A Cartoonist Injecting Humour into Political Leaders Personalities!
Siddhant Jumde weaves a story through with each textured caricature he creates while balancing the reality of his creations with a sense of humour.
Yogi Adityanath. Illustration for India Today magazine.
Siddhant is an illustrator and caricature artist who is inspired by his family and what he grew up watching on the telly. Find out more about his creative process as he answers the burning questions regarding his creative process.
Mamata Banerjee. Illustration for India Today magazine.
CG. When compelled you to pursue being an illustrator and cartoonist as a career?
Siddhant. When I was a kid I used to watch Disney cartoons which had a huge influence on me. Even though I still watch cartoons and animated movies. Eventually, I started drawing on the papers and walls of my house. My mother plays an important role in this. She has a good command of Rangoli, which gave me the knowledge of lines and how it works as a structure for any art. When I got admission to Sir JJ Institute of Applied Arts, where I chose illustration as a subject to specialize in, I used to go to events as a caricature artist. This helped me to build my observation skills. I studied the artwork styles from the Mad Magazine itself. That gave me a perspective to draw things differently.
Narendra Modi, beard man.
I follow The great Balasaheb Thackeray’s cartoons, Rajsaheb Thackeray’s cartoons. They inspire me a lot. Their work shows me the weight of lines and the character designs of political personalities. I was seeking an opportunity to show my art skills and wanted to establish myself in the market. So that’s the time I got an opportunity to work with Hindustan times as an illustrator and cartoonist. And now I am working in the India Today group as a Chief illustrator. I think these masters have made me jump into this beautiful profession.
Tribute to late Balasaheb Thackeray
CG. What does the creative process behind creating a story based character look like?
Siddhant. Well, I do lots of scribbles for a story(like every artist does). First of all, I get the stories from the editorial team and then the fun part begins. It’s an exercise for me to experiment with the characters or the situations. I do options for a story then I get the inputs, suggestions to make the artwork beautiful and appealing. It’s like teamwork that nurtures me to bring out good results.
Illustration for a story
Earlier I used to draw on paper then I scanned it, transferred it to photoshop and then with the help of Pentablet the rendering part started. And now I work on an iPad Pro which saves a lot. There are the rough pencil drawings with the rough executions which goes to the approval. Then I have to decide which art style will look perfect with the particular story. So I keep trying and searching for references which motivates me to develop a style for that story.
Mahatma Gandhi, tried to capture the calmness
I do ask my colleagues, my seniors, my mentor Nilanjan Das(Group Creative Editor) whether the character, the idea, the visual look okay or not. It’s an interesting part of my journey where I learn the different aspects, like how others see your art. That improves you better according to me. These things help me to develop the character or visual for any story. So once it gets approved then the most exciting part starts i.e. the inking & rendering.
Balasaheb Thackeray
CG. What sparked the creation of textured caricatures?
Siddhant. As I said, I am a fan of Disney Animation. And now there are many animation Studios with their unique style, also I search and follow many artists and their art styles. I somehow try to capture their mind, like how they develop these amazing artworks. I started seeing the softness in every charm just. Earlier I was distorting them differently but somehow I felt that the character must attract the audience or the reader, they just adore them at least in caricatures.
Nirmala Sitharaman. Illustration for India Today magazine.
Whenever I develop a political personality I make sure that they look cute and lovable. I don’t want to make them ugly or make them look bad(people don’t like the ugly versions of themselves). So I understood the requirements and mixed all these things to develop these textured characters. Making style is an Accidental part. I was not sure about the style I am working with but once I started creating it, I experimented with it, looking at these Pixar, Disney, DreamWorks movies helps me to develop it. It’s like going with the flow.
Illustration for India Today magazine.
CG. What do you hope to communicate through creating caricatures of political leaders for the India Today Magazine?
Siddhant. I believe India Today has allowed me to explore and expand my work in front of readers. My job is to deliver beautiful work with some addition of cuteness and humour in it without disturbing the image of politicians. Whether the story is positive or negative, the character must look cute. As I said, I create caricatures according to the story. It’s like the transformation of words into visuals.
Ashok Gehlot. Illustration for India Today magazine.
