HarperCollins, Amar Chitra Katha announce joint venture

PTI, Feb 23, 2021, 4:36 PM IST

New Delhi: Amar Chitra Katha has joined hands with HarperCollins India to bring the iconic folktales of India from its comic books in a new format for younger readers.

Each book in the Amar Chitra Katha Folktales Series is adapted from the original Amar Chitra Katha comics and aims to bring the reader closer to the thoughts and traditions that make up our India’s identity, a statement by the publishers said.

”India’s rich tapestry is woven together by her stories. These tales can be from the great epics and mythology, or from the ancient history of this rich land. But sometimes the stories of the people passed down from generation to generation – told at bedtimes and celebrations, in schools and homes – are the most astounding. These are the folktales that are part of the great collective inheritance from our past generations,” it said.

The series is put together by the writers at Amar Chitra Katha and brings together some of the greatest folktales in the ACK catalogue.

Preeti Vyas, president, and CEO of Amar Chitra Katha Private Limited is excited about this first-of-its-kind partnership with HarperCollins India.

”Since our comic books are typically read by children in the 8-14 age group, we believe that these early chapter books will help us take these engaging stories to a younger age group, and open up our treasure trove of stories to a new audience,” she says.

”HarperCollins Children’s books India and Amar Chitra Katha share the same commitment to growing the reading habit among Indian children and we are confident that this series will bring many hours of joy to little Indian readers,” she adds.

Tina Narang, a publisher at HarperCollins Children’s Books, says that Amar Chitra Katha has such a strong history of publishing for children, generations have grown up reading ACK comics.

”So, we are delighted to present a first-time adaptation of these popular comics into a narrative format for young children. We look forward to a long and fruitful association with ACK and to bringing out many more collections in the months and years ahead,” she says.

Founded in 1967, Amar Chitra Katha has been a household name for generations of Indians. For decades, it has been retelling the stories of India, from the great epics, mythology, history, literature, oral folktales, and other sources, for young Indian children in the form of comics, providing a veritable route to their roots.