Cosplay — short for costume play — is becoming incresingly popular in Indian metros, and homegrown cosplayers are ready to take on the best from the West
Growing up in Bengaluru, Nabil Khan was probably like a lot of other children of his generation — he loved watching cartoons on TV, with the Swat Kats being his favourite. Later, he started reading all the comic books he could get his hands on: Marvel and DC titles, manga. Cosplay — dressing up as iconic characters from comic books/pop culture — seemed to Nabil like a natural extension of his interest.
So when Bengaluru had its first Comic Con back in 2012, Nabil showed up as Indiana Jones. “No one recognised me,” he says, recalling his first major cosplay attempt. “At that time, no one was aware of Cosplay, and I felt a little out of place.”
The cool reception to his costume didn’t hold Nabil back, however, and he meticulously planned his look for the next Comic Con. “I went dressed as Wolverine in Bengaluru and as RoboCop in Hyderabad, which was a big hit. Over the last two years, the concept of cosplay has really picked up.”
For this year’s Comic Con, Nabil went dressed as Dr Octopus (aka Dr Otto Octavius), the Spiderman villain who uses gigantic metallic bionic tentacles to wreak havoc in New York. The contraption took Nabil — a mechanical engineering student who aspires to a career creating props for sci-fi films — more than a month to fashion. “The most difficult part was to simplify the design and figure out how to make it work. Once that was done, the rest was mechanical work. I used about 12 different kinds of materials: Foam, Eva foam, steel pipes, brass, 600 LED lights, and 20 metres of wire. Initially I had a budget of Rs 8,000 but eventually, I ended up spending around Rs 13,000,” he says.
For his efforts — and the very realistic 12ft by10ft appendages he created — Nabil was voted the winner of the Indian Championships of Cosplay organised by Comic Con India on January 26. He will represent the country at the Annual Crown Championships of...
Cosplay at the Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo in March, and he plans to make a 12ft high and 5.5 feet wide HulkBuster suit of armour for the occasion. A far cry from the days when his Indiana Jones costume evoked not even a whisper of interest.
Nabil was pitched against nine other equally strong contenders in the Indian Championships of Cosplay. These contestants represented the best among Indian cosplay aficionados. Cosplay itself has become a common sight at events like the Comic Con. The first Comic Con in India had about 13 cosplayers. The December 2015 edition of the Mumbai Film and Comics Convention had 2,000. Step into any one of these events in one of the metros and you’re very likely to run into a Chewbacca or several Darth Vaders, a Wonder Woman or a Wolverine or two. Cosplay is picking up in India — and enthusiasts are reaping the benefits of cosplay workshops, visits by professionals from Japan, and contests like the Indian Championships, to raise their game to match international levels.
Thiruvananthapuram-based Anjali Das, a researcher, origami artist and cosplayer is among those who’re creating costumes and looks at par with those of enthusiasts overseas. So serious is this Indian Championships finalist about cosplay that she spends a lot of time experimenting with different materials to get the perfect effect. Her Facebook feed is filled with “making of” videos on her various looks, and the comments section has people writing in not only to appreciate her work, but also to quiz her on the relative merits of using one versus another material.
Anjali, who has “grown up with the DC universe”, says, “Generally, cosplayers in India work with foam, but I invested in Worbla, a kind of thermoplastic material essentially used for cosplay. It is a very versatile material and is extremely durable. Other than that, I’ve used wood and did some jugaad with an award shield and other paraphernalia (to create my look).”
Serious cosplayers begin working on their looks for an event many months in advance. Jeet Molankar, who won the best cosplayer title at the Hyderabad Comic Con spent over five months conceptualising and executing his Ghost Rider look for the event. “A lot of people don’t understand how difficult it is,” says Jeet. “I made a complete bike model to accompany my outfit. Just designing it on my computer took me four months. The comic con does not allow any metal props so everything, including the bike, had to be made using materials like foam and PVC. There were a lot of challenges like sourcing the right PVC and getting the tires right and I spent almost Rs 50,000 on it from my own pocket. But it is something I am passionate about so it was worth it.”
Jeet started cosplaying in 2014 and says he was spurred on to do better after his first attempt — going dressed as the Green Goblin to the Mumbai Film and Comics Convention — won him the top prize. Others, like Sohail Grover (the cosplay winner of the 2015 MFCC) too have been motivated similarly. Sohail had dressed up as Immortan Joe from the movie Mad Max: Fury Road for his winning attempt and tells us that he was “inspired to cosplay after seeing other people putting so much effort into their costumes”. He feels that cosplay isn’t just about copying the costume of your favourite characters. “Cosplaying is not just about the costumes, one has to do a lot of research into what can they bring to the character, that is new. For instance, when I cosplayed as Immortan Joe, Mad Max had just released a few months ago and no one had attempted the character yet. That gave me a unique edge. But that also made it a challenge because no one had done it before, to watch and learn from.”
Sohail says that initiatives like the Indian Championships of Cosplay are doing a great job of creating visibility for cosplayers, and also generating appreciation for their efforts. “Just like I got inspired by other cosplayers, new people will be inspired by us,” he says. Other cosplayers agree, and feel that more awareness about cosplaying in India might also lead to better opportunities for the cosplayers themselves. “The problem for Cosplayers in India is the lack of sponsors. Once brands start endorsing us (like they do in the West) then we can also experiment a lot more. Otherwise we have to spend our money,” says Nabil Khan, while Anjali Das feels a greater emphasis on cosplay photography is what will help take the scene to the next level in India.
Indeed, while cosplayers in India are getting better and better, there is still much ground to be covered. Jatin Varma, the founder of Comic Con India, admits that at present, it is difficult for Indian cosplayers to compete with international enthusiasts, but “it certainly isn’t impossible” he adds. “Cosplay is growing in the country and what we want to do is organise and get them all the help they need by bringing in international cosplayers to come in and give them tips and feedback,” Jatin says. “We want to be the enablers of cosplay in India.
What is Cosplay Cosplay is short for “costume play” is a performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character. This character is usually someone iconic from pop culture, with comic books, manga/anime, video games and films and TV shows being the main source of inspiration. Cosplaying is huge in Japan and spread to the West and other parts of Asia over the last couple of decades. Comic conventions and fan meet-ups are the most popular venues for cosplayers, but there are also social networks, competitions and platforms that are dedicated to cosplaying.
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