Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land

Last updated

Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land (sometimes shortened as CWTL) is an Indian webcomic series by an anonymous writer and illustrator duo. The webcomic launched in 2010 and is named after a Bengali saying similar to "being caught between the devil and the deep blue sea." It uses visual metaphors in order to communicate ideas related to the Indian social and political system, as well as the "absurdity of modern life." A book printing the webcomic was released in 2015.

Contents

Content

Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land often takes the form of satirical cartoon, taking critical shots to the Indian political system and calling out stereotypes and social injustice. The webcomic also points at "the sheer absurdity of modern life," using visual metaphors to communicate ideas, [1] such as a television set to represent the government and big media. [2] CWTL comments on subjects such as the 2012 Delhi gang rape, the 2014 Commonwealth Games controversies, and the hanging of Afzal Guru. Other strips are less directly tied to current events, such as one about a boy dreaming up excuses to get out of doing homework. CWTL features a few recurring characters, none of which are named and all are presented as "middle-class hypocrites" complaining about corruption while being completely materialistic themselves. Rakesh Khanna of the Deccan Chronicle described the webcomic as "sharply focused hopelessness." [3]

Development

The webcomic Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land was launched in 2010 by a team of one writer and one artist, who decided to stay anonymous simply in order to receive real feedback, rather than to hear positive responses from family and friends. The webcomic is named after a Bengali saying similar to the idiom "between the devil and the deep blue sea." [4] [5] CWTL started out as "an episodic rant" and "a trial run" [6] so that its creators could practice their skills and test out their style. They decided to continue the webcomic indefinitely when, in late 2010 or early 2011, they realized they had readers who would wait for their cartoons every Monday morning. [4]

The creators of CWTL noted among their artistic influences the caricatures of Gaganendranath Tagore, as well as the works of William Blake, René Magritte and Henri Rousseau. As for the writing, the duo pointed at various science fiction writers such as Robert Heinlein and Lewis Padgett, as well as Japanese horror, be it in the form of literature, cinema, or manga. The team noted that many of the works they've read, looked at, and have listened to creep in organically and unconsciously in their work. [4]

Over time, the illustrations in CWTL have become more abstract as its creators spend more time talking about "specific issues." [4] Past episodes of CWTL leading up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections have been compiled into a comic book, which was released by HarperCollins India [7] in 2015. In the book, a short explanatory blurb has been added to every strip in order to give context to the topic at hand. [3] [8]

Reception

Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land has appeared on and been cited by Boing Boing , [9] Outlook, [10] Daily News and Analysis, [11] ESPNcricinfo, [12] the Forbidden Planet blog, [13] Scroll.in [14] and others. The print collection received positive reviews in major publications including The Hindu Business Line, [8] Mid-Day , [15] Frontline, [16] Deccan Chronicle , [17] Hindustan Times , Loksatta [18] and The Sunday Guardian . [19]

Related Research Articles

Webcomics are comics published on the internet, such as on a website or a mobile app. While many webcomics are published exclusively online, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bannerghatta National Park</span> National park in Karnataka, India

Bannerghatta National Park is a national park in India, located near Bangalore, Karnataka. It was founded in 1970 and declared as a national park in 1974. In 2002, a small portion of the park became a zoological garden, the Bannerghatta Biological Park.

Manhua are Chinese-language comics produced in Greater China. Chinese comics and narrated illustrations have existed in China throughout its history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anant Nag</span> Indian actor, politician (born 1948)

Anant Nagarkatte is an Indian actor whose predominant contribution has been in Kannada cinema. He has acted in over 300 films which include over 200 Kannada films as well as Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Malayalam and English films. He has featured in theatre plays, parallel cinema and television shows.

The history of comics has followed different paths in different parts of the world. It can be traced back to early precursors such as Trajan's Column, in Rome, Egyptian hieroglyphs and the Bayeux Tapestry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raashii Khanna</span> Indian actress (born 1990)

Raashii Khanna is an Indian actress who works predominantly in Telugu and Tamil films. She made her acting debut in a supporting role with the Hindi film Madras Cafe (2013) and subsequently had starring roles in the Telugu film Oohalu Gusagusalade (2014), Tamil film Imaikkaa Nodigal (2018) and Malayalam film Villain (2017).

<i>Bengal Tiger</i> (2015 film) 2015 film by Sampath Nandi

Bengal Tiger is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film written and directed by Sampath Nandi. It was produced by K. K. Radhamohan's Sri Satya Sai Arts and features Ravi Teja, Tamannaah Bhatia, and Raashii Khanna. Boman Irani, Nassar, Nagineedu, Rao Ramesh, and Sayaji Shinde play supporting roles. The music was composed by Nandi's protégé, Bheems Ceciroleo. Soundararajan handled the cinematography and Gautham Raju was the editor.

Webcomics have grown in popularity in India since the early 2000s. Early webcomics created by Indian people were written and illustrated by people abroad and focused primarily on the differences in culture the creators experienced. Later webcomics put a strong emphasis on social and political issues present in the country, usually from a liberal perspective. Webcomics can reach large audiences in India when shared through social media.

<i>The Vanished Path</i>

The Vanished Path: A Graphic Travelogue is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Bharath Murthy, and published in March, 2015, by HarperCollins Publishers India. It is Bharath's first book-length comic.

Sanitary Panels is an Indian webcomic by artist Rachita Taneja. Taking a distinct feminist angle, Sanitary Panels comments upon social justice topics ranging from discrimination to victim blaming. Taneja started her webcomic on Facebook in June 2014 and has since accumulated over 150,000 followers across social media platforms.

