Indian Comics: 6 Series and Publishers to Know
Ramakrishnan S · 5 November 2026 · 10 min read
Updated: 5 November 2026
Quick answer: Indian comics include history and mythology retellings, characters such as Chacha Chaudhary, superheroes and Tamil comics. This guide covers six series and publishers, in alphabetical order and not as a ranking: Amar Chitra Katha, Chacha Chaudhary, Lion-Muthu Comics, Nagraj, Siva Comics and Super Commando Dhruva. Each entry names its source and where the publisher offers it.
In this guide, Indian comics means comics published in India by Indian publishers, in any language. That is our own working definition, not an official one. The six entries below are very different from each other: one retells Indian history and mythology for children, one follows an old man called Chacha Chaudhary, one is a Tamil publisher that mostly translates European comics, two are superhero series from the same publisher, and one publishes original Tamil comics online.
For the Tamil side in more depth, see Lion Comics and Muthu Comics: How Tamil Comics Started.
Where the facts come from. For each series we used the publisher's own page where we could open one, then Wikipedia, and each entry says which. Where a Wikipedia page carries a quality notice at the top, or on the section a fact comes from, we say so. Where sources give different years, we give both or leave the year out. We read all of these on 19 October 2026:
Amar Chitra Katha, About us, the publisher's own page
Raj Comics, About us, the publisher's own page
Lion-Muthu Comics and Diamond Books, the publishers' own sites
The News Minute, 7 July 2019 and Atlas Obscura, 7 October 2020, on Lion-Muthu Comics
Wikipedia: Amar Chitra Katha, Chacha Chaudhary, Pran Kumar Sharma, Lion Comics, Raj Comics, Nagraj, Super Commando Dhruva, Chandamama, Indrajal Comics and The Phantom
Lion Comics and Muthu Comics: How Tamil Comics Started, on sivacomics.com, for how reading works on the site
The series pages of Kabadapuram, Paanjajanyam, Kadarpaalam and ISAI on sivacomics.com
How we chose
We started from the related searches Google Keyword Planner showed for indian comics on 1 October 2026 and kept the series that are comics and that have a publisher page or a cited reference we could open on 19 October 2026. We added Super Commando Dhruva as the second Raj Comics superhero, and Siva Comics, which is our own. The list is alphabetical, so the order is not a ranking. We left out the Phantom, which is an American strip, and Chandamama, which Wikipedia describes as a magazine; the questions below explain both.
Contents
At a glance
| # | Title | Creator | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amar Chitra Katha | Anant Pai (founder) | More than 20 languages, per the publisher |
| 2 | Chacha Chaudhary | Pran Kumar Sharma | Ten Indian languages including Hindi and English, per Wikipedia |
| 3 | Lion-Muthu Comics | M. Soundrapandian (Muthu Comics) and S. Vijayan (Lion Comics) | Tamil |
| 4 | Nagraj | Rajkumar Gupta and Manoj Gupta, per Wikipedia's information box | Usually Hindi, per Wikipedia |
| 5 | Siva Comics (our series) | B. Sivakumar | Tamil |
| 6 | Super Commando Dhruva | Anupam Sinha, as credited on Wikipedia | Usually Hindi, per Wikipedia |
1. Amar Chitra Katha
Creator: Anant Pai (founder) · Publisher: Amar Chitra Katha · Language: More than 20 languages, per the publisher
Amar Chitra Katha tells stories from Indian history, mythology and literature in comic form. Its own About page says Anant Pai founded it in 1967 to familiarise Indian children with their roots, and its timeline dates the first comic, Krishna, to 1970. Wikipedia gives ACK's own version in more detail: Pai first bought the rights to ten American fairy tales, so Krishna, the first Indian story, was issue 11. Wikipedia then cites Outlook magazine for a contradicting view: that a Bangalore book salesman, G.K. Ananthram, proposed the series and that the first Amar Chitra Katha comics were produced in 1965 in Kannada. Ananthram himself is quoted as saying the first ten were in Kannada and that Anant Pai was brought in afterwards. So the start depends on the source. The publisher says it has sold over 100 million copies to date, a figure we have not checked. Its site also lists a comics app and webcomics, and Wikipedia lists its status as active.
