Pratishodh Ki Jwala

Pratishodh Ki Jwala (प्रतिशोध की ज्वाला in Devnagari script; translation: Fire of Vengeance) is a 32 page single issue comic book story arc published by Raj Comics in April 1987. The issue is extremely notable in Indian comic book genre for introducing the comic book superhero - Super Commando Dhruva. The title was translated in English and published in June 2013 in trade paperback format by the name of The Vengeance.

Plot summary

Two muggers try to rob an old man at Rajnagar dock which is witnessed by a bird. The bird flies back to a guy wearing yellow and blue costume and reports him about the occurrence of the crime. Soon the two muggers hear the sound of a bike engine. They recognise this sound and know the guy to whom this bike belongs. They try to run away but the young guy catches them and beats them up. The old man thanks him and asks how he came to know that he was being robbed in this secluded place. To his amazement the young guy replies that a bird told him.

This young saviour of the old man is revealed to be a teen aged crime fighter and the captain of the Special Commando Force - Super Commando Dhruva. After this little incident, the origin story of Dhruva is revealed in a flashback sequence.

In flashback, Jupiter Circus is a popular circus located on the outskirts of Rajnagar. It has a team of world class performers, acrobats and artists which includes Shyam and Radha, the trapeze artists. They fall in love and get married. Within a few months, Radha gives birth to their first kid, a baby boy. Shyam names him Dhruva. Growin up among circus's pet animals and a barrage of world class performers, Dhruva not only learns their arts to perfection but also learns to communicate with animals and birds. At the age of 14yrs, he starts performing in Jupiter Circus.

Buoyed by Dhruva's stunning performances, Jupiter Circus scales new heights of success becoming an eyesore for the rival Globe Circus's owner, Boss, in the process. He hatches a conspiracy against Jupiter Circus and sends his strongman Jubisko and a sharpshooter Bond to destroy Jupiter Circus. In the middle of the night, when everyone was fast asleep, Jubisko pours petrol all over Jupiter Circus and lights it setting the whole circus in flame. Shyam catches him in the act and tries to stop him, but Jubisko kills him in front of Dhruva's eyes and runs away in a car. Dhruva tries to chase them on his bike but Bond shoots his bike's tyre and Dhruva gives up the chase.

Dhruva returns to Jupiter circus only to find out every living creature, humans and animals, charred to death. Enraged, Dhruva vows revenge and reaches Globe circus. In a series of events, all the three perpetrators die their own deaths. Later, Rajnagar's Senior Superintendent of Police Rajan Mehra informs Dhruva that Jacob, Jupiter Circus's owner, had nominated him as the beneficiary in the insurance policy that he had bought for the circus and as a result, Dhruva has inherited Rs. 50 lakh from the claim. Dhruva tells him that he has vowed to eliminate evil from this world and would use this money for this task. Impressed with his courage, Rajan Mehra, who has a small family consisting of his wife Rajni and a little daughter Shweta, decides to adopt Dhruva.

Publication

Pratishodh Ki Jwala has been reprinted in trade paperback format in following collected editions:

• DGST #48 Dhruva Digest 1 in 2011^[1]
• DELX #1 Nagraj-Pratishodh Ki Jwala Silver Jubilee Edition in 2012

Notability and popularity

Notability

This issue is extremely notable for introducing a popular Indian superhero Super Commando Dhruva. Apart from Dhruva, following significant supporting characters debuted in this title:

• IG Rajan Mehra
• Shweta Mehra

This title also marked the debut of some of the key elements in Dhruva series.

• Rajnagar - A fictional Indian city where Dhruva operates
• Dhruva's special motorbike

Although Dhruva's parents, Shyam and Radha, died when Jupiter Circus was destroyed in fire, both his parents as well as the circus itself appear sporadically throughout the Dhruva series in the form of pictures/projections, in flashbacks and in reality changing time travel related incidents. The events occurring in the comic book have served as the reference point in many subsequent Dhruva titles. Some of the characters that supposedly died in this comic were later revived to play significant part in subsequent titles. These characters include:

• Jubisko - revived in GENL #222 Bahari Maut
• Jacob - revived in SPCL #100 Khooni Khandan
• Boss - revived in SPCL #121 Jung

Popularity

This comic book has over the years acquired huge importance in Indian comic book genre for being the introductory title of a very popular Indian superhero - Super Commando Dhruva. In Feb 2012, writer and artist Anupam Sinha wrote on his Facebook wall - "the first book of my most successful character yet, which I made 25 years ago is still in print and sells! Thank you God for everything!"^[2]

References

External links

• Pratishodh Ki Jwala on comicvine.com