series aimed to harness “the power of contemporary animation, direction and storytelling to portray the characters” while remaining “reverent and respectful of the original myth and characters.” Citing the Indian comic of Amar Chitra Katha and the Western Marvel Comics as his source of inspiration, Devarajan found himself “seamlessly integrating aspects of Western and Eastern storytelling” into his life and projects.

“Lord Hanuman’s lessons went far beyond that of any ‘superhero’ and I wanted to create a series that really showcased his heroism and timeless wisdom to the world,” he continued. “The greatest lesson I learned was that the true measure of a hero is not defined by physical power, but by inner strength, fortitude, courage, hope and compassion. The combination of Hanuman’s immense power, balanced by his great loyalty to Lord Rama and those he cares about are aspirations we all strive towards.”

“After all, long before Spider-Man learned that ‘With great power must come great responsibility,’ Lord Hanuman was already teaching that lesson to billions of people for thousands of years in our culture!”

What’s new in The Legend of Hanuman Season 5?

Premiering on October 25, The Legend of Hanuman Season 5 secured the #1 spot as the most-watched series across OTT platforms within the first two weeks of coming out on Disney+, according to November week 1 reports by Ormax Media. As per the estimates recorded from October 21 to November 3, the mythological series amassed an impressive score of 9.4 million viewers.

Explaining the selling highlights of the new episodes, Devarajan said that Season 5 further delves into themes surrounding immortality’s duality and how immortal beings wield such power. The new installment maps out the complex relationship between Ahriravan and Lord Hanuman. While the former will go to an unimaginable extent to gain this power as a means to face off against his father Ravan, Lord Hanuman is only beginning to understand his own divine powers. Season 5 particularly invests in exploring the “parent-child relationship through multiple lenses.” Ahriravan’s troubled relationship with Ravan is contrasted with Makardhwaja being dscovered as Hanuman’s son. Either side of the coin illustrates the universal essence of how the parent-child bond can either break or make someone.

The Patala Loka narrative, in turn, pushes the “boundaries of exploring the complexity of these transcendent mythologies.” As the realm reflects its ruler’s soul, the Patala Lok eventually becomes a physical embodiment of Ahriravan’s growing darkness and offers him a science-defying space to enjoy his stance as all-powerful.

Devarajan insisted that the creative teams behind the show “spent countless hours studying ancient texts and historic imagery” to personify the spiritual significance of certain sequences. Yet, this wholehearted commitment to honouring the spiritual foundation of the source material didn’t compromise the high-quality visual experience for audiences.

Sharad Devarajan + Jeevan K Kang = The Dream Team

Spider-Man: India co-creators Sharad Devarajan and Jeevan Kang have birthed numerous unforgettable characters throughout a creative partnership that has spanned over two decades. With Indian animated behemoth franchises like Baahubali: Crown of Blood and The Legend of Hanuman already under their mutually shared belt, Devarajan and Kang also share creative autonomy under the banner of Graphic India. As the CEO and his longtime collaborator, Mr Devarajan labelled Jeevan Kang, the company’s EVP Creative, a “once in a generation creator whose artistic vision has shaped comics and animation in this country.”

“It has truly been the honour of my life to be able to collaborate with him from the first comic either of us had ever done before (Spider-Man: India) to breaking new barriers with The Legend of Hanuman, “ Devarajan shared his thoughts on his professional relationship with Kang. “The one thing I have been fortunate to experience over two decades of my life is the continuous and constant joy and unmistakable awe when I see the work Jeevan shares with me every week. We have a lot of new mountains we want to climb together, and I, for one, can’t wait.”

India’s comic and webtoon app, Toonsutra

According to a press release issued in June, Toonsutra, India’s homegrown webtoon app climbed the ranks to attain the high stature of the country’s #1 comic app in app stores. The Indian banner cracked this milestone within months of its launch. Media veteran Mr Devarajan established that as the country’s “first dedicated webtoons comics platform across mobile devices,” Toonsutra strives to “create a home for Indian storytellers.” With a “creative renaissance” emerging in the nation, people’s perception of comics and animation is gradually drifting away from its pigeonholed identity as a “kids’ product.” Aiming it as a “serious platform,” Toonsutra is exploring contemporary themes “beyond the ‘Tights and Capes’ of the traditional superhero genre.”

Having already registered over a million downloads, Toonsutra has surfaced as a worthy opponent against Naver’s Webtoon Entertainment on the national front. “Toonsutra’s mission is to bring together a community of passionate fandom and pop-culture, catering to the largest youth market in the world – India’s 700 million+ mobile youth market. It is the only premium webtoon comics app in the region dedicated to catering to Indian audiences with Hindi, Tamil and Telegu language content offerings,” Mr Sharad went on.

With partnership deals with some of the biggest global published already locked in, the app is poised to “bring over 250,000 comic episodes of the highest quality content into local languages for the first time.”

What’s next for Graphic India

As one of the pioneers of “India’s character entertainment revolutions,” Mr Sharad Devarajan concluded his interaction with HT.com by asking viewers to “expect a lot of announcements.”

“We are just getting started,” he affirmed. Continuing his mission to “recruit, train and showcase India’s amazing artists, writers, creators and disruptors at our studio,” the Graphic India CEO assured that his team intended to “spark a creative renaissance” in the country across new genres and character entertainment.

Contributing to home-bred challenges, the visionary company aims “to help transform the perception of India in animation and comics from ‘outsourcer’ to ‘the source’ – to create new heroes and characters that are uniquely Indian but spark the imaginations of audiences all across the world.”

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.