<i>Ondu Motteya Kathe</i> 2017 Kannada film directed by Raj B. Shetty

Ondu Motteya Kathe is a 2017 Kannada-language romantic comedy film written and directed by debutant Raj B. Shetty who also appears in the lead role, along with Usha Bhandary, Shailashree, Prakash Tuminadu, Amrutha Naik, Shreya Anchan, Vj Vineeth, Rahul Amin, Deepak Rai Panaje and Ramdas playing supporting roles. The movie was released on 7 July 2017 to positive reviews. The Hindu called it the "Kannada film of the year". The film won the Filmfare Award for Best Film – Kannada. The budget of the film was estimated to be at 30 lakhs INR and the movie was a commercial success by collecting 2.5 crores

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rakesh Shukla (animal welfare activist)</span> Indian entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and animal welfare activist

Rakesh Shukla is an Indian entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and animal welfare activist. He runs a home in Bangalore for over 700 rescued dogs.

<i>The Adivasi Will Not Dance: Stories</i>

The Adivasi Will Not Dance: Stories is a collection of short stories. The second book by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar, it was nominated for The Hindu Literary Prize in 2016 and included by Frontline (magazine) in August 2022 in a list of 25 books “that light up the path to understanding post-Independence Indian literature.” As of April 2021, this book has been translated into Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Gujarati, and Bengali, while the Malayalam and Austrian German translations are forthcoming.

Brown Paperbag is a slice of life webcomic by Mumbaikar cartoonist Sailesh Gopalan that began in June 2016.

<i>Gandhi and Philosophy: On Theological Anti-politics</i> Book by Divya Dwivedi and Shaj Mohan

Gandhi and Philosophy: On Theological Anti-politics is a book written by philosophers Shaj Mohan and Divya Dwivedi. It was published by Bloomsbury Academic, UK. The book is based on analysis of Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy and has received a positive reception.

<i>Rajesh Khanna: The Untold Story of Indias First Superstar</i> 2014 Indian biographical book by Yasser Usman

Rajesh Khanna: The Untold Story of India's First Superstar is a 2014 Indian biographical book written by Yasser Usman and is about the Indian film actor and politician Rajesh Khanna. The book describes Khanna's birth in Amritsar during the partition of India in 1942, his 46-year-long acting and political career, his well-publicized marriage to the actor Dimple Kapadia, with whom he had daughters Twinkle and Rinke, and his death in 2012.

Kadak Collective is a collaborative group of female artists from South Asia, who work on graphic art projects, including zines, publications, and other forms of story-telling. Its members include filmmaker and webcomic creator Aarthi Parthasarthy, comic artist and illustrator Kaveri Gopalakrishnan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shen (cartoonist)</span> Cartoonist, creator of Owl Turd, Shen Comix, and Bluechair

Shen is the pen name of cartoonist Andrew Tsyaston, the creator of the comic series Owlturd, Shen Comix, and Bluechair, and the co-creator of Live With Yourself. Shen Comix has 2 million followers on Instagram while Bluechair has 1.2 million subscribers on Webtoon.

<i>The Education of Yuri</i> 2022 book by Jerry Pinto

The Education of Yuri is a book by Jerry Pinto. It was published in 2022 by Speaking Tiger Books.

References

  1. ↑ Bangeera, Aneesha (2016-03-20). "The new online avatar of today's comics". The Hindu .
  2. ↑ Sharma, Sanjukta (June 12, 2015). "The Future Of Political Cartoons". www.livemint.com. Archived from the original on 2015-06-16.
  3. 1 2 Khanna, Rakesh (2015-12-08). "Book review 'Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land': It's difficult to stay positive". Deccan Chronicle .
  4. 1 2 3 4 Anasuya, Shreya Ila (2015-07-05). "'Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land': We are not deeply entrenched in the progressive side of the scale". Scroll.in.
  5. ↑ Prabhu, Maya (September 28, 2015). "Preaching to the converted". Helter Skelter.
  6. ↑ Dundoo, Sangeetha (August 24, 2015). "Webcomics do the talking". www.thehindu.com.
  7. ↑ Gopal, Vivek (October 25, 2015). "Crocodile In Water, Tiger On Land: An Excerpt". The Caravan .
  8. 1 2 Unudurti, Jaideep (2016-01-01). "India today, in doodles". The Hindu Business Line .
  9. ↑ Doctorow, Cory (May 14, 2012). "India's net-censorship law - webcomic edition". boingboing.net.
  10. ↑ "As The Ol' Saw Goes". www.outlookindia.com. April 8, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Feet Up" (PDF). June 26, 2011.
  12. ↑ "This is not about Sachin, is it?". ESPNcricinfo. July 7, 2014.
  13. ↑ Gordon, Joe (May 16, 2012). "INDIA'S WEB CENSORSHIP LAWS IN COMICS FORM". Forbidden Planet. Archived from the original on November 28, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Cartoon: How to get ahead in life without passing board exam chits from a window". scroll.in. May 25, 2015.
  15. ↑ Vora, Dhara (September 30, 2015). "Where would you rather be?". Mid-Day .
  16. ↑ Chattopadhyay, Suhrid Sankar (August 21, 2015). "Humour Like A Whip". www.frontline.in.
  17. ↑ Khanna, Rakesh (Feb 23, 2016). "Book review 'Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land ': It's difficult to stay positive". Deccan Chronicle.
  18. ↑ Pawar, Ratnakar (October 31, 2015). "स्वतसकट सगळे." Loksatta (in Marathi).
  19. ↑ Jha, Aditya Mani (October 3, 2015). "When the satirical crocodile smells blood, be afraid". The Sunday Guardian.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.