Sunit Haldar draws cartoons at home. Picture by Gopal Senapati

Those who follow news on TV are familiar with this hack, who regularly reports from Howrah. Sunit Haldar, by profession, is a reporter from the district, who has a nose for news and an itch to interpret it in satire. The backpack on his shoulders contains among other things a pen, a pencil and Chinese ink. With these tools, he creates illustrations that make a mocking commentary on political or social issues.

Sunit, if given a choice, would have been an illustrator and cartoonist in newspapers and magazines. Before he joined TV, he was a cartoonist and had columns in many dailies, where he made illustrations and caricatures commenting on current issues. Sunit started off as a pocket cartoonist and illustrator of political news from 1995 in Amritabazar Patrika in the column titled Punchline. Later, he also started drawing cartoons for Business Economics, Cine Advance and Dainik Vishwamitra. His pocket cartoons featured daily in In Jest in Business Economics and in Ulta Pulta in Cine Advance. “I usually liked to draw on political and economic issues, although I also had to draw on films and entertainment in Cine Advance,” said Sunit.

Sunit’s fascination with cartoons started when he was in college. He would carry comics books to his science classes and read them surreptitiously. “When I was doing my MSc, I got to see some of R K Laxman’s books. I was inspired by his work. After that I would regularly follow the daily newspapers. I would read Anandabazar Patrika to follow Kutty’s cartoons,” said Sunit.

He learnt how cartoonists interpreted political news or events with humour. He also followed international cartoonists, whose works featured once a week in The Statesman. “I realised that brevity and humour were the key ingredients of a cartoon. I would often draw cartoons on my own. Then I started approaching newspapers with my work,” said Sunit.

While working in Amritabazar Patrika, Sunit took part in a cartoon competition for amateurs organised by Hindustan Times. He won a merit certificate there. “I was a self-taught artist. I would read and see and interpret on my own. When I won the merit certificate, I gained a lot of confidence,” said Sunit. In 1999-2000, Sunit introduced his own comic strip in a daily, Pratahik Sambad. “I introduced a school girl called Munni who would comment on present issues,” said Sunit.

Pursuing a career in the electronic media has only taken away Sunit’s time. “I had to take up this job in 2001 because I was left with no choice. There was no money for cartoonists and after a point, it became important for me to get a proper job,” said Sunit. He, however carries the ink and pen with him all the time so that he can sketch whenever he gets the time or an idea suddenly strikes.

Sunit has, this year, published a compilation of his political illustrations in a book titled Banka Chokhe. He is working on children’s cartoons. He has started a series on Futoosh, a frog. “I have completed two storyboards,” he signed off.

More about Sunit

• DoB: June 1, 1968
• Born in: Howrah
• Education: MSc
• Family: Father, brother, wife
• Loves: Photography
• Hates: Hypocrisy, child labour