Says political cartoonist Suraj 'Eskay' Sriram, whose new book is a compilation of cartoons made during the regime of India's Iron Lady, giving us a peek into the author's 40-year long career of poking fun at national leaders and voicing the aam admi's concerns
Says political cartoonist Suraj 'Eskay' Sriram, whose new book is a compilation of cartoons made during the regime of India's Iron Lady, giving us a peek into the author's 40-year long career of poking fun at national leaders and voicing the aam admi's concerns
It's scary to see how 40 years later, personalities may have changed but the issues remain the same in our country," says Suraj Sriram, illustrator and author of Indira Gandhi, The Final Chapter, a compilation of politically-driven cartoons that appeared in leading national dailies during the Emergency in India. 
Party Makeover: Indira knew that the people of her generation had lost
faith in the Indian Congress Party. She desperately needed to re-invent
it, even if it meant dispensing with the so-called 'old guard', people who
had been part of the freedom struggle
About the controversial leader, Sriram says, "The book is a visual history. Indira Gandhi was probably the best leader our country has ever seen. Pre-Emergency, the living conditions were so bad that people stood in line for basic amenities. The Emergency was, in many ways, a relief. For a long time, she sustained the image of the peoples' leader, but too much power led to her downfall."u00a0
Sriram's cartoons campaigned for the cause of the aam admi. "The common man has not changed in the last 40 years. I can highlight the issues but other than that I'm helpless," says Sriram, who worked as a freelance cartoonist in Mumbai from 1976 to 1984 under the pen name Eskay, for newspapers such as The Sunday Express, Blitz and magazines like Society.
Corruption and sycophancy have been part of everyday life in India for
ages. The Indira years however, saw this malaise proliferate and get
institutionalised in the governance of the country. It reached a stage
where the average man on the street took it for granted and considered
it as something they just had to contend with at every level of the government.
The cartoons in the book are accompanied by personal anecdotes and brief historical contexts, as Sriram worked at times of riot and also at a time when the press had been muted.
"I hope young people will be able to understand what we experienced first-hand and perhaps be sensitised towards politics, because the youth must get involved. Otherwise political manoeuvring will continue," he says.
Sriram's first brush with communalism is explained through an anecdote about how his family sheltered Darzi Uncle, a Muslim tailor who made school uniforms in the mid-1950s, a time when communal strife ravaged India.
The lack of governmental action on the black marketing of medicines
and drugs often resulted in serious consequences for the common man.
The 'blame game' failed to fix any responsibility for corrective action
and ensured that this nefarious activity flourished unchecked.
Sriram also narrates an incident when a 'delicate cartoon' offended a politician and how he had to be saved by his then editor. "Politicians have no sense of humour," he adds. The cartoon in question has been left out of the book, because as Sriram puts it, he "didn't want to open old wounds."
In 1985, he moved to the United States, where he taught cartooning at the Rhode Island School of Design.
For budding cartoonists, Sriram has one piece of advice. "Drawing is secondary. What is important is the idea.
You have to know everything about everything so that your work explores a wide range of concepts and doesn't seem repetitive. I encourage aspiring cartoonists to read about politics, mythology, art and more."u00a0u00a0
Of the current political scene, the Pune-based artist says, "There is no shortage of material today, with our leaders providing the content for many a satirical comment. But I have retired so I'll leave it to the younger cartoonists to take a stab at them."
Indira Gandhi - The Final Chapter, Suraj 'Eskay' Sriram, published by Niyogi Books, Rs 495. Available at all leading bookstores
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