Nagraj vs Naruto: Indian comics reboot as Gen Z turns to anime, manga

Millennials’ childhood favourite characters from Diamond Comics, Raj Comics, Amar Chitra Katha, and Tinkle, among others, may soon be seen taking selfies, using artificial intelligence (AI), and discussing mental health to connect with Gen Z and Gen Alpha, who have gravitated towards Japanese anime and manga.

The new playbook is to embrace modernity without losing the nostalgic essence of the 1980s and ’90s, appealing to millions of original fans who are now willing to pay a premium. "Millennials who once bought books for ₹10 are now spending up to ₹1,000 on special editions, and an average of ₹200-300 on the latest releases," said Faisal Mohammad, founder of Garbage Bin Studios.

“We shouldn’t see manga as a threat. We can’t compete with its massive global reach. Instead, we should understand why it works so well and learn from its success in India to improve our own storytelling," said the comic illustrator and creator, who is collaborating with Prans, the publisher of the Indian comic book series Chacha Chaudhary, to adapt the eponymous character.

“We aim to keep our intellectual properties (IPs) evergreen by staying true to their original flavour while modernizing the packaging of content," said Saraansh Pran, head of studio at Prans and grandson of legendary cartoonist Pran, behind iconic characters like Chacha Chaudhary, Saboo, Billoo, and Pinki. They rolled out the new version of Chacha Chaudhary at Comic Con Delhi on 7 December.

ACK Media Direct Ltd, the publisher of Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle comics, is also upgrading to regain the stardom it once had in the minds of millennials.

“To stay relevant across generations, we’re reworking our old IPs while creating new ones for younger audiences. For instance, we’re developing stories about a young girl in a wheelchair going on adventures, a trio of high-spending teenage girls raised by a cost-conscious father, and an adventure series set in a modern international school—all relatable themes for today’s youth," said Savio Mascarenhas, group art director at ACK Media.

Mascarenhas, who joined Tinkle in 1994 and is best known for Suppandi and Shikari Shambu, said the publisher is now expanding its iconic characters beyond print. Suppandi is currently being animated by Zebu Animation Studios, ACK has another animation project with Applause Entertainment by Aditya Birla Group, and Shikari Shambu already has short animated videos on the online video-sharing platform YouTube. More adaptations are in the pipeline, he added.

Meanwhile, Raj Comics, the publishing house behind iconic Indian superheroes like Nagraj, Super Commando Dhruva, Doga, and Parmanu, has launched a Gen Z-focused label, Alpha Comics, and has made all its classic titles available digitally to broaden reach.

Gen Z is “compelled" to read manga because, despite India’s rich comic legacy, readers lack access to high-quality, up-to-date content that suits their tastes, Sanjay Gupta, co-founder of Raj Comics, told Mint.

How they lost the plot

Demand for Japanese manga and anime in the country is booming, driven by a young, mobile-first audience that now treats global franchises as part of everyday pop culture, according to Raúl González Bernal, vice president of regional marketing at Crunchyroll, one of the world’s largest anime streaming platforms.

“Localization has been key—Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu dubs account for a significant share of our viewership and have helped anime move firmly into the mainstream. We’re also seeing early signs of a shift toward digital manga consumption, in line with global trends," he added.

This surge in popularity isn’t limited to streaming platforms—it is also clearly visible in bookstores across the country.

Mayi Gowda, who runs Bengaluru’s iconic Blossom Book House, said manga now accounts for nearly 70-80% of comics sales, far outpacing Indian titles. “Demand has surged because many manga series come with OTT (over-the-top content platforms) tie-ins—once a show releases on Netflix, sales pick up immediately."

Blossom, which has one of the largest manga collections in the country, has even adjusted stocking patterns to keep up with the trend.

The trend has even crossed over into apparel, with youth fashion brands like Bewakoof and The Souled Store seeing rising demand for anime and manga-inspired designs, further embedding these characters in everyday youth culture.

“Pop culture stays relevant because it keeps evolving. If one character stops trending, a new show or storyline takes over—that’s the beauty of this ecosystem," said Vedang Patel, co-founder of The Souled Store, adding that the brand’s community-driven “drop culture" keeps fans constantly engaged.

Quick-commerce platforms, such as Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart, are also fueling the craze by delivering manga comics within 10-15 minutes, making impulse discovery and binge-reading far easier for young readers.

E-mails sent to Bewakoof, Swiggy Instamart, and Blinkit remained unanswered until publication.

Improving their drip

The anime and manga craze is not the first time Indian artists have felt pressure from global influences targeting Indian youth, said ACK's Mascarenhas. "In the late ’90s, when we were creating fantasy stories like Janoo and Wooly Woo at Tinkle, we faced the same thing with Harry Potter. Anime is a competitor that won’t go away. The only way for a comic to survive is to catch the pulse of readers and keep evolving."

He said the storytelling itself has shifted to reflect how children speak and what they care about today. Themes such as mental health, inclusivity, and gender equality are increasingly woven into scripts, along with contemporary slang. Digital versions have also expanded ACK’s reach globally, although print still remains dominant. “During the pandemic, a month of free digital access drove huge demand, but even now 60% of our audience prefers print," he said.

A lot of demand is being driven by millennials who want to pass their childhood favourites to their kids, prompting ACK to refresh older IPs while building new ones for Gen Z, added Mascarenhas.

The revamped Ina, Mina, Myna, Mo features four spirited sisters constantly outsmarting their penny-pinching father, while Banku’s BHAI follows a boy and four fearless homemakers solving problems across a fictional Mumbai. Newer characters like WingStar—a ten-year-old superhero from the North-East—reflect a deliberate push for more diverse and contemporary heroes. “Tinkle believes in staying forever young—the times are changing, and so must we," he said.

The publisher reported a revenue of ₹32 crore in 2024-25, lower than 2023-34's ₹36.4 crore. Its net loss widened from ₹0.3 crore to ₹1 crore.

Raj Comics' Gupta also pointed to efforts to formalize the sector, noting that bodies like the Indian Comics Association are working to position comics as part of India’s orange economy, or creative economy, and integrate them more firmly within the AVGC (animation, visual effects, gaming, comics) ecosystem, highlighted at the inaugural WAVES summit in Mumbai in May 2025.

India’s animation market is expected to grow from $2.4 billion in 2024 to over $14 billion by 2030, driven by digital consumption and homegrown IP expansion—a shift that is pushing more comic publishers to build animation-ready universes, according to a 15 September report by India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), a government-backed trust promoting the 'Made in India' brand globally.

Meanwhile, new creators are finding a balance between nostalgia and irrelevance. A 2021 digital ad for fintech firm Cred, featuring Chacha Chaudhary and Suppandi, created by comic studio Bakarmax, went viral for tapping into millennial childhood memories.

Sumit Kumar, Bakarmax’s founder, said the brand’s absurd, slightly “naughty" humour resonates with Gen Z, who prefer unfiltered storytelling. “The biggest difference between ’90s comics and today’s," Kumar said, “is that new creators aren’t trying to appeal to everyone. We make what we enjoy, and it naturally finds its own niche audience."