At the Comic Con, despite the evening showers, you find yourself wading through - not water, but a sea of fans. Amid the flurry of colourful wigs and costumes, speakers blare on over the buzz of excitement, drawing some fans near the stage.
The two day comic extravaganza offered a platform to celebrate undying love and passion for comics. May 1 and 2 saw comic-land transform Koramangala stadium, where Batman could keep a date with Poison Ivy, safe from her fatal kiss. Here, it is not the person's name that matters so much as the character the fan has chosen to portray: "Are you Daenerys? Will you stand with me for a picture?"
Cameras are clicking away incessantly as comic and anime fans cannot seem to get enough pictures with their favourite characters.
Many have been eagerly planning months ahead for this event. “I decided who I’d be six months ago,” says Andrew Chakravarthy, a law student, wearing a Ghost Rider outfit that he made from scratch using a motorcycle jacket.
Andrew says that he is fascinated by the superhero as he has a 'dark side but is out to do good'. “And he rides a bike. It’s every boy’s fantasy to be like him,” he says.
While some are satisfied wearing just a headdress or a mask, others passionately design their own costumes. Completely in green to go with her favourite character Poison Ivy, Jomon says she has been stitching her costume for three months. “It’s not ready yet, but I wore it anyway,” she admits.
As they shake hands and walk around clicking pictures, fans quiz each other about their costumes with a “Where did you get yours?” or “What have you used?”
“I ordered my gown from Flipkart,” says Bindu, who is dressed as Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones, holding a self-made green paper mache dragon egg. Abhay J Sinha, however, says he cannot reveal the “secret ingredients” that his Oberyn Martell costume is made of, “except, of course, the motorcycle jacket”.
As you pass through the centre, you might run across Wolver-anna, the mascot for the second edition of Bangalore Comic Con. In a blue lungi and beige tee with silver claws, he is an Indian adaptation of the Marvell Comics superhero, who is happy to speak in Kannada.
“I’ve been a fan of Wolverine for a decade now,” says Suhas, a visual effects editor. “So I thought why not Indianise him? For me, this represents an inter-mingling of culture.” Not all fans have come in a costume though. “I live very far off and I think it would have looked very funny if I came by bus dressed as a character,” says Tushar Meshram, a second year BA student. “My exams are going on. But I missed the event last year, so I had to come this time.”