A special issue that gives a new direction to the story of Nagraj
‘Snake Park’ was published by Raj Comics in 1996 and is not just a simple action special issue in the history of Indian comics, but an important milestone in explaining the entire character of Nagraj and his physiology afresh. Nagraj, created by Parashuram Sharma in the late 1980s, was primarily portrayed as a shapeshifting serpent-man with magical and hypnotic powers. But in the 1990s, when writer and illustrator Anupam Sinha took over responsibility for the character, he brought him out of the realm of superstition and magic and combined his story with scientific imagination (sci-fi) and a strong mythological foundation.
‘Snake Park’ marks the turning point where, for the first time, the tiny snakes flowing inside Nagraj’s body were explained through microscopic observation and medical examination. This special issue also lays the emotional foundation for Nagraj’s deep love for Princess Visarpi of Nagdweep. From a reviewer’s point of view, this issue offers a very interesting opportunity to understand the many layers of the story, its excellent illustrations and some shortcomings in its narrative structure.
Brief story: From the earthworm snake in the metropolis to the confrontation over Nagdweep
To understand the review, it is important to know the story briefly. The story begins at Nagraj’s tightly guarded bungalow in the metropolis, where Nagraj, upset over the disappearance of Dada Vedacharya, is searching for clues, while Nagdweep’s Princess Visarpi secretly enters the bungalow, evading its security arrangements. When Visarpi learns that Nagraj is going to inaugurate the snake venom research center ‘Snake Park’ in the metropolis the next day, she goes there. During the inauguration, a man hypnotized by Nagraj’s old enemy Professor Nagmani bites Nagraj, and then a four-legged, half-machine, half-dragon ‘earthworm snake’ attacks him.
In a fierce battle, Nagraj destroys the earthworm snake’s spine and its tongue, which detects its surroundings, but a strike from its flailing tail to Nagraj’s temple causes his venom gland to go out of control. A fearless young man named Kushal risks his life and seals Nagraj’s mouth with surgical tape, allowing Dr. Karunakaran to give him a muscle-relaxing injection.
After this, Dr. Karunakaran performs a full CT scan and a blood test on Nagraj. Meanwhile, on the night of Shivratri, when all of Nagraj’s snakes come out to worship the Shivalinga in a deserted temple, the killer ‘Kantakkaya’, wearing spiked armor supplied by Nagmani, attacks the unarmed Nagraj. Nagraj kills Kantakkaya with the help of a trident.
In the final twist, Nagmani steals Nagraj’s medical file kept in the lab. Visarpi and Nagraj fight back, but then Kalkoot, the warrior from Nagdweep, appears and forcibly takes Visarpi back to Nagdweep. The story ends in Nagdweep, where Visarpi has accepted Nagraj as her everything in her heart.
Writing and Screenplay: Anupam Sinha’s combination of science and mythology
Anupam Sinha has presented a very courageous and thoughtful experiment in the writing of this comic. He made the most basic questions that arose in the reader’s mind the central premise of the story: How do snakes come out of Nagraj’s body? How do they heal bullet wounds? And why do snakes come out only from his hands and chest, and not from his face?
The conversation in the lab between Dr. Karunakaran and Nagraj is perhaps one of the best scenes in Indian comics for explaining a mystery in detail. Explanations such as extremely small snakes swimming in place of white blood cells (WBCs), their numbers increasing in the presence of venom and their absence from the blood vessels of the face make the scientific aspects of the entire comic seem quite convincing.
Along with this, the author has created a balance between science and mythological beliefs by combining the ancient Shiva worship of Nagdweep, the conspiracy of Vishandhar and the yogic powers of Kaaldoot, demonstrating Anupam Sinha’s particular skill in presenting such elements together.
But one of the weaknesses of the screenplay is that it has too many little stories packed together, which causes the tension of the main story to spread in many directions.
Illustrations and visuals: The collaboration between Vitthal Kamle and Anupam Sinha
From the point of view of illustration, the period around 1996 is considered to be the best phase of Anupam Sinha’s career. His pencil drawings show a highly developed understanding of muscle tension, the anatomy of the characters and the cinematic staging of scenes. The strange design of the earthworm snake—which combines iron hydraulic joints, cables and realistic snake-like skin—is a great example of bringing an imaginary organism to life.
