Nagraj: Difference between revisions – Wikipedia
Raj Comics Superhero Character
Comics character
| Nagraj | |
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| Publisher | Raj Comics |
| First appearance | Nagraj GENL #14 (release date 1 April 1986) |
| Created by | |
| Alter ego | Earlier Mr. Raj, Public Relation Officer of Bharti Communications Now Mr. Nagraj Shah, CEO Snake Eyes Securities |
| Team affiliations | Brahmand Rakshak (Protectors of Universe), Panchnag, Sheetnag, Neernag |
| Notable aliases | Snakeman, Greenman, Green Death, Venomous Gunpowder, Nag-Samrat |
| Abilities |
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Nagraj is a superhero appearing in Indian comic books published by Raj Comics[1] created in the late 1980s by Rajkumar Gupta.[2] Nagraj first appeared in the comics Nagraj GENL #14 which was written by Parshuram Sharma and illustrated by Pratap Mullick.
After that Sanjay Ashtpure, Pratap Mullick, Chandu, Milind Misal and Vitthal Kamble alternately illustrated the character for 44 issues, ending in 1995 with Visarpi Ki Shadi.[3][4][5][6]
Nagraj is believed to have been inspired by the mythological Ichchhadhari Nag (shapeshifting snakes) and historical Vishmanushya (venomous human).[7] His stories create a rich blend of mythology, fantasy, magic, and science fiction. Many of Nagraj’s fans believe that, over time, Nagraj’s comics have developed snake mythology of its own, which is unique to the popular Indian beliefs about snakes that are prevalent among the masses.
In the middle of the nineties Anupam Sinha (who was already running the mega-successful Dhruv series) took over the helms of Nagraj as well. Anupam Sinha’s expansive narration could not completely fit in a single comic, so he used multi-comic stories to layer and enrich his tales. The Khajana arc by Anupam Sinha set up the backstory beautifully, and discredited Nagmani many years after the comics began. He also led to increase in frequency of Two-in-One comics, which combined Nagraj and Dhruv and started happening once in a year.[8] Nagraj has changed a lot in his 25 years in print, both in terms of looks as well as powers and abilities. With time many new artists such as Lalit Sharma and Hemant Kumar have done illustration of Nagraj.
Fictional character biography[edit]
In ancient times, there existed a kingdom known as Takshaknagar, ruled by King Takshakraj and Queen Lalita[9] who had no children. The absence of a prince or princess made Nagpasha, the younger brother of the King Takshakraj the only potential heir to the throne.
One day when the queen was going to pray to Deva Kaljayi, Nagpasha replaced the curtained plate of her offerings to the god with one containing a dead mongoose. The Snake God got angry and knocked her unconscious with his venomous breath. When the child was born, everyone believed him dead because his whole body was blue and showed no signs of life.
As per Hindu rituals, the newborn baby was thrown into the river. Meanwhile, the snake deity Deva Kaljayi appeared in the dreams of King Maniraj and his wife Queen Manika, rulers of ageless Ichchhadhaari nags, living secretly on an invisible island in the Indian Ocean called Nagdweep. He told them the location of the baby and asked them to cure him. Many years passed and the treatment started showing results and, although still in the suspended animation, the colour of the baby had gradually changed to green.
Later Vishandhar, an evil Tantrik placed him back into the same bushes in the river where he was found. A priest of the nearby temple located him and gave him to Professor Nagmani, who was wandering in the nearby forest searching for snakes. The child had extraordinary healing powers and was extremely venomous. He raised the baby, who became Nagraj.
In his debut issue, Nagraj was unleashed as an international terror weapon by the evil scientist Professor Nagmani. Nagraj,[10] in this first mission, was tasked with stealing a golden statue of a Goddess from a temple that was protected by tribal devotees, snakes, and by a mysterious 300-year-old Sadhu named Baba Gorakhnath. Nagraj succeeded in his task, but upon confrontation with Gorakhnath and his mystic black mongoose shikangi, was defeated. Gorakhnath read his mind and discovered that Professor Nagmani had implanted a mind-control device in the form of a capsule in Nagraj’s head, to keep him under his control. Gorakhnath operated and removed the capsule from Nagraj’s head, setting Nagraj free of Professor Nagmani’s control.[11] Nagraj then became Baba Goraknath’s disciple and vowed to eliminate crime and terror from the Earth.[12] Since…