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MOST POPULAR CHARACTERS ON EARTH! |
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Who are the most popular global screen
characters of all time? It is certainly
not Will Smith, Tom Cruise, Amitabh Bachchan,
Clint Eastwood, Shahrukh Khan, Rajinikanth,
Gregory Peck or any of the huge superstars
that we can think of. Yes, all of them
have their own domains of unquestionable
popularity and acclaim. But, each one
of them is still a stranger in many parts
of the world, in spite of globalization,
the internet and many other forms of communication
that have shrunk the world. If we look
at it in terms of simple popularity (i.e.
the one whom the largest number of global
audiences might be able to recognize),
then perhaps Rowan Atkinson might rank
higher than all the names mentioned above.
The name Rowan Atkinson might not be familiar
to all of you, but none of you can fail
to recognize the name or face of Mr. Bean.
Right from the most elite audiences to
the remotest places (which have the luxury
of TV), Mr. Bean is a familiar face. Maybe,
even not by name, but by his antics which
don’t need any language to get across
to the audiences. Another similarly popular
character (though not on the same scale
as Mr. Bean) is one called Didi (of the
Didi Comedy Show also called Non-Stop
Nonsense) which used to be aired years
back on DD.
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But, there are characters that can beat even these
comic kings when it comes to popularity. These characters
are not people, but creations of animation. We all
have to agree that cartoons are perhaps the most popular
visual medium on earth at the moment. It is difficult
to come across a person who has never seen or read
a cartoon. Our fascination with cartoons has changed
and evolved with time. There was a time when comic
strips in newspapers and comic books (called comics)
were the most widespread medium of cartoons. It started
off in newspapers as a weekly feature (every Sunday).
There used to be a small strip of Tarzan consisting
of around three pictures, with one adventure stretching
for months on end. In spite of its small and unobtrusive
size in the newspaper’s corner, it used to be
the most eagerly watched feature, by children and
grown ups alike. Then came a time when comics were
available wholesale on stands in the form of books.
We must thank the likes of Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle
for bringing about this trend in the Indian publishing
industry. There were also popular international comic
books available at this time, the oldest and most
long standing of them being he Adventures of Tin Tin.
There were also others like Archie (a coming of age
comic book) and the all-time favorite comic book genre
of superheroes (from Phantom, Mandrake to our desi
heroes like Chacha Chaudhari).
Then came the color TV revolution which gave us a
whole new experience of cartoons. Today we may perhaps
have to confess of an overkill of cartoons which are
sometimes loaded with violence and a blaze of colors
that can leave one feeling giddy (like the Jetix series).
But, it all started off with simple and sweet cartoons
brought to us by Walt Disney – Mickey Mouse
and Donald Duck kind of cartoons. These were funny,
cute and colorful. These two characters come close
to being the most popular characters to have been
created on earth ever. It is difficult to catch anyone
who has never heard of these names.
A few years later came the cat and mouse duo who took
the cartoon world by storm. Tom and Jerry are perhaps
the all time most familiar and popular characters
to have been presented on the screen. Calling a couple
of cartoon characters the most popular of all time
might sound like a pretty lofty statement. Yes, but
we are not talking about fan clubs, or silver jubilee
runs or Oscar nominations, we are just talking about
the number of people who would have watched them on
screen and would be able to identify them by just
a glance. It has to be this cat and mouse duo who
takes the top spot when it comes to such a scale of
assessing popularity.
Now, more than 70 years after they first made their
screen debuts, they are still as popular as they were
during their initial days. They have seen a great
many changes that the world has undergone, including
the World War, the demolition of the Berlin wall,
collapse of the Soviet Union, the cold war, color
television, internet, Ipods, Faceook, T20 cricket
and whatnot. But, Tom and Jerry have not changed,
nor the appreciation that they command all over the
world. And, we all know that it is not just children
who go ‘ga-ga’ over Tom and Jerry, it
is people of all age groups. Their only brush with
the big screen was in 1992. Now we hear, there are
plans from Warner Brothers to bring out another movie
featuring the crazy duo. That will be one treat for
all those who love simple entertainment, the kind
that brings alive the child in you. Tom and Jerry
may have crossed 70, but they look goof enough for
70 more. Hats off to Hanna Barbara.
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