07/12/2020
I have always maintained that our folklore is a treasure trove of great stories. They are uniquely attuned to our sensibilities, passed down from generation to generation - these are the first stories we hear growing up. So when I heard that mKiddo, a newly launched kids' portal (app and web) which is catered only for kids, both for their education and entertainment - were doing a motion comic based on Asifur Rahman's "Nilkomol Aar Lalkomol" published by Dhaka Comics, I was very interested in the end result. Particularly because as far as I know it is the first motion comic made in Bangladesh and secondly the story is a striking reimagination of our Bangla fables.
The story is akin to the best bedtime stories our grandmoms used to tell us. Two brothers, Nilkomol and Lalkomol are raised by a good natured famer, Birbal - after he finds them floating down a river. Reminscient of Remus and Romulus, the Greek heroes - the story is about the journey these brothers go on. An adventure to save a village from Khokkhosh, which are smaller demons turns into a journey of discovery and the true nature of humanity. It is simply told, but it is effective in reminding the core audience - children in this case - that we are not defined by who we are but what we do.
The animation - while simple - evokes the classic art style of Samurai Jack (which if you have never seen, please fix that horrible mistake at once). Its simplicity makes it easy to follow what is happening on screen. There is room for improvement for sure, but this is a good first step.
The voice acting is where I feel Platform Media, the guys behind the VO work could really improve. It fails to convey the emotions well, though it does an admirable job - its the difference between a good cartoon with heart and a regular old motion comics. I didn't hate it but I felt like this is where the most improvement can happen.
To be fair, as a first attempt this was really well done and thought out. It calls back to a simple age of tales. Tales where the good guys were good and bad guys were Rakkhoshes. It makes you wish life was still as black and white. All in all, I think kids would really enjoy the story and I hope mKiddo does a lot more content in this vein. Because this is an admirable venture by mKiddo and I believe they should do more.
This will be released exclusively on mKiddo app at the end of this week. Hope you guys check it out.