In this comic, Vitthal Kamle’s inking has given a distinctive sharpness and depth to the lines of the illustrations created by Anupam Sinha.
Especially in the Shiva temple, the thousands of snakes emerging from Nagraj’s wrists and coiling around the Shivalinga, along with the shine of Kantakkaya’s thorny armor, have been highlighted by Kamle with very fine and strong lines.
The composition of the panels conveys a strong sense of movement; when Nagraj jumps into the air and slams the earthworm snake down, the reader gets a direct sense of that fast and forceful movement.
However, in some conversational scenes, the characters’ faces seem to be repeatedly drawn from the same angle, making the visual presentation of these scenes slightly less varied.
Beauty of colors and printing
Sunil Pandey’s use of colors gives depth to this special issue and effectively enhances the atmosphere of every scene. The green color that has become Nagraj’s identity, Visarpi’s traditional red and blue clothes and the cool, technical blue atmosphere of the laboratory have been rendered very thoughtfully.
Especially after the venom is released, the contrast between the yellow-green poisonous clouds spreading through the air and the purple-black colors used in the nighttime scenes at the Shiva temple is visually captivating.
The lettering is clean, clear and very well executed. The sound effects in action scenes—such as snapping, pounding and crackling—are rendered in slanted, bold letters aligned with the direction of the action, making the pace of events feel faster while reading the comic.
This issue is considered one of Raj Comics’ best-printed special issues, taking into account the newsprint interiors and early glossy covers used during that period.
Imbalance in the portrayal of characters: Overlooked characters and incomplete development
From a reviewer’s perspective, some of the main characters in this comic have not been given enough scope to fulfill their roles. Bharti—who is Nagraj’s main ally and the head of Green TV—initially tries to stop Visarpi like a brave warrior in the security room, but then disappears completely from the rest of the story.
The same is the case with Dr. Karunakaran, who is shown as such a great researcher, but in the end, when Nagmani enters his lab, he is reduced to a helpless spectator and has no meaningful impact of his own on the events.
By contrast, Visarpi’s character is portrayed with immense beauty, mystery and dignity; her unrequited, unspoken love for Nagraj and the conflict in her mind between her feelings and the rules of Nagdweep form the most emotional aspect of the story.
The shortcomings of the story and its hurried final section
The biggest shortcoming of the script of ‘Snake Park’ is that it shows Nagraj repeatedly helpless and defeated within a very short period of time. First, he is incapacitated by the earthworm snake’s tail, then he is injured by spikes in the Shiva temple, and finally, he is weakened and knocked down by a single ray from Kalkoot. A major superhero being rendered helpless so many times in a single issue weakens his powerful image a little.
Moreover, the final part of the story (the climax) is very confusing and rushed. Nagmani’s plot inside the lab, Visarpi’s arrival and the sudden appearance of Kalkoot’s divine trident, all occurring around the same time, make it difficult for the reader to follow so many events at once.
Nagmani’s easy escape with that secret medical file and Nagraj’s inability to take immediate action in response seem to be an overly convenient and weak method chosen to take the story forward.
Final review and conclusions
Despite these few shortcomings related to logic and editing, ‘Snake Park’ is a memorable and must-read work from the golden era of Raj Comics. It also expanded Nagraj’s identity beyond that of just a comic book character into a larger world involving the intriguing secrets of his body and his deep emotions.
Anupam Sinha’s forward-thinking writing, Vitthal Kamle’s accomplished inking and the beginning of Visarpi and Nagraj’s memorable love story make this special issue a priceless part of every comics lover’s collection. This issue is a clear example of the fact that when science and human emotions are combined with imagination in comics, they take the form of literature that is remembered for a long time.
Original information and creative team: Raj Comics special issue (Nagraj, 1996)
Story and illustrations: Anupam Sinha
Inking: Vitthal Kamle
Lettering and colors: Sunil Pandey
Editor: Manish Gupta
Presentation: Sanjay Gupta
Main characters: Nagraj, Visarpi, Professor Nagmani, Dr. Karunakaran, Bharti, Kantakkaya
