PAO: The Anthology Of Comics 1

by Ambarish Satwik, Amitabh Kumar, Ikroop Sandhu

Image and word come together to tell the story in the twelve graphic narratives of PAO - an anthology featuring the most well-known names in the genre and fresh, first-time talent. The visual interpretations range from the highly stylized to the raw, provocative and seemingly natural. And, in tempo and texture, the stories vary from the quirky and dazzling to the profound and contemplative, taking readers on an expansive and hugely enjoyable journey.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics

299 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Toshi Parmar · Rating 4 out of 5]

An invaluable collection.
From Ambarish and Pia's non-fiction to Iram Ghufram, Ikroop, and Mitoo's portrait of the most eccentric and transcendental Emu, the book is a wonderful read. I wouldn't categorise every one of the included stories as 'comics'; some definitely have potential to be extended into graphic novels (maybe they have, this is a 7yrs old compilation now).

[Poonam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like any comic anthology, it has an array of varied art styles. And some you love, and some you wish you could escape. There are charcoal comics, coloured ones, scribbles with painful fonts, some sketch-based on so on. Some comics like 'Hindus and Offal' and 'The afterlife of Ammi's beetlenu box' felt more like illustrated stories, though latter one I liked.

My favorites were Orijit Sen's. He had two contributions - one story called Plasmoids is a colloboration with writer Samit Basu and another called 'Hair Burns like Grass' about Kabir done in chracoal. Art was super in latter.

One surprise was Sarnath Banerjee's story 'Tito Years' - with simple, east-to-understand, colourful, pleasing sketches with a story I could understand without dwelling into abstract.

I think after so much of reading comics, I still do not have erudition to appreciate or understand stories like Sleepscapes (by Parasmita). Perhaps I've a long way to go. :sigh:

[Nikhil Gulati · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of the stories in this collection seem like modern art to me - incomprehensible and abstract and they don't make me feel anything.

However, the one story that really stood out, and which alone made the whole book worth buying, was "Tito Years" by Sarnath Banerjee. It is about an urban middle-class family set in the 70s-80s India. In the pre-liberalisation era when things were not so easily available even for the well-to-do, it beautifully depicts the struggles of a boy who dreams of owning a pair of Nike shoes. This story really struck me for its simplicity and yet the depth of emotion and humanity it carried. I don't even have the book with me anymore - I read it at a friend's place maybe a year ago - but this story has stayed with me all this time. Sarnath Banerjee has created something really beautiful here.

[Anand Koppar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would be one of the better compiled anthologies in Indian graphic fiction. The Pao Collective consists of heavyweights in the Indian graphic novel scene, namely Amitabh Kumar, Sarnath Banerjee, Orijit Sen, Parasmita Singh and Vishwajyoti Ghosh. All of them have accomplished something or the other in the industry, specially Orijit Sen being almost the pioneer of sorts, the one to make "River Of Stories", illustrating about social and political issues surrounding the Narmada dam controversy.
This book has 12 graphic stories made in collaboration with other artists. A few of them are nice reads like Plasmoids by Samit Basu and Orijit Sen, The Pink by Salil Chaturvedi and Priya Kurien, Print Screen by Sanjay Ghosh and Chilka by Vidyun Sabhaney and Shohei Emura. This does not mean that the other stories are bad, the others too have great ilustrations but they do not have such an impact. Altogether a good read in Indian graphics.

[Jaydeep · Rating 3 out of 5]

An eclectic anthology collecting representative work from a number of writers/artists working in the Indian graphic-novel scene today. Though quite a few of the novelists whose work is anthologised here have published individual books with major publishers like Penguin and Harper Collins, the collection very much retains an indie/alt./counterculture feel. Whiz-bang pyrotechnics usually encountered in mainstream comics directed at young-adult audiences isn't really what Pao is about. The stories are primarily meant for a relatively mature readership; themes engaged with range from black comedy, fantasy, sci-fi, satire (often acerbic), understated melancholia, to radical rereadings of history, memory, and myth. (And then there are a few that defy this sort of blithe thematic classification.)

All in all, well worth collecting a copy. Do not get the paperback edition though, mine literally came apart at the seams by the time I was two-thirds through. This despite fairly careful and sedate handling; reading primarily on a tabletop, though also for some time in my reading sanctum sanctorum, aka the loo. Unless Penguin drastically reinforces the paperback binding soon (preferably yesterday), I'd strongly recommend looking for a hardback edition, if available. (Minus one star from the rating for the binding.)

PS - The cover by Orijit Sen is mildly reminiscent of Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights triptych, though I confess I do not off-hand remember if Bosch too was an anthropomorphism aficionado.

Thanks for reading the review, and hope you enjoy the book. Cheers.

[Ushnav Shroff · Rating 5 out of 5]

The stories found within Pao are nothing short of intriguing, but more beautiful is the artwork that accompanies them. Jacob Weinstein and Lakshmi Indrasimhan have collaborated in a simple yet touching piece of work, maybe the most perfect introductory graphic short to grace an anthology, Tattoo. Special mention also has to go to stories like Plasmoids and Tito Years (my favourite of the lot, if I were hard-pressed to choose one.

The feeling that Pao evoked in me was primarily satisfactory, as the need to read and experience good art is quintessential to the need for making humanity feel again, and Pao is a good selfish step in that direction. I eagerly wait for Part 2.

[Suprio · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Preyal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the one with Kabir and Mahabharata

[Swati Daftuar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brilliant, brilliant artwork. Can't say the same for all the stories, though.