Global Strip

That is when Strip Tease came into existence. An e-magazine divided into several sections including columns — such as the “tease of the month”,reviews and fan art focussed on comics and graphic novels. Biswas says the idea took form in the course of discussions with members of communities dedicated to comic books on social networking sites. “This is a zero-budget magazine. We all have jobs,but at the end of the day,our love for comics brings us together. And that is exactly how we work,” says Biswas. The magazine is now three months and three issues old.

Apart from covering mainstream comics,Strip Tease also focuses on what is happening in other countries. “We covered the world of African graphic novels in our last issue,and wrote about a superbly interesting graphic novel titled Ma,by Mark McKeown. He is one of the most prominent names in the world of African comics,” says Biswas. Adapted from an African folklore,Ma is the first in a three-part trilogy — an epic African tale of how everything as humans know it,came to be.

The main contributors for Strip Tease are from Pune,Chennai,Mumbai,Kolkata,Hyderabad,Bangalore and the UK. Giving details about the team,Biswas describes herself as “the brain”,Hyderabad-based Ved Antani as “the brawn” and Bangalore-based Karn Kaul — who is also the designer of the clean and simple website — as “the spine”. “We have contributors from abroad as well. David Thatcher,who initiated our articles about web comics,is a game tester and musician based in the UK. Sumanas Sarma,our Manga columnist,is an engineer,also based in the UK,” says Biswas. Jaideep Khare and Debanuj Chakrabarti from Pune,are also an integral part of the team,she adds.

Interestingly,most of the members have not met each other in real life,and only coordinate through the internet. “I have met all of these people virtually but met only Debanuj,Jaideep and Karn in person,and we all turned out to be great friends,” says Biswas.

So what’s next on the agenda? “We are hoping to get more visibility and connecting with more comic enthusiasts. For that,we think social networks are the best option. We are also set to join forces with One Big Doodle,a Facebook page that is all about doodling,in a new venture titled,Ramble Inc,” says Biswas,adding,“Some day,we would like to print magazines as well.”