Chronicles of a young animator who breathes life into characters that you can relate to

Teen life art Alan Pappy

Remember when we curled up to our televisions to tune into the world of shenanigans of Tom and Jerry or the spooky adventures of Courage the Cowardly Dog, when we vicariously lived the thrill of transforming into powerful alien forms of Ben Tennyson, fighting intergalactic villains or treading through new trails where Dora the Explorer took us through. Although being a medium which defies all laws of reality known to man, yet cartoons have always felt so real, it made one believe in the imaginary world where anything is possible, a world where one could escape to without a care for worldly problems. It allowed people to express a gamut of ideas, whether be it stupid or revolutionary.

For decades cartoons have inspired many to push their limits of imagination and enabled them to tell stories that they want to tell through this medium. Although animation being a great storytelling tool which has inspired many, animators, however, are not considered amongst the greatest of storytellers. Alan, a young promising animator from Kerala, is amongst the many who takes inspiration from the medium to tell stories that he believes in. Alan who grew up watching cartoons realized his knack for drawing and sketching at a very young age and amalgamated his skill with his innate desire to tell stories that he sees around himself. Drawing inspiration from cartoons he has grown up watching.

Alan's take on classical modern culture Alan Pappy

Alan’s interest in cartoons first sparked when he first saw the popular Cartoon Network show Ben 10, which featured unique illustrations of alien characters which he had never seen before. But then, later came Chota Bheem, a cartoon set in the Indian context, with Indian characters and a lore with Indian mythology, this made more sense to a young Alan as despite being a show with simplistic character designs, the cultural context is what appealed to him. However, it was his introduction to more complex forms of animated works that got him curious about the art form as with the arrival of movies like Cars, Kung Fu Panda, and various ads which amalgamated animated characters with live action ones, he now wanted to understand the process of creation that goes behind these projects.

“I remember, there was a 7 Up ad where the animated mascot interacts with live action characters around him and as a young kid who loves to draw and watch cartoons, it piqued my interest to new horizons. I wanted to create something like this and this is where my tryst with animation had begun,” says Alan.

Alan professionally took up an animation course after finishing his high school and graduated in the year 2023 but instead of taking up the conventional route of seeking for jobs, he is now working as a full -time content creator who puts up his own artwork and animations on Instagram. The idea of starting an Instagram page manifested when one of his friends who saw his artwork was deeply impressed by it and wanted him to share it to a larger audience.

A reel from Alan's Instagram Alan Pappy

Pushing the possibilities of the artform and reaching a wider audience, today Alan runs an Instagram page by the name of alanpappy which has over 90 thousand followers. On his page, Alan recreates popular pop culture references ranging from Fahadh Faasil’s Ranga to the Marvel’s Avengers, Alan has got it all covered, these are blended with his own unique art style. This has jolted him into popularity on Instagram as these artworks regularly go viral. But Alan’s talent goes beyond mere creating art, he uses his profound artistic skills to weave stories which are often considered to be largely mundane and go unnoticed by many.

He creates illustrations and animations of himself, which depict his real- life experiences and his daily struggles which his age contemporaries can relate to, the stories of a regular boy and his daily shenanigans. Through his art, Alan delves into the realm of teenage struggles which might rather seem trivial, but these are everyday situations that a teenager finds themselves in.

These stories have resonated with his Instagram audience as Alan now finds himself at a helm of community of artists who are inspired by his works. He says, “I have had people regularly commenting on my posts and sending me messages on my Instagram, expressing how they feel inspired by my works and this in turn motivates me to continue doing the work that I do. I feel Instagram as a platform has helped me as an artist to push the boundaries of my creativity and amplify my voice by increasing the reach of my art and enabling me to interact with other creators who constantly inspire me.” Alan, however, does not like the idea of a community of artists where people look up to each other, he feels an equal space where artists of varying skills ranging from photography to filmmaking, from art to singing where everyone exchanges ideas without there being a hierarchy, where people come together to create something that has never been done before, is where the future lies in as it will elevate the creative field within the country.

Teenage shenanigans Alan Pappy

Talking about the Indian animation industry, Alan says that animators in India still find themselves in the puddle of uncertainty as India has very few companies that primarily make animated films, making it harder for animators to find regular employment. He mentions, “India is still legions behind the United States of America which has stalwart companies like Pixar Animations, DreamWorks Animation or the Illumination Entertainment. Many of my friends, who are probably one of the best artists I know outsource their work from abroad or make the decision of settling abroad for work.”

Recent mainstream films like Aavesham, Vikram Vedha or Kalki featured animated sequences which received great reception from Indian audience. Alan talks about how this change in the industry excites him and other animators like him as it opens up the possibilities of Indian cinema moving more towards animated films which hasn’t been explored much in the Indian landscape.

“I was one of the artists who was approached for the animated sequence in Aavesham but things didn’t work out for me as I couldn’t be part of the project. It is, however, a great news that main stream cinema is now incorporating this art form and the cherry on top being the success of the film now proposes a future for animators to find more work in this industry.”

Like Alan there are several other creators who’s tryst with animation begun with the cartoons that we all have grown up watching and are constantly pushing themselves, perfecting what they do, bending their realities to present stories which they believe in, to be counted amongst the pantheon of great storytellers.