Raj Comics, is an Indian comic books publisher, based in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It published a line of Indian comic books through Raja Pocket Books since its foundation in 1984 by Rajkumar Gupta, Manoj Gupta and Sanjay Gupta. Some of its most well known characters include

Nagraj Nagraj is a superhero appearing in Indian comic books published by Raj Comics created in the late 1980s by Rajkumar Gupta. Nagraj first appeared in the comics Nagraj GENL #14 which was written by Parshuram Sharma and illustrated by Pratap Mul ...

, Super Commando Dhruva,

Bhokal Bhokal is a superhero appearing in Raj Comics. Most stories are based on dark fantasy with blood and gore. Bhokal was created by Manoj Gupta and Sanjay Gupta. Story Plot He is a legendary winged warrior prince of a fictional fabled Parilok ...

, Doga, Parmanu, Tiranga,

Bankelal Bankelal is a fictional comic book character, that appears in comic books published by Raj Comics. He is a satirical character presented as a medieval "Hasya Samrat" (King of Comedy). The series is primarily humorous, though also incorporates el ...

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and r ...

, Inspector Steel, Ashwaraj ,Bheriya and

Anthony Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...

. Raj Comics is credited as being one of the leading comic book distributors in India. Raja Pockets initially published pulp-fiction books. They had a highly-successful run and published critically acclaimed authors like Surender Mohan Pathak,

Ved Prakash Sharma Ved Prakash Sharma (10 June 1955 – 17 February 2017) was an Indian writer of novels and screenplays in Hindi. He was born in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, where he completed his graduation from NAS Degree College. After beginning his professional ca ...

, Anil Mohan and Raja. At their peak, the books sold up to 1 million copies each. While Rajkumar Gupta always had a passion for crime-thrillers, his sons

Sanjay Gupta Sanjay Gupta (born October 23, 1969) is an American neurosurgeon, medical reporter, and writer. He serves as associate chief of the neurosurgery service at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, associate professor of neurosurgery at t ...

and

Manoj Gupta Manoj Gupta (born December 23, 1967) is an Indian publisher, editor, and the President and Co-founder of Raja Pocket Books and its subsidiary Raj comics. He established the most popular and longest running comic book company Raj Comics together wi ...

started collection Indian and International Comics from an early age and were always thrilled with the idea of creating original Indian Superheroes. One evening, while discussing the same, Rajkumar Gupta walked in on the conversation of the two brothers and thus, Raj Comics was born. The company mainly publishes four types of comics;

medieval fantasy Historical fantasy is a category of fantasy and genre of historical fiction that incorporates fantastic elements (such as magic) into a more "realistic" narrative. There is much crossover with other subgenres of fantasy; those classed as Arthu ...

, horror,

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

, and superhero comics, with a predominant focus on superhero content. Their comics are usually published in

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

, with only a few titles and special editions in English. It has produced close to 35,000 comics to date and has been read by people in India and abroad. The company also publishes an online exclusive web series named ''Raj Rojana'', with a new page uploaded every day. Raj Comics publishes in multiple formats, which include e-book, print, and

motion comic A motion comic (or animated comic) is a form of animation combining elements of print comic books and animation. Individual panels are expanded into a full shot while sound effects, voice acting, and animation are added to the original artwork. Tex ...

s. The company also sells hardcovers of their old and new comics, as well as bundled collections of their characters. In 2008, Raj Comics was the focus of a research project conducted through The Sarai Programme at CSDS's Sarai Media Lab. The resulting research was published as a free PDF on the Sarai website.

Team

* Vivek Mohan (Editor) * Anupam Sinha (Creative Director) * Tarun Kumar Wahi (Chief Writer) * Jolly Sinha (Writer) * Ajit Singh (Territory Manager)

Characters

The major characters in Raj Comics divided among their respective

Members of team Brahmand Rakshak (Protectors of the Universe)

* Bheriya *

* Super Commando Dhruva * Doga * Parmanu *

* Inspector Steel *

Tiranga The national flag of India, colloquially called the tricolour, is a horizontal rectangular tricolour flag of India saffron, white and India green; with the ', a 24-spoke wheel, in navy blue at its centre. It was adopted in its present form ...

