What happened that led Radha Comics to go to court?

There is a saying that if you’re infamous, what’s in a name? A similar situation occurred with Radha Comics when the Indian comic industry was trying to establish itself, and some publishers were copying characters by changing their names. At that time, copyright was not a significant concern. Interestingly, this trend continues even today, but people are now more serious about it. If such practices were followed back then, characters like Chacha Chaudhary, created by Pran, wouldn’t have faced so many imitations. Everyone maintained the same appearance, just changing the name from Kaka to Tau at times.

A similar incident happened with Nagesh, a character from Radha Comics. When Raj Comics created Nagraj, a legal battle took place, and Radha Comics lost the case. Despite receiving various votes in favor of Nagraj, Nagraj still resembled Nagesh significantly. After the first Nagesh comic was released, Radha Comics ceased publication.

However, Radha Comics had other characters, and they continued publishing comics on various themes such as Shaktiputra, which was somewhat similar to Robocop. But at that time, there was no access to comics from outside, and the internet was not available to expose what was happening. It was likely during this period that Radha Comics created Rudral by modifying another character. Apart from that, Radha Comics published comics on spy, horror, and occult themes, including titles like Bauna Jasoos, Mahakal, Janbaaz Jwala, and Raja Jani.

Shaktiputra

The author of “Shaktiputra” was Vatsala Kaushik, while the illustrations were done by Chitrakann, a feature of Drona Features. Radha Comics was the publisher of “Shaktiputra.” To be honest, those who have seen “Shaktiputra” will perceive it as being inspired by “Robocop” because “Shaktiputra” draws inspiration from “Robocop.”

Bauna Jasoos

The first comic of “Bauna Jasoos” was titled “Bauna Jasoos aur Shamshan ka Pandit.” Initially, the story was written by Premlata Peshawari, and the illustrations were handled by Chitrankan of Bharat Chemio Arts. Later on, the story was written by Teeka Ram.

Mahakal

Mahakal, whose mother was Indian and father was Chinese, had a father who was a karate champion in Hong Kong. However, some people turned his father, Lu-Chi, into a puppet, engaging in illegal activities behind the scenes.

Jaambaz Jwala

In “Jaambaz Jwala” and “Jimboola,” we see Jwala acquiring additional powers to combat the evil sorcerer Jimbalo. To aid her in the fight, her mentor Mahatatrink Babaloo grants her a magical costume with the ability to fly, along with a sword.

Rudraal

Radha Comics published “Rudraal.” The story of Rudraal was undoubtedly inspired by Hulk, given its resemblance, but the narrative was distinctive. Despite acquiring a massive form, Rocky, the protagonist of Rudraal, retained his intellect and could communicate, a feature not present in Hulk.