Simian - part 1 & 2

by Vikram Balagopal

When Bhima chances upon an ailing monkey blocking his path in the forest, little does he realize that he is meeting his brother Hanuman, one of the greatest heroes of his time and Ram's closest ally. As the brothers settle in for a night of exchanging stories and notes, Hanuman tells a surprising tale: of the great war between Ram and Ravan, through his eyes. In the twilit world of war, things are not what they seem and this chance encounter between a warrior and a great legend will destroy a myth. Vikram Balagopal’s black-and-white, gritty re-imagining of the Ramayana brings to life the scars - physical, moral and spiritual - borne by Hanuman, for his is a life full of questions that cut and gnaw at him, questions that have no answers unless history itself is replayed. Raw and Inventive, Simian is a lookback by one of the most enigmatic characters in mythology and literature.

Genres: Graphic Novels

260 pages, Paperback

First published May 26, 2014

About the author

Vikram Balagopal is the author of the award-winning graphic novel Simian. Following his training at the New York Film Academy (New York), he has worked in India with various film-makers, and his screenplay was chosen for Mira Nair’s Maisha Screenwriter’s Lab. He is a published poet, illustrator and cartoonist in magazines. His first book, Simian, was published in India in 2014 (HarperCollins Publishers India). Savage Blue, a fantasy novel published in India in 2016 (HarperCollins Publishers India), is his second book. He lives in New Delhi.

Reviews

[Vinayak Joshi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not so great. Illustrations can't be made out because they are mostly black. Maybe this was meant to be a full color book but due to cost considerations was converted into a B&W one. It is a struggle to understand the graphics. Story is that of the Ramayana with a few unheard of points of views.

[Sridhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll be honest, I decided to buy the book after being intrigued by the amazing cover art. I hardly read the first line of the synopsis and jumped to purchase the book , thinking this was a story about Bheema from Mahabharatam.

So what did I feel when I opened the first page ? Utter disappointment. The pages were in black & white, the art was weird & the story had nothing to do with Bheema, but just another re-telling of Ramayana.

However, I continued reading (as I had already bought it). Then everything changed, (more like, came in to perspective) the art was weird but in a good way. There were a few frames that literally gave me goosebumps.

The more I observed, the more I realized that "THIS IS HOW THE CHARACTERS WOULD LOOK LIKE, not the way they looked in those old calendars"

Moving on, the story maybe a kind of re-telling of ramayanam, but it has so much more to it. Reading this made me go through so many emotions, which I hardly felt when listening to the old "all black & white" narration.

THE DRAWBACK is that one might need to know a bit of the original tale to experience the full impact of this one. (Or they could just wiki it, I guess)

But having said that, I feel this is the best graphic novel on Indian Mythology so far.

VERDICT : Worth the price & more !!

[Kartik Mani · Rating 5 out of 5]

The excellent story teller in Vikram Balagopal brought to life the story that I had heard as a kid growing up. This book allowed me to fill in the gaps of a story that had gotten pushed into the inaccessible part of my mind in the process of growing up.

This a must read for those who spent their impressionable part of their life with grandparents. Thank you Vikram Balagopal.

[Anuradha Goyal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detailed review here http://www.anureviews.com/simian-by-v...

[Kumar Shanu · Rating 4 out of 5]

really its a impressive story! very thrilling experience with the stuff!

[Dhaval · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read and beautiful graphics. Eagerly waiting for next parts.