* Super Indian * Pret Uncle * Ashwaraj *

Members of team Research and Investigation Paranormalism IP

Gagan Gagan may refer to: Given name *Gagan Bhagat, Indian politician and member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly * Gagan Biyani, Indian American serial entrepreneur, marketer, and journalist *Gagan Singh Bhandari, Nepalese General *Gagan Bu ...

* Vinashdoot *

Monty Monty is a masculine given name, often a short form of Montgomery, Montague and other similar names. It is also a surname. Notable people with the name or nickname include: First name Nickname * Bernard Montgomery (1887–1976), British Secon ...

* Tahira

Characters based in ancient times

Gojo Gojo Industries, Inc., is a privately held manufacturer of hand hygiene and skin care products founded in 1946, in Akron, Ohio, where it is again headquartered after a period in Cuyahoga Falls. One of its most well-known products is Purell, a ...

* Ashwaraj * Yoddha * Tilismadev *

Prachanda Pushpa Kamal Dahal ( ne, पुष्पकमल दाहाल; born 11 December 1954), also widely known by his nom de guerre Prachanda (, ; meaning "fierce"), is a Nepalese politician serving as the current Prime Minister of Nepal. He pr ...

* Shukral * Adig

Comedy characters

* Gamraj * Fighter Toads

Chhota Nagraj and Amazing Friends of Nagraj

*Vishaank/Chhota Nagraj *Sillu/Cybro *Shama/Flemina *Durdamya Sena Panchnaag- Naagdev, Sarpraj, Naagpreti, Sinhanaag and Naagarjun *Shooldharini Saudangi *Amar Yoddha Kaaldoot *Nag Veerangana Visarpi

Kids Series characters (Defunct)

Bobby Bobby or Bobbie may refer to: People * Bobby (given name), a list of names * Bobby (actress), from Bangladesh * Bobby (rapper) (born 1995), from South Korea * Bobby (screenwriter) (born 1983), Indian screenwriter * Bobby, old slang for a constabl ...

Tuffy Tuffy is a given name or a family name. Tuffy may refer to: Businesses * Tuffy Auto Service Centers, an American vehicular repair franchise * Tuffys & Tuffets, an Australian brand of underwear Fictional characters * Tuffy (''Tom and Jerry' ...

* Cherry *

Damru A damaru ( sa, डमरु, ; Tibetan ཌ་མ་རུ་ or རྔ་ཆུང) is a small two-headed drum, used in Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism. In Hinduism, the damaru is known as the instrument of the deity Shiva, associated with Tant ...

* Anadi

Member of Vistrit Rakshak (Extended Protectors of the Universe)

*Ninjadev Kirigi *Nakshatra *

Samri Samri ( ar, سامري) is a folkloric music and dance originated in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of ...

*Dhananjay *Chandika *Jingaalu *Faceless *Visarpi *Kaaldoot *Blackcat *Pralayanka *Cancer

Members of W.A.R (World Allied Rescuers)

*Badman *Nakshatra *Kali Vidhwa *Inspector Cheetah *Sheena *Black Cat *Lomri *Madam X *Kirtiman *Adrishya Hatyara *Vanputra *Doctor Vargis

Member of P.V.N (Paralaukik Vigyan Nayakgan)

*Vedacharya *Facelace (Bharti) *Kapalkundli *Nostradamus *Lori *Kishore *Saza(Venu) *Red Letter(Vikram) *Baby *Iri

Superheroes from Different World

* Narak Nashak Nagraj * Krodh Ketu Kobi * Danadan Doga * Doga Reborn * Swatantrata Senani Dhruva * Show Stopper Dhruva * Ant henn Anthony

