‘Chacha Chaudhary! You can’t stop me now,’ says Coronavirus. Everyone is scared; everyone is sick; hospitals are filled with ailing people. When Chacha reads the news, he jumps out of his seat, ready to rescue people from the devious virus!
With his signature red turban and black vest, Chacha Chaudhary and his companion, Sabu, an alien from Jupiter, make their way straight to the hospital. What they do next will defeat the virus.
Chacha Chaudhary, the comic character, is a small-framed old man, who can fight any crime in the world. When Pran Kumar Sharma created Chacha Chaudhary in the early 1970s, stories revolved around pickpocketing and burglary. Today, he fights against terrorist attacks, bomb blasts, misuse of technology, and, of course, deadly diseases.
Prank Kumar Sharma took inspiration from people around him to create the comic characters. ‘All my characters are drawn from common people; they exist in real life…Chacha Chaudhary that I created is a short-statured man like any other ordinary Indian. An old man is not particularly handsome either, but his strength is his brain. I was inspired by legendary Indian thinker Chanakya,” he said in an interview.
While old men cannot move and fight as Chacha Chaudhary does, it is often remarked in Indian society that older men are wise. Chacha possesses the same wise brain that helps the younger comic characters in solving their problems. Chacha Chaudhary’s character looks the same. However, the crimes he fights have changed. So, children from different generations see him as a hero.
Some of his older stories had much simpler storylines. Take, for instance, the story of Chacha Chaudhary and Jumbo. Chacha takes his dog, Rocket, out for a walk. They encounter a man with an elephant named Jumbo. The man tells Chacha that if one is to own a pet, he should own something bigger and more powerful. Chacha responds: ‘Rocks are bigger, and diamonds are smaller, yet people prefer diamonds.’
Enraged by Chacha’s response, the man orders Jumbo to crush Rocket. As Jumbo lunges forward, Rocket pins the elephant’s foot. The elephant runs away, tossing the man off. Sounds simple and rather silly, right? With a sillier script, the story aims to appeal to children and their sense of humour.
In another episode from the new Chacha Chaudhary cartoon TV series, Chacha Chaudhary is seen combatting Rakka, the villain who has acquired a suit from Professor Shuttlecock that makes him faster and stronger. The suit is equipped with a gun, firing from which turns the enemies into frogs. How does Chacha win against someone backed by technology?
Chacha Chaudhary is having a normal day as he is playing cricket with his family when police officer Durgaji stops by the yard and tells Chacha what Raka is up to. Two of the officers, Bhukkad and Lakkhad, have already been turned into frogs. Chacha heads to the city with Sabu, where Raka is turning everyone into frogs.
While Chacha and Sabu try to fight Raka, he shoots Sabu with the gun and turns him into a frog. What can an old man do to take down a giant like Raka? He uses his brain—he instructs all the frogs to gather up and attack Raka unitedly. Raka is eventually tripped by the team’s efforts. He tries to fire at Chacha with his gun, but Chacha Chaudhary throws an orange, making Raka lose his aim. In the process, he shoots himself, turns into a frog and loses the fight. Again, turning men into frogs is a bit silly, but does it not appease young children?
From a comic story about a silly fight between two animals to a TV episode about destructive weapons that turn men into frogs, Chacha Chaudhary kept up with the generation. In one of his interviews, Pran said that his comics intended to humour their readers and thus entertain; however, he also wants them to learn:
First, I make my readers laugh; when they open their mouth, I put my suggestion inside their mouths.
Old and new versions of Chacha Chaudhary have always taught the kids that every problem can be solved with intelligence; however, each issue or episode has its moral. For example, When a Rocket wins over Jumbo the elephant, it teaches the reader that size doesn’t matter. It addresses the bigger issue of bullying.
The tele-series follows the same format. The episode discussed above stresses the power of unity. Supervillain Raka, who had turned the great Sabu into a frog, was defeated because everyone unites together against him. While frog-turning guns are unrealistic, it is symbolic of the problem of weapons production and proliferation.
In the comic book issue about the Coronavirus, when Chaudhary reaches the hospital with Sabu during the pandemic, he spreads awareness about the virus and lessons of precautions. He instructs children about the importance of social distancing and using masks.
Chacha Chaudhary doesn’t wear a cape, cannot bounce bullets off his body, nor can he shoot lasers with his eyes. However, he is a hero for children in India because he fights everyday evil.
A frail old man clad in a black vest is the go-to for every man in his village, not because he has superpowers, but because he always finds a solution with his wisdom. Chacha is just a regular grandpa, but his speciality is his ‘supercomputer se tez’ brain, quick wits, and super muscular companion, Sabu, who always saves the day.
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