0:00:11.365,0:00:14.068 First of all, I really want to thank you 0:00:14.068,0:00:19.925 for letting me speak to TEDxGateway[br]in India about superheroes. 0:00:20.275,0:00:24.865 I wish I could be there in person,[br]but this is the next best thing. 0:00:25.035,0:00:26.818 I would really love to share 0:00:26.818,0:00:29.975 some of the things[br]I've learned over the years 0:00:29.975,0:00:34.865 and share them with any artists[br]and writers in India 0:00:34.865,0:00:38.215 who might be wanting[br]to create new superheroes 0:00:38.215,0:00:40.765 and new superhero adventures. 0:00:41.360,0:00:45.990 India has been on my mind a lot lately[br]because I've been working 0:00:45.990,0:00:50.660 with my good friend Sharad Devarajan[br]and with Graphic India 0:00:50.660,0:00:56.420 to create a new Indian superhero[br]named Chakra The Invincible, 0:00:56.450,0:00:57.970 who lives in Mumbai. 0:00:58.070,0:01:00.770 My goal with Chakra was really simple. 0:01:01.350,0:01:05.490 I wanted to bring an Eastern[br]concept, like the chakras, 0:01:05.530,0:01:08.760 to the Western world of superheroes. 0:01:09.468,0:01:14.775 And for me, superheroes[br]will always spark the imagination 0:01:14.775,0:01:18.615 of people around the world[br]regardless of their background, 0:01:18.635,0:01:23.255 because I think that people[br]are always looking for something 0:01:23.275,0:01:28.675 that represents the ideal person[br]or the ideal situation. 0:01:31.196,0:01:35.586 Almost all of us have loved fairy tales[br]when we were young. 0:01:35.908,0:01:40.198 Just remember stories[br]of giants and witches 0:01:40.198,0:01:42.368 and wizards and monsters 0:01:42.368,0:01:46.758 and things that were so colorful[br]and bigger than life. 0:01:47.218,0:01:52.238 But then, you get a little older[br]and you're too old to read fairy tales. 0:01:52.359,0:01:57.959 But you never outgrow[br]your love of that type of story. 0:01:58.864,0:02:00.684 And if you think about it, 0:02:00.684,0:02:06.504 superheroes stories today are really[br]like fairy tales for grown-ups. 0:02:06.814,0:02:10.984 The characters are bigger than life,[br]just like in fairy tales. 0:02:11.217,0:02:14.517 They have the same type of superpowers: 0:02:14.797,0:02:19.487 some can fly, some are extra-strong,[br]some can be invisible. 0:02:19.744,0:02:23.344 It gives the viewer and the reader 0:02:23.344,0:02:29.444 a chance to relive the excitement[br]he or she had when they were young. 0:02:29.574,0:02:33.268 They're really reading[br]fairy tales for grown-ups 0:02:33.288,0:02:38.008 when they read or when they see[br]superhero stories today, 0:02:38.018,0:02:40.648 and that's why I love them so. 0:02:41.571,0:02:45.036 To me, the human aspect of superheroes 0:02:45.036,0:02:48.601 has always been, perhaps,[br]the most important part. 0:02:48.601,0:02:55.393 By that, I mean: OK, we assume[br]your superhero might be extra-strong, 0:02:55.393,0:02:59.733 or might be able to fly[br]or run as fast as a comet, 0:02:59.733,0:03:04.383 but unless you care[br]about the superhero's personal life, 0:03:04.383,0:03:07.243 you're just reading a shallow story. 0:03:07.267,0:03:10.647 Just because a person has a superpower 0:03:10.647,0:03:15.457 doesn't mean he might not[br]have the same personal problems 0:03:15.457,0:03:17.317 that you or I might have. 0:03:17.367,0:03:19.547 Maybe he doesn't have enough money, 0:03:19.547,0:03:21.507 maybe he has a family problem, 0:03:21.507,0:03:23.907 maybe the girl he loves doesn't love him. 0:03:23.966,0:03:28.200 Or maybe the girl he loves doesn't want[br]to be involved with a superhero. 0:03:28.200,0:03:31.090 There are so many things you can think of 0:03:31.090,0:03:35.550 that round out the character[br]and the personality, 0:03:35.590,0:03:40.010 so the superhero isn't just[br]one or two dimensional. 0:03:40.029,0:03:43.200 You want a three-dimensional superhero 0:03:43.200,0:03:46.690 who lives and breathes and worries 0:03:46.690,0:03:50.655 and experiences things[br]just the way you and I do 0:03:50.655,0:03:54.725 except for the fact[br]that she or he has a superpower. 