Newest characters

* Sanju ( 10 Deadliest ) * Yugam ( Sarvnayak Series) ( Akhri Series) * Adig ( Sarvnayak Series) ( Akhri Series) * Paryaava ( Sarvnayak Series) ( Akhri Series) * Aghori ( Sarvnayak Series) ( Aghori Agyat) * Narakputra raksh ( Sarvnayak Series)

Inactive characters

* Goldheart * Hunter Sharks * Jaadugar * Khayali Ram * Raja * Johar * Barrister Vishwanath * Aglu Pichlu * Khaleel Khan * Bhootnaath * Anadi * Vakra (After HUM HONGEY KAMYAB)

Inactive characters who came after a long time

* Bobby * Tuffy * Cherry * Damru * Abhedya * Blind Death * Liza * Vega * Jasoos Topichand * Piddi Pahalwan * Sanju (10 Deadliest) * Fighter Toads * Pret Uncle * Tausi *Bhootnaath ( Nutan Comics )(Sarvaayudh by Manoj Gupta) *Raka ( Nutan Comics )(Sarvaayudh by Manoj Gupta)

TV show-based characters

Shaktimaan Shaktimaan is an Indian Hindi-language Superhero fiction, superhero television show, created by Mukesh Khanna that aired on DD National from 13 September 1997 to 27 March 2005. Producer Mukesh Khanna played the role of Shaktimaan and his alt ...

* Viraat

History

Raj Comics was founded in 1986 by Raj Kumar Gupta, Sanjay Gupta and

. It marked the era of the rise of Indian superheroes. Raj Comics's first superhero was

. Later, they launched other popular superheroes like Dhruva, Doga, Parmanu, and

, among others.

Origins

Raj Comics' roots span back to the 1980s. After extreme dedication and perseverance by the brothers and their father, Raj Comics was propelled to great heights and fame. Nearly every teenager spent their afternoons glued to the latest comic addition. In the early days of its inception, Raj Comics published mythological, mystery and adventure comics. In 1985, Manoj Gupta, fueled by his passion and craze for western superheroes, notably Phantom, came up with the idea of creating a superhero centered around snakes as he believed snakes held a religious and mythological significance in India. Later, the team started working on the concept and finally created the Nagraj that we know today.

The Golden Age

In 1997, an advertisement for Nagraj featuring

Sonu Sood Sonu Sood (born 30 July 1973) is an Indian actor, film producer, model, humanitarian, and philanthropist who works predominantly in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada films. In 2009, he received the Andhra Pradesh State Nandi Award for Best Vil ...

aired on TV. During this era, Raj Comics reportedly sold over a million copies a year, making it one of the most widespread publications of that time period. It has sold more than 100 million copies since then.

Modern Age

Raj Comics has now expanded to multiple different publication streams, with TriColor and other various business entities taking venerable steps in penetrating the Indian book market. Ongoing discussions with studio heads have been disclosed to the public about the possibility of live feature films based on their comic universe. However, nothing has since come to fruition. In 2015, Raj Comics released an Android app for the general public. It has since garnered a massive following and has an average rating of 4.5+ stars. In 2017, Raj Comics released a concept trailer for Nagraj on its official YouTube channel. It has since garnered over 1.5 million views. In 2018, Raj Comics released a short feature film named Aadamkhor, partially self-produced and crowdfunded. It released on YouTube to critical acclaim by its audience.

Series

King Comics

King Comics was a line of comics published through Raja Pocket Books. While the division was initially successful, its popularity declined and the line went defunct after only about 2–5 years of activity. It was intended that many of King Comic's characters would be merged into Raj Comics, but only a few characters such as Gamraj were merged. During its run the division published six monthly comics.

