Kalki Continues Cover of the Week Streak

On the heels of LINGER’s appearance on Wizard Universe‘s Cover of the Week roundup last week, PROJECT: KALKI issue #2 has scored again for Virgin Comics. In the June 18, 2008 edition of the Cover of the Week, Wizard’s Matt Cauli had this to say about the cover designed by Vivek Shinde and Ashish Avin:

“While shuffling through some covers, lo and behold I find this beauty. An Andy Warhol blast from the past style, but instead of an attractive young Marilyn Monroe, we get to feast are eyes upon baby fetuses in a variety of pantone popsicle colors. Such an eye catcher and pleaser if I’ve ever seen one.”

Written by Arjun Gaind and illustrated by Vivek Shinde, PROJECT: KALKI tells the frightening story of Avatar, a super-being created in a lab from the DNA of a mythological being. To read the article and see the cover click here. Issue #2 is on sale now and can be purchased at our Virgin Comics store.

Newsarama on Deepak’s Buddha and More

The New York Times best-selling author and spiritual thinker Deepak Chopra recently sat down with Cliff Biggers of Comic Shop News in an article posted on Newsarama. Deepak spoke about his involvement in the founding of Virgin Comics, how Buddha relates to superheroes, and the possibility of adapting his upcoming book Jesus: The Story of the Man Who Would be Christ as a comic book.

To read the full article go here. If you’d like to watch the trailer or read a free widescreen digital comic of Deepak Chopra’s Buddha click here. Issues 1-3 of Deepak Chopra’s Buddha are available now at comic shops everywhere and at our Virgin Comics store.

Read Deepak Chopra’s BEYOND #1 Online for FREE!

The first issue of Deepak Chopra’s Beyond has been summed up perfectly in Comics Bulletin’s 4-bullet review: “This is a great first issue of a new series — the characters and their personalities are introduced without being too heavy-handed, the dilemma of the plot is posed, the world is explored. Honestly, this feels like it might turn out to be some of Ron Marz’s best work.  I am surprisingly pleased with this new series, and I’m actually looking forward to buying the second issue. That’s not something I can say very often with new comic series, unfortunately, so I’m always thrilled when it happens.”

The feedback on this issue has been so overwhelmingly positive from fans, reviewers and retailers alike that we’ve underestimated the demand and it’s been selling out in stores across the country!  Since we’re only a few weeks away from Beyond #2 hitting comic shops on June 25th, we decided the fastest way to meet the increasing demand for this issue is to post the entire issue online FOR FREE on our MySpace page.

Beyond follows a brutal physical and spiritual journey of a desperate husband searches for his missing wife while on vacation in India, and is based on an original science fiction story by Deepak Chopra, and adapted by Ron Marz (Green Lantern, Witchblade, Samurai: Heaven & Hell) and illustrated by Edison George.  You don’t want to miss this opportunity to get on board now with the story that Augie De Blieck Jr. at Comic Book Resources says “… piles on the mysteries at a breakneck pace, giving us exotic locales and beautiful art to keep our eyes excited.”

Ron Marz On Writing BEYOND

In an interview with thequarterbin, acclaimed comics writer Ron Marz discusses his approach to adapting Deepak Chopra’s Beyond, a sci-fi thriller about an American businessman in India on a desperate – and interdimensional – search for his wife.

In addition to Ron’s groundbreaking work on Silver Surfer for Marvel, Green Lantern for DC, and Samurai: Heaven and Earth for Dark Horse, he has edited Devi, The Sadhu, and Ramayan Reloaded, and continues to be a major figure in the development of our Shakti line. Here’s an excerpt of what Ron had to say about his adaptation of Beyond:

And with BEYOND you’re adapting a Deepak Chopra story?

Yeah, it’s actually a screenplay Deepak wrote, so I’m translating the screenplay into the comic format. It’s really a matter of preserving as much as I can of what’s there, and deciding on what parts we’re going to trim back on a little bit to fit everything into the comic. For the most part we’ve been able to get all the main points in, it’s just some of the details that we don’t have room for in a 22-page comic. So far I’m really happy with the way it’s come out.

I’ve read through the advance copy and one of the things I was curious about was how much of your own style and voice are you able to put into BEYOND since it is an adaptation?

Truthfully, when I took on the gig I spoke to Gotham about it. Deepak is his dad, and I wanted to make sure that I was as faithful to the material as I could be. I said to Gotham, “Look, I feel like my job is to faithfully translate what your dad wrote.” Gotham’s viewpoint was to do what I had to do to make it work as a comic story. So I’m probably being more faithful to the material than even they expected me to be.
I’m bringing to it more of my visual style than I am the dialogue because I’m trying to preserve as much of Deepak’s dialogue as possible. That’s what my job is. I’m here to serve his story, not the other way around.

To read the rest of the interview click here. To jump into the suspenseful adventure of Deepak Chopra’s Beyond, go here.

Indie Rockers Heart Buddha

Seattle-based indie rockers, Death Cab for Cutie, whose new album Narrow Stairs is currently sitting atop the Billboard charts at #1, was profiled in the May 18^th issue of The New York Times. We were ecstatic to learn that guitarist/keyboardist/producer Chris Walla has become enamored by the teachings of the Buddha, so much so that it drove him to criminal behavior. Ok, maybe we’re exaggerating just a little bit…

The band was staying in a hotel, and instead of the usual Bible in a nightstand drawer, “there was a book of the teachings of the Buddha,” he said. “I started reading it, and I got really into it. I felt like I wanted to keep on reading it.” So he took it with him when he checked out and “read it cover to cover three times.” But unlike most of us who feel sheepish about things we have taken, as in stolen, Mr. Walla, 32, had a chance to do something about it. The day after the interview he was scheduled to meet the Dalai Lama, the leader of Tibetan Buddhism.

