Tintin in Hindi

Tintin, Captain Haddock, Snowy, Professor Calculus--just some of the eminently loveable characters from Tintin comics.I've been reading them since ages,nee, since donkey's years, as they call it. And, still find them to be of great repeat value, even now.

Well, they're finally doing it-bringing out Tintin comics in Hindi. The heading of the article in HT Cafe some time back, says that the catchphrases are rib-tickling. So, what's in store?

For those who know Tintin comics(And, I'm sure nearly all of you have come across them at some time or the other), here's a glimpse:

Titles:

King Ottokar's Sceptre- Samrat Ottokar Ka Raj Dand
Cigars of the Pharoah- Misr Samrat Ke Sigar
The Broken Ear- Toota Hua Kaan
The Blue Lotus-Neel Kamal
The Crab with the golden claws Sunehre Punjo Wala Kedka
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Character names- Tintin and Haddock remain the same. Snowy's now'Natkhat', Thomson and Thomsum(The police detectives)are now Santu and Bantu
,Signore Bianca(the singer) is now Mallika Bianca.
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Some of the Captain's quotes:

Ten Thousand Thundering Typhoons :Dus hazaar tadtadate toofan
Millions and millions of squirming black turtles : Karodon karod Kasmasate kaale kachhue.
Great snakes: Baal Ki Khaal
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The best part- the price has been cut down to appeal to the readers.And, the translation is done directly from the French version, rather than the English one,by who else but, an ardent Tintin fan, Puneet.
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Coming back to the days when I was reading Tintin, may I proudly say that my entire collection has cost me no more than a total of @ 60 Rs. What happened is,in those days we had a number of books/mag sellers who'd sit on the pavements of Baroda city(Most of them are gone now). They were friendly with me, the
avid book reader(but naturally, since I was one of their best customers). There was some guy who would make squiggles in the first page of each book, and then sell it off in pasti(rubbish- I still can't believe it)- and, these guys would keep the issues for me...cost? A mere 2 Rs or 3 Rs, max.So, the collection built up totally over a period of six months.Can still feel the excitement I'd feel in those days, when I'd go to their 'street bookshop'. But then, I guess that deserves another full post.
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Till next time, keep smiling.