Past and current series

* Kaliyug (Shakti, Nagraj & Dhruva) * ''Tune Mara doga ko'' (Doga) * ''Thrill-Horror-Suspense Series'' * ''Huoooo-Series'' * ''X-Series'' * ''Friendy Series'' * '' Goldheart Series'' * ''Kaal Series'' (Ashwaraj, Gojo, Bhokal, TilismDev, Parmanu, Ins. Steel, Super Indian) * '' Nagayan Series'' (Nagraj-Super Commando Dhruv) * ''AmarPrem Series'' (Kobi-Bheriya-Bhokal) * ''Japan Series'' (Atankharta Nagraj) * ''City Without A Hero'' (Multistar) * ''Khazana series'' (vishwa Rakshak Nagraj) * ''Trifana Series'' (Nagraj) * ''Maharavan Series'' (Bhokal) * ''Dracula Series'' (Multistar) * ''Narak Nashak Nagraj origin Series'' (Narak Nashak Nagraj) * ''Crow Series'' (Anthony) * ''Born In Blood Series'' (Doga) * ''Express Way Series'' (Doga) * ''Aatankawadi nagraj series'' (Multistarrer) * ''Chamatakari bhokal series'' (Bhokal) * ''Mard aur murda series'' (Doga-antony) * ''Mahanagayan series'' * ''Parmatma series'' (Parmanu) * ''Raktadaan series'' (Doga) * ''Jalyash series'' (Bankelal) * ''Tilismi olympic series'' (Bhokal) * ''Raj 20'' (Amazing friends of nagraj) * ''Nagraj ke badd series'' (Nagraj) * ''Swarna nagri'' (Nagraj-Super Commando Dhruv- fighter toads) * ''Belmunda ka khajana series'' (Nagraj-Super Commando Dhruv- Fighter Toads) * ''Genius series'' (Super commando dhurva) * ''Aadamkhoro ka swaraga series'' (Super commando dhurva) * ''Axe series'' (Super commando dhurva) * ''Aakhri dhurva series'' (Super commando dhurva) * ''Pagal nagraj series'' (Nagraj) * ''Made in India series'' (Ins.Steel) * ''Wafa series'' (Doga) * ''Doga diries series'' (Doga) * ''Doga collection series'' (Doga) * ''Mritiyjivi series (Narak nashak nagraj)'' * ''Makbara series (Narak nashak nagraj-gagan-Vinashdoot-tahira- Monty)'' * ''Kar Bura ho Bhala series (Bankelal)'' * ''Aag series (Tiranga)'' * ''Tandoor series (Doga)'' * ''Bankelal lok se lok series (bankelal)'' * ''Bankelal nagar se nagar series (Bankelal)'' * ''Nagina series (Nagraj)'' * ''Nahi bachega nagraj series (Nagraj)'' * ''Rajnagar rakshak series (Super commando dhurva- Ins. Steel)'' * ''Curfew series (Doga)'' * ''Aarambha series (Yoddha)'' * ''Hedron series (Nagraj-Super Commando Dhurva)'' * ''Champion killer series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Guru bhokal series (Bhokal)'' * ''Game over series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Andhi maut series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Aagraj series (Nagraj)'' * ''Doga Hindu Hai Series (Doga)'' * ''Khoon series (Doga-Super Indian)'' * ''Palra series (Multistarrer)'' * ''Mai hu bheriya series (Bheriya- Nagraj-Super Commando Dhruv - Doga- Parmanu)'' * ''Ins.chetta series (Doga)'' * ''Nikal pada doga series (Doga)'' * ''Nagraj hai na series (Nagraj)'' * ''Lavva series (Nagraj)'' * ''Hatyara kaun series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Candakaal series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Khoni khandan series (Super commando dhurva)'' * ''Aab marega parmanu series (Parmanu)'' * ''Lakshya purusha series (Doga)'' * ''Ek katora au Do Ktora Khoon series (Thrill-Horror-Suspense)'' * ''Chamatakari bhokal series (Bhokal)'' * ''Jalyash series (Bankelal)'' * ''Germany series (Aatakharta nagraj)'' * ''Italy series (Aatakharta nagraj)'' * ''Raktabeej series (Multistarrer)'' *Doga unmulan series (Doga) * ''Rajnagar Rakshak'' (Super Commando Dhruva, Inspector Steel) * ''Akhiri-Last Survivors''(Multistarrer) * ''Balcharit'' (Origin Series of Super Commando Dhruva) * Shaktiroopa (Follow up to Super Commando Dhruva's Balcharit)

