I was really happy when John Kao (author of Jamming) sent me the quote for my first book Under The Pyramid as: Under The Pyramid is India’s answer to Dilbert.”

It was his opinion where he felt that management cartoons being done by me were in the same genre as done by Scott Adams for his comic strip ‘Dilbert’. Many of my cartoons have Indian references. And the fact that I’m based in India prompted John Kao to think of the above quote for my book.

A few of my editor friends have told me: “why do you want to be compared against Scott Adams? Your cartoons are better than Dilbert!” And that’s their opinion. I respect the opinion of my audience and they are the best judges.

Do you like Dilbert strips? Why?

Yes, I like the humour of Scott Adams. As he also worked in the corporate set-up, he is more an observer of the management phenomenon than an artist. He also has captured the reality of corporate America very well. He has also made the management cartooning and management humour acceptable in the management circles.

Lampooning the serious “business” of life through cartoons… How far effective do you think is your chosen medium of communication?

All creative expressions are related to life around us. Lampooning is linked to satire and humour where serious creative thinking is involved. The response that it evokes is a simile in the mind, a chuckle or a burst of laughter.

You will see one meaning in a flash. Then when you reflect on a cartoon you will probably see a deeper meaning or layers of meaning.

Cartooning is a very effective medium of communication. I’ve moved from poetry to satire to cartoons. Whereas every art form has its inherent value, cartoons deliver more.

Edward de Bono, the lateral thinking guru has given tremendous importance to humour and cartoons. His foreword written for my two new books clearly underlines the importance of cartoons as one of the most effective ways of creative expression.

The question needs a complete book to answer. If I have to answer it in brief, let me say it just three points:

1. Business has gained respectability as a profession. It is a welcome sign. Corporate India needs to continuously build on this by doing the right things and projecting the right image.

2. Business needs people. People need business. This symbiotic relationship needs to be nurtured with a long-term view instead of short-term measures.

3. People are individuals with emotion and passion. People need respect. They need to express themselves as individuals. They need to grow. If all this is managed with creativity and care, business world can look forward to a better future.

Who are your favourite cartoonists and cartoon characters?

I look at all cartoonists and their work with a view to know more about them, about their thinking process, about their way of expressing an idea.
Among Indian cartoonists I have learnt by seeing cartoons of R K Laxman, Sudhir Dar, O V Vijayan and Shankar. I like the work of most of the cartoonists who are working today including Mario, Rajinder Purie, Sudhir Tailang, Ninan, Morparia, Ponappa ….the list is endless. There are many who work in Indian languages and are doing very good job too.

Among foreign cartoonists, I’ve seen and liked the work of David Low, Gerald Scarfe, Cummings, Jak, Trog, Hirschfeld and Lurie.
Among cartoon character, there are Calvin and Hobbes (by Bill Watterson), The Born Loser (by Art and Chip Sansom), Peanuts (by Charles Schulz) and Indian comic characters like Manu and Rishib (by Rajneesh) and Chacha Chaudhury (by Pran).

What books do you like to read? Today, I read non-fiction - mostly business and management books. I do try to pick-up different types of books once in a while. It could be a play, a book of poems, a book of cartoons or any book that catches my fancy. Would you like to see your cartoons on television someday? Or how about doing a series for television now? Management cartoons done by me are done essentially for print – newspapers, magazines and books. Nightingale, a premier stationery brand has been publishing a management dairy for the last five years. A few organizations have published desk calendars using my cartoons. Recently Om Katare of Yatri Theatre group did a play ‘Excuse Me, Boss’ based on the cartoons of my two new books. He now wants to take the play to business schools and management conventions. Television is a very powerful medium with very good reach. Today we also have business and new channels that need humour and cartoon content. If there is an exciting offer, I will definitely look at it!

Finally, a few words on Oxford Bookstore…

I visited Oxford Bookstore at Kolkata two years ago. I liked the store. Oxford Bookstore, Mumbai has a different ambience but the same feel. I like the idea of Oxford Bookstore doing a variety of events to reach out to the book lovers in a lateral way. It means doing not just regular book events like book-readings or panel discussions but things like organizing plays, interactive sessions and even this exhibition of my management cartoons to launch my two new books. This is true experiential marketing in a very positive way.