Testing the strength of humour

Now, a Punjabi superhero tries his luck in the Indian books market.

Think Punjab and what comes to mind? Tandoori chicken, Amritsari fish, the bhangra, phulkari, old fashioned Punjabi gallantry "" and Sikh jokes.

As for that combination of rustic courage and down to earth humour, no other community quite qualifies for top spot the way the Sikhs do. Don't believe us? Ask (Navjot Singh) Sidhu.

Or, now, Prashant Singh, a former investment banker with HSBC in UK and Fidelity Investments in Boston, who has created a fictional character, Ballay Shera, embodying these virtues in his short novel called what else but Ballay Shera.

Described by Prashant Singh as both "an Indian superhero" as well as an "Indian Harry Porter", Ballay Shera hits stores this weekend. Singh is hoping readers will be able to relate to a hero from their own milieu.

That the launch coincides with Lohri "" an important festival in Punjab "" is hardly coincidental, and Singh would like to go the whole hog with his hero from creating merchandise to films around the character.

In the book, Ballay Shera tries to get back the Kohinoor diamond from the British. The author has tried to highlight how sheer commonsense comes in handy to achieve self-determined goals.

Ballay Shera's magical powers come from a ring which has two stones, one of which turns the superhero into a humorous character, the other into a strong one.

The 18-year-old Sikh hero hails from a small village in Punjab.

Published in English and Punjabi, Singh hopes the book will find its way into language translations within the country. With more stress on novel teaching methodologies in progressive schools in India, such characters have tremendous potential, he says.

"We might tie up with educational institutes for the marketing of Ballay Shera merchandise," says Singh.

With the nascent publishing industry still unwilling to bet on superheroes or otherwise, Delhi-based Srishti has printed 5,000 copies of the adventures of Ballay Shera. Now let's see whether the superhero makes sales soar.