2. Chacha Chaudhary
Creator: Pran Kumar Sharma · Publisher: Diamond Comics · Language: Ten Indian languages including Hindi and English, per Wikipedia
Chacha Chaudhary is a comic series about an "extremely intelligent old man", as Wikipedia describes him. His household includes a street dog called Rocket and Sabu, a giant alien from Jupiter. Wikipedia says cartoonist Pran Kumar Sharma created the series for the Hindi magazine Lotpot. The year is unclear: Wikipedia's page on the series says 1971, and its page on Pran gives 1971 in one place and 1969 in another, so we do not pick one. Wikipedia lists Diamond Comics as the publisher, and the Diamond Books shop lists Chacha Chaudhary titles in its comics section.
3. Lion-Muthu Comics
Creator: M. Soundrapandian (Muthu Comics) and S. Vijayan (Lion Comics) · Publisher: Lion-Muthu Comics · Language: Tamil
Lion-Muthu Comics is a Tamil comics publisher. The News Minute reports that it started as Muthu Comics under M. Soundrapandian, and that his son S. Vijayan began Lion Comics in 1984, a year Wikipedia also gives. Wikipedia says almost all of its stories are Tamil translations of mainly European comics. In 2020, Atlas Obscura reported that a team at the company translated Italian, French and English comics, that it published about 55 translations a year, and that Vijayan had introduced a subscription model.
Read free: Kabadapuram. A man sealed inside a temple escapes with the help of a talking severed head and crosses the dried-up sea. Read Episode 1 free →
4. Nagraj
Creator: Rajkumar Gupta and Manoj Gupta, per Wikipedia's information box · Publisher: Raj Comics · Language: Usually Hindi, per Wikipedia
Nagraj is a superhero character published by Raj Comics. Wikipedia lists his first appearance as general (GENL) issue 14, with a release date of 1 April 1986. Its information box credits Rajkumar Gupta and Manoj Gupta as creators; its opening line credits Rajkumar Gupta alone and says the character was created in the late 1980s, which does not fit the 1986 debut date on the same page. That page carries a notice about promotional wording, so we use only these facts from it. Wikipedia's Raj Comics page says that in 1985 Manoj Gupta came up with the idea of a superhero centred on snakes, which it says hold a religious and mythological significance in India; that section carries a notice that it needs expansion.
5. Siva Comics (our series)
Creator: B. Sivakumar · Publisher: Siva Comics · Language: Tamil
Siva Comics, the publisher of this site, publishes original Tamil comics online. In Kabadapuram, a man trapped inside a sealed temple escapes with the help of a talking severed head. In Paanjajanyam, snails appear after rain and a son who studied acoustics sets out to find the cause. In Kadarpaalam, Rama has a bridge built across the sea, and its page says he "marveled at a little squirrel toiling on the bridge and stroked its back in acknowledgement". In ISAI, a happy marriage is thrown into chaos when Nandhini finds an old letter, and she bans the music of Ilaiyaraaja. Episode 1 of each series is free to read, and a free account unlocks the rest.
6. Super Commando Dhruva
Creator: Anupam Sinha, as credited on Wikipedia · Publisher: Raj Comics · Language: Usually Hindi, per Wikipedia
Raj Comics publishes both Dhruva and Nagraj. About the publisher, Wikipedia says Raj Comics was founded by Rajkumar Gupta, Manoj Gupta and Sanjay Gupta. It gives 1984 in one place and 1986 in another. It says the comics are usually in Hindi, with only a few titles and special editions in English, and that the publisher focuses mainly on superhero content. Its own About page says it is based in Delhi, with a printing and binding facility at Bawana and a distribution and digital division at Burari, and its site lists comics for sale. Super Commando Dhruva is a character in comics published by Raj Comics. Wikipedia says writer and illustrator Anupam Sinha created him and that he first appeared in general (GENL) issue 74, published in April 1987. Wikipedia describes him as a hero with no secret second identity (an alter ego) and no superpowers, and says Sinha wanted to create a superhero out of a normal adult human. That Wikipedia page carries a notice asking for more citations. The Raj Comics shop lists a Dhruv set.
Common questions
What are Indian comics?
Indian comics are comics published in India by Indian publishers, in languages such as Hindi, English and Tamil. They include history and mythology retellings such as Amar Chitra Katha, character series such as Chacha Chaudhary, superheroes such as Nagraj and Super Commando Dhruva, and Tamil comics from Lion-Muthu Comics and Siva Comics. The definition is this guide's own working one, not an official one.
Is the Phantom an Indian comic?
The Phantom is an American comic strip, first published by Lee Falk in February 1936, according to Wikipedia. Wikipedia also says that in 1964 the Indian publisher Indrajal Comics began publishing a Phantom comic book in English, and that other Indian publishers have printed Phantom comics since. So it is an American character that Indian publishers have printed, and not one of the six entries here. Wikipedia's Indrajal Comics page, which asks for more citations, lists Indrajal as discontinued.
