Bankelal

[6] In 2014, Navbharat Times listed Bankelal among the top 10 comics without which the summers of Indian children were incomplete.

[9] For a long time Bankelal was the one true comedic character in Raj Comics who had his own title series.

Bedi ji added his own colloquial Punjabi phrases in a decidedly non Punjabi comic book, Bankelal and other characters would often say Hun Appa Da ki Hou, Hun Appa Da Kuchh nahi ho Sakda, most of the dialogues were appended with laughter ‘Hi Hi Hi’, and in tragi-comic situations the character would say ‘Bu Hu Hu Hi Hi Hi’, crying and laughing the whole time.

Most issues start with Bankelal knowing a secret or something which he may use to kill king Vikram Singh and usurp the throne.

[10] Though there are some issues that are linked to each other like series in which Bankelal and Vikram Singh travel to different lokas (worlds) after beigh.

[9] The dialogues, mantras read by Sages, and prayers were often peppered with anachronistic insertions of hindi film songs (which were usually topical for the time that the issue was released).

For a comic which was targeted (but I guess not entirely so) to children there was a decent amount of murder and mayhem, but the drawings and the dialogues made sure that it never strayed far away from humour.

Bankelal was populated with a motley of hilarious supporting characters, along with the rotund and good natured Raja Vikram Singh (who was a just king, but was quite gullible), Rani Swarnlata, their son Mohak, a cowardly and wily Senapati, and then there were ministers for everything.

The dialogues and situations are all of the level of a Marx brother’s comedy, with every character (man/animal/demon/god/inanimate) participating a game of one-up-manship when it comes to quips.

The situations are bizarre, sample this – The Nara Mantri (Slogan Minister) mistakenly shouts ‘Jai Mata Di’ in a normal Darbar day (he is half-asleep) and it leads to a wave of people shouting Jai Mata Di, which goes out of the palace and soon in a deliciously absurd segment covering two pages the entire kingdom is shouting Jai Mata Di and an impromptu Jagran is organized with Pundits, Pundals and Prasad.

Other than that, he has nothing, not even a good face, and only a silly Charlie Chaplin styled moustache and his two bucked teeth coming out when he screams or when he laughs.