Comic Con returns, brings gaming gold, cosplay charm

HYDERABAD: The atmosphere at the Hitex exhibition centre in Hi-Tec City was electric on Saturday as Comic Con Hyderabad returned to the city after a three-year hiatus. Fans and enthusiasts came together to celebrate their shared love for comics, anime, manga and popular art.

The excitement was palpable as enthusiasts young and old engaged in various activities, including experiences from Crunchyroll, and Maruti Suzuki. Stalls selling merchandise and displays representing all fandoms were overflowing with people fondling character figurines and trying to buy souvenirs.

Speaking about the thrilling weekend celebration, Comic Con India founder Jatin Varma, said: “This is our biggest show in the city yet, showcasing the best of Indian comics, fan experiences, cosplay, gaming, geeky shopping and so much more. I look forward to welcoming the fans back.”

Returning to Hyderabad with a bang, Comic Con has been a much-awaited treat for many enthusiasts, including those who attended the convention for the first time. One among them was city-based 25-year-old Chinmayee. “I was a bit apprehensive about this year’s chapter. But it turned out to be a great experience,” he added.

This year’s Comic Con Hyderabad chapter is also debuting ‘The Arena’, a dedicated gaming expo, that features daily tournaments, gaming experiences and meet-and-greet with streamers. Budding gamers got the opportunity to experience gaming on high-end PCs set up by different brands for the purpose.

COSPLAY MAGIC

Fans were also captivated by the various cosplayers at the event. The halls of the exhibition centre were packed with anime enthusiasts cosplaying Akatsuki members, Lufi, Zoro with his three swords, Goku and many more. Not just anime, Blue Beetle, Deadpool, a ‘multiverse’ of Spiderman were also part of the huge crowd.

Fans queued up to interact and take pictures with the artists who were cosplaying as their favourite characters. The event attracted both novice and professional cosplayers.

One such cosplayer was the makeup artist Tejal Mulik who has been cosplaying for the past five years. Cosplaying as Sage from popular online-shooter game Valorant, she explained how she made her costume from scratch. “I’m not much into games but I have always been mesmerised with Valorant agent Sage. It took me three weeks to make the costume. I used foam, fabrics, and chocolate mould for the props,” she said.