Ongoing series

* ''Sarvanayak'' (Nearly all major RC characters) * ''Sarvanayak Vistar'' ( Multistarrer) * ''Kshatipoorti'' ( Aatankharta Nagraj) * ''Sarpsatra'' (Vishwarakshak Nagraj)

Upcoming series

* ''Prem Granth'' (Super Commando Dhruva) * ''Naag Granth'' (Narak Nashak Nagraj and Krodh Ketu Kobi) * ''Sins of the father'' (Anthony-Multistarrer) * ''पुनरूत्थान'' (Multistarrer) * ''महा-नागायण'' (Multistarrer) * ''Shuddhikaran'' ( Kobi - Bhediya) * ''Adharmeshwar'' (Multistarrer) * '' अगड़म-बगड़म '' (Bankeylal, Nagraj, Dhruv) * ''फाइटर फोर्स'' (Fighter Toads) * ''डेड गॉड्स'' (Multistarrer) * ''नियो'' (Dhruv)

Social Comics

* Nagraj Strikes: The Attack of the Coronaman * Super Commando Dhruva: The Struggle with Depression

Jubilee and Kalpana-lok awards

In 2010, Raj Comics celebrated its Silver Jubilee by launching the Kalpana-lok Awards to honor comics artists. Participants are nominated by editors at Raj Comics and can be voted on by readers and fans on the Raj Comics website.

Raj Comics films

In 2014,

Anurag Kashyap Anurag Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian filmmaker and actor known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards. For his contributions to film, the Government of France a ...

had spoken about making a film on Doga—a vigilante killing machine in the style of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

’ The Punisher—but the project was shelved after his '' Bombay Velvet'' flopped. Manish Gupta EOhas had multiple ultimately unsuccessful meetings with prominent Bollywood industry personnel. Raj Comics co-founder and studio head Sanjay Gupta says "Bollywood is yet to warm up to the idea of licensing comic book characters that come with detailed universes and visuals ready for the screen. We want to start with animated Web series first. We are expecting to make our first live-action film the year after.” In December 2017, Raj Comics organized special screening of their horror film Aadamkhor at Nagraj Janmotsav event, Delhi. Aadamkhor is based on comic of the same name published by Raj Comics in 1992. Raj comics has released Aadamkhor on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

on 24 May 2018. It was also announced in December 2019 by

, that

Ranveer Singh Ranveer Singh Bhavnani (; born 6 July 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. The recipient of several awards, including five Filmfare Awards, he is among the highest-paid Indian actors and has been featured in ''Forbes India''s ...

was in talks to play Nagraj in a film produced by Karan Johar.

Digital distribution

Raj Comics are available in digital form through their android app. The Raj Comics official android app has reached over 100k+ downloads at the time of this article. Free Services: In 2017, Raj Comics started free comics from their android app. Paid Services:

Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android (operating sys ...

in 2017. RC Android app crossed 100,000 downloads within 6 months of its launch.

Legal history

In 1996, delivered by the Delhi High Court under docket Raja Pocket Books (Plaintiff) v. Radha Pocket Books, Raj Comics won this intellectual property case with a ruling of "prima facie infringement of the plaintiff’s character."

References

External links

* * {{authority control 1986 comics debuts Magazines published in Delhi Magazines established in 1986 Comic book publishing companies of India Indian comics Superhero comics Indian comics titles