0:03:54.875,0:03:58.035 One thing I might mention, most writers - 0:03:58.035,0:04:00.705 and I think it's an unfortunate thing - 0:04:00.705,0:04:02.871 they try to write something 0:04:02.874,0:04:06.785 that they think a certain[br]audience might enjoy. 0:04:06.995,0:04:08.975 I've never been able to do that 0:04:08.975,0:04:13.515 because I can't put myself[br]in the mind of other people. 0:04:13.965,0:04:16.715 I only know what I enjoy, 0:04:16.715,0:04:19.635 so every time I've written a story, 0:04:19.635,0:04:23.005 I've always tried to write[br]the sort of story 0:04:23.005,0:04:26.265 that I, myself would enjoy reading, 0:04:26.265,0:04:29.905 a story that would interest me[br]while I'm writing it 0:04:29.925,0:04:32.985 as I'm waiting to find out[br]what happens next. 0:04:33.345,0:04:37.952 And I can't know what other people think, 0:04:37.952,0:04:40.672 but I can know what I think, 0:04:40.672,0:04:43.206 and I feel I'm not that unusual; 0:04:43.206,0:04:46.226 if there's a type of story I like, 0:04:46.226,0:04:50.806 there must be lots of people[br]who like the same type of stories. 0:04:51.047,0:04:56.283 Therefore, I have always[br]written to please myself, 0:04:56.283,0:04:59.703 not to please a certain type of audience, 0:04:59.979,0:05:06.009 because you can't know the audience[br]as well as you know yourself. 0:05:06.158,0:05:10.668 And if I write a story[br]that I'm enjoying while I'm writing it 0:05:10.668,0:05:13.651 and I can't wait to see what happens next, 0:05:13.651,0:05:18.371 then I'm hoping that a large[br]proportion of the public 0:05:18.371,0:05:21.321 will feel the same way,[br]and they'll enjoy it too. 0:05:21.321,0:05:22.691 So to sum it up, 0:05:22.691,0:05:28.071 I have always tried to please[br]myself, not other people, 0:05:28.071,0:05:31.041 and somehow, it seems to have worked 0:05:31.041,0:05:35.081 because I guess I'm not[br]that different than other people. 0:05:35.617,0:05:37.687 So, to wrap it up, 0:05:37.687,0:05:41.664 what I suggest is, use your imagination, 0:05:41.664,0:05:46.534 don't be afraid to come up[br]with the wildest thought in the world 0:05:46.534,0:05:51.056 if what you create is truly[br]different and colorful, 0:05:51.076,0:05:54.656 and if it's written well,[br]people will enjoy it. 0:05:54.656,0:05:56.156 Now when I say "written well," 0:05:56.156,0:06:01.306 what I mean is you might have[br]the most fantastic notion in the world, 0:06:01.306,0:06:05.926 suddenly you have a man who[br]can fly faster than the speed of light. 0:06:05.929,0:06:07.679 That could be interesting, 0:06:07.679,0:06:10.109 but you have to make him believable, 0:06:10.109,0:06:12.799 you have to give[br]the reader or the audience 0:06:12.799,0:06:17.669 some reason to think[br]he really has the ability to do that. 0:06:17.849,0:06:19.949 How did he get that power?[br] 0:06:19.949,0:06:23.941 Origins of superpowers[br]are always very interesting. 0:06:24.021,0:06:26.611 If you get the right origin, 0:06:26.611,0:06:31.831 like, for example, Spiderman[br]being bitten by a radioactive spider, 0:06:31.831,0:06:36.071 at least, then the viewer[br]has something to hold on to 0:06:36.071,0:06:40.202 and to say, "Well, it might have[br]happened, now I'll enjoy it." 0:06:40.202,0:06:42.373 So even though you're writing 0:06:42.373,0:06:45.752 what amounts to[br]a fairy tale for grown-ups, 0:06:45.752,0:06:49.092 try to keep enough facts 0:06:49.092,0:06:54.772 and try to give enough detail[br]that the reader or the audience will say, 0:06:54.772,0:06:56.897 "Well, it could have happened," 0:06:56.897,0:07:01.287 and then your public[br]goes along with the fun. 0:07:01.587,0:07:03.827 But if you make it too wild, 0:07:03.827,0:07:09.407 and you don't give any reason[br]why it is as wild as it is, 0:07:09.407,0:07:12.387 then sometimes it can be overkill. 0:07:12.597,0:07:17.887 So what I'm trying to say is,[br]let your imagination flow freely, 0:07:17.887,0:07:23.337 but always base what happens[br]on some sort of provable fact 0:07:23.337,0:07:27.047 so that the reader or the viewer[br]will go along with it 0:07:27.047,0:07:30.577 and enjoy it as much[br]as you enjoy writing it. 0:07:30.627,0:07:32.297 So good luck to you! 0:07:32.327,0:07:36.467 Thanks for listening[br]and I really enjoyed talking to you. 0:07:36.507,0:07:38.636 Excelsior!