It’s all in the comics
A look at the four illustrators from the city who will be part of Hyderabad’s first edition of the Comic-Con Express
Meet the four participants for Hyderabad’s first edition of the Comic-Con Express scheduled to take place over September 21 and 22: Ravi Teja Govindaraju is an IITChennai graduate, Ramya Shriram works for a publishing firm, Sri Priyatham is waiting to complete his internship and receive his Fine Arts degree from JNAFAU and Aditya Chilumula, who is “just going to turn 18”.
Ravi Teja Govindaraju,
graphic designer
After going through a gruelling four years at IITChennai, Ravi realised that engineering wasn’t his cup of tea. It was in fact, designing “tees” with witty Hyderabad-centric slogans. A first timer at Comic Con, 23- year-old Ravi Teja has been a graphic designer for close to three years. “I came up with the T-shirts idea two months back. My aim is to sell souvenir-based merchandise to tourists,” says Ravi, who is originally from Nellore.
Ramya Shriram, cartoonist
Having graduated from VIT, 25-year-old Ramya Shriram would have never thought that her doodles would someday be showcased at Comic-Con Express Bengaluru and now at Hyderabad.
“Cartoons started as just a hobby and then I worked for a magazine, Helter Skelter, in Mumbai, for a year,” says Ramya, a full-time editor for a publishing firm in Hyderabad.
“I have taken part in Comic Cons twice in Bengaluru, but I am excited and nervous about this one. There’s a lot of interest among people and I am looking forward to the event,” says Ramya.
Sri Priyatham, caricaturist Of the four, Priyatham is the only one who has a degree in Fine Arts. “In India, people give more importance to artists, but not much to illustrators or cartoonists. And if you are into caricatures, people will assume that you can only find a job in newspapers. But when you go abroad, you’ll be amazed to see the kind of respect cartoonists or illustrators receive. My aim is to change such perceptions,” he says.
Aditya Chilumula, artist
The youngest of the lot is Aditya who just completed Class XII from Indus School. Having picked up drawing “maybe” from the age of five, Aditya’s large scale drawings are based on iconic moments from movies. “My grandfather was a make-up artist and I would look at his sketches. That’s where I got my inspiration from,” says Aditya, who moved back to the city in 2008 from the US.
I have taken part in Comic-Cons in Bengaluru, but I am excited and nervous about this one
RAMYA SHRIRAM