TGIF.
Okay, so I want to start off by saying thank you to everyone who has viewed/liked/followed our blog and submitted things to us to post. We started this blog to build a community of writers and bloggers who all want to share their opinions and interests and learn a little something new about this psychotic little ball of dirt we call Earth.
I’m going to talk about a couple of things today and the first thing I want to share with you is something that is pretty close to my heart: COSPLAY.
Having originated in Japan, Cosplay is short for ‘Costume Play’ and the concept basically involves people dressing up as their favourite comic book/video game/movie/fiction characters and role-playing as them. Anyone can play any character, women can play men and vice versa and there are practically no limits to how much you can dress up. You can wear a hat to represent your character or go full-out in the costume they usually wear, but remember, the goal is to BE the character. You have to get down their walk, mannerisms and popular catchphrases.
For example Captain America right above has made a great effort to: A, source the costume and B, channel Steve Rogers for the goody-two-shoes patriot that he is. Just look at that neatly combed hair.
Sometimes you may not be able to source such a great costume, but it’s the sentiment that matters. Home-made means you really are committed, no matter the result. In fact a lot of cosplayers prefer making their own costumes as buying them from stores or online doesn’t always guarantee a great fit.
As you can probably tell I am obsessed with the Avengers, hence you’ll be seeing a lot of them on this post. Though my main object of worship happens to be Loki, I guess I can do with adding a couple of the others in.
Speaking of Loki, I think one of the best Loki cosplayers on YouTube happens to be the lovely Jenn Jones. In fact she’s one of the best cosplayers I’ve seen, hands down, even when it comes to characters other than Loki. She is the co-founder of Parle Productions, a group of cosplayers in the UK who are simply marvelous and portray several different characters in their videos on YouTube. They’re all about fun and entertainment and are such a lively bunch it makes you want to hug them all.
Now this is what Jenn looks like normally:
This is a video of her as Loki:
She has also portrayed Nick, from the videogame Left 4 Dead:
And Gambit from the X-Men comic books:
In fact the entire Parle team are extremely gifted at what they do:
Cosplaying is not just a hobby, it’s a part of our culture and somewhat quenches humanity’s thirst to be creative and showcase their talent. A lot of people argue that cosplaying is a part of theater as it involves costumes, tremendous play-acting skills and a whole lot of commitment and practice. Cosplay in India has only become popular in recent years, especially where cosplaying anime and comic book characters are concerned. You generally see a lot of cosplaying in Comic Cons around the world, some of the most popular being present at the San Diego Comic Con. However since India has begun it’s own Comic Cons in cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, the scene is definitely getting popular.
I attended the Comic Con Express in Bangalore in 2012 and it was incredible to see the number of people who had turned up in costume. Some had done a fabulous job on the costumes and others not so fabulous but everyone had a really great time. Incidentally, 2012’s Bangalore Comic Con was the first annual one in the city but had the most footfalls recorded at 25,000 people.
The Joker in this image was really wonderful and kept asking strange questions and laughing like a maniac. I had goosebumps while interacting with him.
In any case he, along with Jenn, have inspired me to cosplay in this year’s Bangalore Comic Con and I seriously can’t wait. I bought a wig for a character I’m thinking about playing, but I still might change my mind and choose another character. The possibilities are endless.
I’m so sorry for the overdose of images today, but cosplay excites me so much I can’t control it! So have any of you guys cosplayed before? If not, do you think you might want to try it out this year, and if you do what character would you want to be? Do comment and let me know! I’ve found some really good DIY costume/make-up videos for you in case you’ve always harboured a little dream to be the Black Widow from the Avengers or if you have a thing for Loki {which I most certainly do). If you want to search for other characters’ costumes, you can buy them on the internet or watch a DIY video on YouTube.
So here’s a DIY Black Widow costume:
I also have a Loki make-up tutorial (because I love him) for you which will turn the girliest of girls into the very menacing God of Mischief. I will definitely be trying this one out… once I have enough money to buy make-up. My addiction for shopping has reared its ugly head and has left me quite broke.
I wish you all the very best in your future cosplay adventures and sincerely hope you send me photos if possible of yourselves in costume. If you’re thinking about attending the Bangalore Comic Con Express this year, please do come because I’ll definitely be there and we can hang out and take pictures and stuff. Remember, “All the world’s a stage…”
*Credits for the photos of Parle Productions and Jenn Jones go to their respective owners. Thanks so much. You guys really are lovely.
*All photos (other than the one of myself in the white wig) don’t belong to me. Credit to the photographers. : )
Mango Mustache 