PASHMINA - SerioComics 63 + Q&A with Author Nidhi Chanani
Should We Buy A Gun? is a BookLife "Editor's Pick" + I'll Be Tabling At The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books!
Should We Buy A Gun? is a BookLife “Editor’s Pick”
Happy to report that we got a really positive review from BookLife.
They even made SWBAG? an Editor’s Pick!
And compared it to
:)
I’ll be tabling at The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books 04/26 and 04/27!
It’s a really fun event.
And I’m so excited to participate and offer my books.
Come find me in the Orange section!
How I Met Nidhi Chanani
I met
via Substack!She has one called
.Which I’ve subscribed to and enjoyed.
So I reached out.
And she was able to carve out time for a really fun Q&A.
About her breakout debut Pashmina!
PASHMINA
Priyanka Das has so many unanswered questions: Why did her mother abandon her home in India years ago? What was it like there? And most importantly, who is her father, and why did her mom leave him behind? But Pri’s mom avoids these questions―the topic of India is permanently closed.
For Pri, her mother's homeland can only exist in her imagination. That is, until she find a mysterious pashmina tucked away in a forgotten suitcase. When she wraps herself in it, she is transported to a place more vivid and colorful than any guidebook or Bollywood film. But is this the real India? And what is that shadow lurking in the background? To learn the truth, Pri must travel farther than she’s ever dared and find the family she never knew.
In this heartwarming graphic novel debut, Nidhi Chanani weaves a tale about the hardship and self-discovery that is born from juggling two cultures and two worlds.
Nidhi Chanani
Nidhi Chanani is a freelance illustrator, cartoonist and writer. After completing her undergrad literature degree at the University of California at Santa Cruz, Nidhi pursued a career in non-profits. The desire to draw kept pulling her away and in 2008 she enrolled in art school (only to drop out a year later). In 2009 she began completing one illustration every day of the week. She called this Every Day Love and developed her narrative style and voice with three years of daily practice. This launched her art career and business.
Born in Calcutta and raised in suburban southern California, Nidhi creates because it makes her happy – with the hope that it can make others happy, too. In April of 2012 she was honored by the Obama Administration as a Champion of Change.
Her debut graphic novel, Pashmina (First Second/Macmillan), released in fall 2017. It received starred reviews in the School Library Journal, Publisher’s Weekly, and was reviewed in the New York Times. Pashmina was a Junior Library Guild selection, Chicago Public Library Best Book, Texas Maverick Graphic Novel, Northern California Indie Bookseller Association Long-List Title and a YALSA Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens.
Her second original graphic novel, Jukebox, released in June 2021 with a starred review in Booklist and glowing reviews in Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. Jukebox was a Texas Maverick Graphic Novel, Northern California Indie Bookseller Association Long-List Title and a YALSA Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens.
Her debut picture book, written by Bea Birdsong, I will be fierce, released in April 2019. She followed that with Binny’s Diwali, Kong and Me, and most recently, Strong which won the ALA Stonewall Honor. Her author/illustrator debut What will my story be? released in 2021. She is currently working on her next original middle grade graphic novel, Super Boba Café, as well as an early reader graphic novel series, Shark Princess.
Her media appearances include PBS, CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 and BBC Radio. Her work has been featured on NPR, Entertainment Weekly, Huffington Post, the Women’s March, My Modern Met and India Times. Nidhi is frequently a featured artist with Disney Parks. Her non-fiction comics have appeared in the Nib. Everyday Love Art prints and cards are sold in retail shops throughout California.
When she isn’t drawing Nidhi enjoys cooking, snorkeling and traveling with her kid. She lives San Francisco Bay Area.
Reality is two colors, Magical Realism is all of them!
I really enjoy the way Nidhi uses color in her graphic novel.
Reality is depicted in a two color with the white and a purple/gray.
But when the story breaks into Magical Realism.
There’s beautiful full color.
Fun Indian Mythology, Surprising Indian Contemporary!
As you can see above, there’s also a lot of fun Indian mythology.
Priyanka is an Indian-American.
Whose story is about going to India for the first time.
And it’s a joy to see her imagine it.
And then interesting to see her experience it.
The Pashmina Is Even More Than We Think It Is!
I won’t reveal the twists behind the magical Pashmina.
And surely there’s more than I can even explain.
But it’s a beautiful and effective device.
That isn’t as straightforward as it appears.
And keeps us engaged.
I ask Nidhi about it in our Q&A below!
Q&A with Author Nidhi Chanani
SerioComics Is the magical pashmina device rooted in Indian or Indian-American mythology or is it something you created?
Nidhi Chanani: I created it based on an experience of shopping in India with a friend. Dozens of shopkeepers were offering to sell us a pashmina and as the 12th person asked us why we didn't want to take a beautiful pashmina home, I wondered if there was a reason. Was it magic? That question lead me to more questions which resulted in the book.
SerioComics: Do you naturally write a balanced tone that's not too dark but still serious or do you hone your tone for a potential audience?
Nidhi Chanani: I love that you felt that tone in my books! I do think about balance a lot. It's similar in art and writing. I want to direct your attention but not overwhelm, I want to give space to the heavy parts of life with breathing room - whether it's a wordless page following a deep share or a moment of levity. Each story has a rhythm and I try to ensure that the reader can sense it but also remain surprised by it.
3. SerioComics: Do you want readers to think of Pashmina as at all semiautobiographical or do you prefer a fictional distance?
Nidhi Chanani: With Pashmina and all my work there's an element of semiautobio inside. These books are a huge part of me. My words, my art, my ponderings. Pashmina is the closest to a lived experience. However, I don't want to dictate what readers take away from my work - at the point that I put my work into the world it's no longer mine. They bring themselves to it and what I want or don't is irrelevant.
4. SerioComics: What can readers expect to enjoy when they subscribe to your Substack?
Nidhi Chanani: Short funny and autobiographical comics. I share updates, behind the scenes of author life and upcoming events but mostly I like to use the space to communicate through comics. It's where I'm stretching my non-fiction storytelling. Whether that's a comics soapbox about graphic novels or a rejected New Yorker single panel comic, I never know. It's whatever I have time for in the midst of all my deadlines.
5. SerioComics: What books can readers look forward to seeing next from you in 2025 or 2026?
Nidhi Chanani: Super Boba Cafe 2: Home Sea Home releases on September 23rd of this year! Yay! Next year the Year the Corgis Saved Christmas, which I illustrated and was written by the talented Sherri L. Smith will be released.
If interested, you can subscribe to Nidhi’s Substack!
Here’s some powerful recent content…
You can also visit her website to find more!