Anant "Uncle'' Pai

Anant Pai strode the Indian comics industry like a colossus. Using the comics format he told stories from mythology, history and literature to generations of children. Uncle Pai, as he was known, wanted Indian children to be familiar with their heritage. He believed that it helped build self-esteem and confidence. A chemical engineer by profession, Anant Pai gave up his job to follow his dream, a dream that led to the creation of Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle. Tinkle pays tribute to its creator—the man who left behind a legacy of learning and laughter—on his birth anniversary.

Legacy

Amar Chitra Katha, the flagship brand was founded in 1967 by Uncle Pai, and is a household name in India. This illustrated series comprises the best stories from the great epics, mythology, history and folktales, as well as biographies of notable personalities. It has more than 400 comics in 20 languages that have sold 90 million copies to date, making it a cultural phenomenon.

Tinkle is India’s largest selling children’s magazine in English. Tinkle truly stands for ‘Where Learning Meets Fun’ and with its unique set of endearing propriety characters like Suppandi, Shikari Shambu, Tantri the Mantri and many more, it has enthralled readers for over three decades.

Uncle Pai launched Amar Chitra Katha with the purpose of passing on stories from Indian mythology to the next generation. The inspiration for this series came while he was watching a television quiz of school children. The children were effortlessly able to answer questions on Greek mythology, but were stumped when it came to Indian myths and legends. Uncle Pai simplified and streamlined the complex body of stories from Indian mythology by using comics as the medium of story-telling. This was an instant hit with children.

Tinkle, India’s only comics magazine, was launched in 1980. Today, the number of Tinkle titles has expanded to include Tinkle Digest, Tinkle Double Digest, Tinkle Star (Tinkle in regional languages) and Tinkle Online.

Team Pai

Pages from Tinkle No. 1

Story Time with Uncle Pai

Uncle Pai, ever the story teller, was always looking for new ways to connect with children and tell them stories of great meaning because he knew that children related best to a story. And so he decided to tell them a small story that imparted a value through the pages of Tinkle. He wanted to communicate with children personally, talk about issues that concerned them, tell them encouraging stories, and increase their self-confidence and self-esteem.

Anant "Uncle'' Pai

Legacy

Team Pai

Pages from Tinkle No. 1

Story Time with Uncle Pai

Learn To Draw