The Japan Foundation has opened Delhi to the hidden world of anime from that part of the globe, with their exclusive one-of-a-kind Manga Café. Ektaa Malik pays a visit
They trace their origin to pre-historic times. They later conformed to the style developed in the archipelago nation of Japan. The latter part of the 19th century witnessed the development of the current form, which is now an international cult phenomenon.
Manga comics became collector items long ago. India was still to be part of the revolution.
While Otaku round the world grew in number. (‘Otaku’ denote obsessive fans of anime and Manga), India was waking up to the call. Now the Otaku have a watering hole in Delhi.
A Manga café created at The Japan Foundation.
“We would get repeated requests in the library for Manga comics over the years. But we only had ones in Japanese. It’s tough to get English ones in India. Then this year we decided to get a selection of English Manga and put them together for the café,” said Sangam Kumari, librarian at the Foundation.
The Manga Café has about 1000 books.
The café area features costumes of famous Manga characters. Small figurines are displayed in glass cases. The café is still in infancy. But demand is huge. “We opened in April, after displaying books at Delhi Book Fair. People went crazy. The art form is so rich. The problems one has to go through to get access to them, make them even more popular,” explained Sangam.
She has been with The Foundation for five years. And was barraged with requests for Mangas in English. “The demand was there. But The Manga Café has most popular Mangas stocked here. There is Naruto, a series written on the adolescent Ninja, who always wanted recognition. Then there is One Piece, about Monkey Duffy, a 17-year-old, whose body takes over qualities of rubber. After he ate a fruit with supernatural qualities. Black Butler is the serialisation of antics by Sebastian, a demon of sorts, contracted to serve his 12-year-old master.
“Black Butler is the current rage. Its hugely popular,” shared Sangam.
Manga might be the Japanese counterparts of comics, but don’t just stick to things targeted at kids. “Manga is on subjects as diverse as economics, sociology and culture. Even World War II has been written upon in the Manga format. So has history and Buddhism,” added Sangam.
The café has subscriptions of two weekly Manga journals — the Shonen Magazine and Shonen Jump.
These journals are the lifeline of Manga fans across the world, keeping them updated.
The age group of 10-20 is the biggest consumer of these Manga at the cafe.
The Foundation plans to expand soon. “Now we know the concept is hugely popular, we will bring more Manga and other things related to it,” concluded Sangam. The café is open to members of the Japan Foundation library. But it’s relatively easy to join. One only needs a photo ID card and two photographs. The Manga Cafe is open between Tuesdays to Saturdays, from 11am-6pm.
They trace their origin to pre-historic times. They later conformed to the style developed in the archipelago nation of Japan. The latter part of the 19th century witnessed the development of the current form, which is now an international cult phenomenon.
Manga comics became collector items long ago. India was still to be part of the revolution.
While Otaku round the world grew in number. (‘Otaku’ denote obsessive fans of anime and Manga), India was waking up to the call. Now the Otaku have a watering hole in Delhi.
A Manga café created at The Japan Foundation.
“We would get repeated requests in the library for Manga comics over the years. But we only had ones in Japanese. It’s tough to get English ones in India. Then this year we decided to get a selection of English Manga and put them together for the café,” said Sangam Kumari, librarian at the Foundation.
The Manga Café has about 1000 books.
The café area features costumes of famous Manga characters. Small figurines are displayed in glass cases. The café is still in infancy. But demand is huge. “We opened in April, after displaying books at Delhi Book Fair. People went crazy. The art form is so rich. The problems one has to go through to get access to them, make them even more popular,” explained Sangam.
She has been with The Foundation for five years. And was barraged with requests for Mangas in English. “The demand was there. But The Manga Café has most popular Mangas stocked here. There is Naruto, a series written on the adolescent Ninja, who always wanted recognition. Then there is One Piece, about Monkey Duffy, a 17-year-old, whose body takes over qualities of rubber. After he ate a fruit with supernatural qualities. Black Butler is the serialisation of antics by Sebastian, a demon of sorts, contracted to serve his 12-year-old master.
“Black Butler is the current rage. Its hugely popular,” shared Sangam.
Manga might be the Japanese counterparts of comics, but don’t just stick to things targeted at kids. “Manga is on subjects as diverse as economics, sociology and culture. Even World War II has been written upon in the Manga format. So has history and Buddhism,” added Sangam.
The café has subscriptions of two weekly Manga journals — the Shonen Magazine and Shonen Jump.
These journals are the lifeline of Manga fans across the world, keeping them updated.
The age group of 10-20 is the biggest consumer of these Manga at the cafe.
The Foundation plans to expand soon. “Now we know the concept is hugely popular, we will bring more Manga and other things related to it,” concluded Sangam. The café is open to members of the Japan Foundation library. But it’s relatively easy to join. One only needs a photo ID card and two photographs. The Manga Cafe is open between Tuesdays to Saturdays, from 11am-6pm.
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