You can read the entire article here.

Mr. Walla, we have a solution to help wipe your guilt away… pick up a copy of our comic book adaptation of Deepak Chopra’s New York Times best-selling novel, Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment! The first two issues are on sale now, and there’s even a free widescreen digital version of the first issue on www.virgincomics.com. We are also proud to unveil a brand new trailer for Buddha, featuring voice over from Deepak Chopra himself, and original music from Josh Allen of the Brooklyn band Meanwhiles (it’s a full-blown indie love-fest, kids!).

In honor of Death Cab’s incredible #1 record and the release of our Buddha trailer, we’re offering a $5 discount on any purchase of $10 or more at virgincomicsstore.com, with the code DEATHCAB. Offer expires on June 5^th, so act fast!

Diversity in Comics: Video Interview with Saurav Mohapatra

While attending NYCC ‘08, Virgin Comics writer Saurav Mohapatra (Deepak Chopra’s India Authentic, Devi, Mumbai McGuffin), was approached by Luis Medina, a filmmaker shooting a documentary about the rising trend of diversity in comics. Check out the interview below that also features Virgin Comics Editor, Charlie Beckerman.

Be sure to also read this Squential Tart interview with Saurav as he discusses religion in comics and his upcoming projects.

Ramayan 3392 A.D. Reloaded Review

If you haven’t already caught up with Ramayan Reloaded 3392 A.D., you can get the trade paperback at our online store now. Get on board this epic journey and be sure to check out CBR’s review of the book.

There’s a thematic undercurrent in the book, emphasizing transcendence. Emphasizing that some of these characters have not reached their full potential. And that’s what the hero’s quest is always about. Growing through experience. Finding the path.

“Ramayan 3392 Volume 2″ is accessible and intriguing, and the epic journey really does begin here. I hope it will continue for a long time.

Deepak Chopra’s BUDDHA #1 and Dave Stewart’s ZOMBIE BROADWAY in stores today

“Awake. Seek truth. Stumble. Begin again.” This is the simple yet profound message from Buddha, the man who reached enlightenment and was raised to the rank of an immortal. Hitting comic shops today is Deepak Chopra’s Buddha #1, the comic book adaptation of his New York Times bestseller. Experience the life of the Awakened One as adapted by Joshua Dysart (Violent Messiahs, Swamp Thing, B.P.R.D.) and lavishly illustrated by Harshavardan Kadam.

Also hitting stores today is Dave Stewart’s Zombie Broadway. When a zombie plague ravages New York City leaving only a couple thousand survivors, the government plans to bomb the city (in spite of the humans still living there) to get rid of the infestation. That is, until the mayor realizes that zombies react positively to… show tunes?! Hence, a Broadway musical starring zombies is staged in a last-ditch attempt to bring peace to the city. Will it be a standing ovation or curtains for us all?!

Shekhar Kapur on CNN: Talk Asia

Shekhar Kapur, director of the Oscar-winning Elizabeth and one of Virgin Comics’ Chief Visionaries, will be on CNN: Talk Asia over the weekend to talk about his films, passions, and inspirations. Click here to get the show times or submit questions for him to answer.

Inside Virgin Comics with Gotham Chopra: Audioshocker Interview

A few weeks ago, someone forwarded me a link to a Nick Marino’s and Neal Shyam’s audioshocker podcast in which, amongst other things, they shared their thoughts on some of our books. At best, their reviews could be described as a mixed bag. That said, there was also clearly an intrigue around some of what we were doing and that caught my attention. So I decided to do what any big deal entertainment executive would do, I commented on their site and requested that they guys have me on their show to answer their questions. The good guys that they are, Neal and Nick invited me in to their show and the following link will take you right into our candid conversation about all things Virgin Comics.

Cutting to the chase, the gist of the interview centers on the business of comics and the huge challenges that all of the publishers are facing. In this brave new digital world, selling comics at the comic shop isn’t an easy task and yet it remains the most critical entry point for any publisher trying to establish a real presence in the industry. Sure you can come up with all sorts of dotcomics and slick up your trades for the mass market but first and foremost you have to charm the comic geeks if you hope to survive. In a world crowded by Superheros and Super-Heros, that’s no easy task. And yet, here we are, two years later, kicking and screaming, and hopefully, making our presence felt.

Anyone who’s got a taste of Virgin Comics knows that our books are split into two buckets, our “Indian stuff” and our “celebrity stuff.” Without going into all the detail that the interview does, the summary is that we’re trying to be original. We recognize the unique medium of comics, and how they can be used to incubate original ideas and stories. While we are always respectful of the comic itself, knowing that it’s an artform unto itself, we also know that it’s a great medium to nurture stories that can go on to live on film, tv, as video games, or online. Anyone that’s tracked us at all knows that so far so good here at Virgin. We’ve been able to create some distinctive books and managed to get them in the pipeline with some larger media companies to now evolve them as films, games, etc. That part of the process we don’t really control, though if requested, we’re happy to offer our two cents.

So without further adieu, check out the interview and let us know what you think. Aside from continuing to build out this company, our agenda is also to make the process as transparent as possible. Because, in our humble opinion, it’s not just the stories that we are creating that we hope are interesting and engaging, but the story about building the stories, that may be the most interesting. But that’s just my opinion. Why don’t you be the judge.

Gotham Chopra

Link to the interview with Gotham: http://www.audioshocker.com/2008/03/18/podcast-episode-023