Is Chandamama a comic?
Wikipedia describes Chandamama as having been a classic Indian monthly magazine for children and says that, in the strict sense, it is not a comic book, except for its Chitra-katha column, so we did not list it. Its History section says it was first published in Telugu and in Tamil, as Ambulimama, in 1947; the opening of the same page says it was launched in Telugu. That page carries notices about neutrality and citations. Atlas Obscura reported in 2020 that M. Soundrapandian, who started Muthu Comics, had completed an apprenticeship with a company that printed Chandamama.
Who created Chacha Chaudhary?
Wikipedia says cartoonist Pran Kumar Sharma created Chacha Chaudhary for the Hindi magazine Lotpot. Wikipedia gives 1971 on its page for the series, and both 1971 and 1969 on its page for Pran, so we do not state one. Wikipedia also says Pran was inspired by the ancient philosopher Chanakya and by elder people of every village who help and solve problems.
Which Indian superheroes come from Raj Comics?
Wikipedia names Nagraj, Super Commando Dhruva, Bhokal, Doga and Parmanu among Raj Comics' most well known characters, and says the publisher focuses mainly on superhero content. This guide covers two of them. Wikipedia lists the first appearance of Nagraj as general (GENL) issue 14, released on 1 April 1986, and says Super Commando Dhruva first appeared in April 1987. Both Wikipedia pages carry notices: the Nagraj page for promotional wording, the Dhruva page asking for more citations.
What is Lion Comics?
Lion Comics is a Tamil comics line started in 1984 by S. Vijayan, son of Muthu Comics founder M. Soundrapandian, according to both Wikipedia and The News Minute. Atlas Obscura says the company is now called Lion-Muthu Comics. Wikipedia says almost all of its stories are Tamil translations of mainly European comic series.
Are there original Tamil comics among Indian comics?
Yes. Siva Comics, the publisher of this site, publishes original Tamil comics online. The other Tamil publisher in this guide, Lion-Muthu Comics, publishes Tamil translations: Wikipedia says almost all of its stories are translations of mainly European comics, and Atlas Obscura reported in 2020 that its team translated Italian, French and English comics.
Where can I read Siva Comics?
Siva Comics publishes four Tamil series, Kabadapuram, Paanjajanyam, Kadarpaalam and ISAI, on sivacomics.com. Episode 1 of each series is free to read, and a free account unlocks the rest and keeps your place.
Entries last checked: 19 October 2026
Cite this page: Ramakrishnan S. "Indian Comics: 6 Series and Publishers to Know." Siva Comics, 5 November 2026. https://www.sivacomics.com/insider/indian-comics
You just read the story. Now read the comics. Episode 1 of every series is free. A free account unlocks the rest and keeps your place. Start reading free → · Browse all series
Read the comics
Kabadapuram
When the doors of the Kumari Amman temple are sealed shut, a man trapped inside escapes with the help of a talking severed head. Crossing the dried-up sea, he is stunned by unbelievable wonders and reaches Kabadapuram — the city the ocean once swallowed. There he witnesses the strange feats of a siddha and sees a man who looks just like himself. On the shore of Kabadapuram, crumbling under tidal waves and volcanic eruptions, that double flees with the woman he loves. Did those who escaped survive — or were they caught in the deluge?
Paanjajanyam
After a spell of rain, snails appear from nowhere and multiply. For his deaf father — who insists their sound is the longing voice of his late wife — a son who studied acoustics sets out to find the cause. How Vaishnava hymns, Jagadish Chandra Bose, plants and snails are all bound together in the form of sound — that is Paanjajanyam.
Kadarpaalam
Having learned that Sita was held in Lanka, Rama planned his march and, with the vanara army's help, ordered a bridge built across the sea. He marveled at a little squirrel toiling on the bridge and stroked its back in acknowledgement — and the envy this stirred in one hard-laboring vanara brought the work to a halt. That untold episode is Kadarpaalam.
ISAI
When Nandhini finds an old letter from Vinoth's forgotten first love, their happy marriage is thrown into chaos. Nandhini bans the one thing that reminds him of his past ? the music of Ilaiyaraaja. Torn between his love for her and his love for the songs woven into his soul, he is caught again and again in secret, pushing them to the edge of breaking apart. As old wounds resurface and trust wavers, will a melody that once threatened to tear them apart become the very thing that brings Nandhini and Vinoth back together?