The India Comics Project in partnership with the French Embassy in India

Westland Books has issued an open call for submissions from artists for their new imprint dedicated to comic book adaptations of classic Indian stories from different languages, for publication in 2026-27. The intent is to create something new and exceptional: a series of 24 comics in English that would each be a graphic adaptation of a story/novella/novel originally written and published in one of the many Indian languages. 

Artists are invited to send their portfolios of published and/or unpublished work in pdf format, including drawings, illustrations, sketches and any other form of artwork that would help give the jury a real sense of the range and aesthetics of their work. They are welcome to send in collaborative work along with a writer, if they so prefer.

Submissions from the open call will be reviewed by a four-member jury. The jury will create a shortlist based on a set of criteria that include originality of content and style, effectiveness of composition, skill and craftmanship, use of colour and light, and clarity of expression. 

Shortlisted artists will be offered a publishing contract by Westland, the payment terms for which would include an advance as well as royalties on sales. Since the books are to be published within 2026-27, artists would be expected to create the work in collaboration with editors at Westland over a period of 8-12 months.

SUBMISSION REQUIRMENTS

• Cover letter with a summary of past and present work, motivation for applying to the project, ideas for adaptive work, if any (docs or docx preferred)

• Resume

• Portfolio, to be submitted as a single file in PDF format

• Links to website or social media, if any.

TIMELINE

Call for submissions: 18 August 2025

Submissions deadline: 1 September 2025

Jury shortlist and announcement: 19 September 2025

For queries or clarifications, please email vedika@pratilipi.com