Karna,the unsung hero of the Mahabharata,features in an American comic series He is the doomed warrior of Indian mythology royal born,lowly bred but with a fierce courage that challenged the might of Arjuna. Now,Karna the epic hero from Mahabharata,joins forces with superheroes from around the world in an American comic series called War of the Independents. War of the Independents is a venture that brings together more than 200 characters from Indie comics from across the world. It includes popular icons like Jeff Smiths cult hero Fone Bone and Mark Ellis The New Justice Machine as well as The Phantom,Zorro,Fist of Justice and Usagi Yojimbo. There are heroes from Turkey,Chile,Australia,Canada and Russia, says David Ryan,the 45-year-old illustrator behind the concept. Karnas first appearance in the series will be in issue number three with all of the supermen to fight a foe incredibly powerful, he adds. The series was launched in the US earlier this month. Ryan adds that he is a mythology buff who loved reading about the various epic heroes of the Mahabharata while researching on Karnas character. Issue three of the comic series is expected to hit the shelves in a month or two. But this is not the first time he has incorporated an Indian character in his comics. I have another mythical character called Purusha in my comic called Penance which came out in 2000, says Ryan. Ryan zeroed in on Karna after a chance meeting with Vimanika Comics head honcho Karan Vir Arora on a social networking site. Karna was the hero of our first comic book,The Sixth,launched in 2008. Another book called The Legend of Karna is in the pipeline, says Arora. When I heard of the War of the Independents,I saw in it an opportunity to place Karna on the same platform as other superheroes. It was also a chance to gauge his global appeal, he adds. Unlike the character played by Pankaj Dheer in the iconic television series,Vimanikas Karna is around 10 feet tall with long hair. After reading the epic and various interpretations of scholars,we realised that a royal blood kshatriya would be between seven feet to 10 feet tall. We also figured that a general in the army of a powerful prince like Duryodhana would constantly be at war,hence his hair would be brownish,the colour of the earth, says Arora. Moreover,Karna was born wearing a divine armour,which,in The Sixth,appears like an organic tattoo in his childhood. As he grows,the armour,exposed to the sun and the elements,acquires its metallic nature, he adds. War of the Independents will retain Vimanikas interpretation of Karna in its entirety. Ryan adds that the first two issues of War of the Independents have received a warm response in the US,even as Arora states that talks are on to launch the issue featuring Karna,in India.
