Mangasia: Fables and Folklore

Across Asia, these tales continue to be transmitted, not only through accessible modern comics, but also using traditional forms of storytelling such as scrolls and ‘kaavads’, which often combine wordless sequential visuals with verbal performance. Such practices can be considered early ancestors on the family tree of sequential storytelling.

The Kaavad is an intricately painted portable shrine; traditional Kaavads - known as Marwari - have ten doors. The artisan craft that goes into making Kaavads is undertaken by skilled carpenters called Basayati suthars and their customers are the storytellers, known as Kavaadiya Bhats. Stories told by Bhats would largely be based on the Mahabharata, Ramayana and the Puranas but also would be tailored to fit one’s family and context. There now remains very few makers as with cultural and lifestyle shifts towards film and TV, there are no longer as many storytellers and Kaavads have been foregone.  

Cartoonists have also played a vital role in keeping alive their nation’s fables and folktales, often being inspired by the exploits of more-or-less fictional heroes and anti-heroes from the past.

Many other Asian artists, including women – who remain underrepresented – continue to bring fresh perspectives to these deep-rooted classics. 

In Sri Lankan folklore demons are depicted with a fiery head, pointy ears, fangs and Gokkola (tender leaves of a coconut plant). Deeply rooted within many stories, supernatural beings are considered either demonic (evil, mischievous and coati) or godly (kind, helpful and righteous)