Target (magazine)

{{Short description|Indian children's magazine}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2019}} {{Use Indian English|date=February 2019}} {{More citations needed|date=January 2017}} {{Infobox comic book title|  title = Target | schedule = | format = | publisher = Living Media India Ltd. | date = 1979-1995 | main_char_team = }}

'''''Target''''' was a popular Indian children's magazine that was published monthly in English from 1979 to 1995. It featured a mix of reader contributions, stories from regular writers, do-it-yourself articles and several popular comic strips.

== History == In September 1979, Rosalind Wilson (1942 – July 28, 1992), a British expatriate educationist settled in Delhi started ''Target'' and became its founder-editor.<ref>{{cite book|author=Naiyer Masud|title=The Myna from Peacock Gardern|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z9e7H10qRGUC&pg=PA98|accessdate=29 July 2016|year=2010|publisher=Katha|isbn=978-81-89934-64-4|page=98}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.katha.org/leadership/|title=Board of Directors 1 » Our Founding Members » Katha|last=|first=|date=|website=Katha|language=en-gb|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-01-12|quote=Teacher, journalist, editor… Rosalind Wilson was all these, and more. She was a student at Oxford University in the 1970s after which she came to India and began by teaching in Delhi. Her heart was always with children and when Target was launched, she joined as one of the editors}}</ref> The magazine was owned by Living Media, who also own the India Today Group. After Rosalind Wilson's death in 1992, the magazine's publication continued under Amena Jayal with its successful formula of stories and illustrations.

In 1995, in a move to target a larger age group, India Today Group wound up ''Target'' to start ''Teens Today'' magazine. This move was a failure, because, with its emphasis on fashion and urban life, ''Teens Today'' did not have the wide appeal of the unpretentious ''Target''. ''Teens Today'' was edited by Target old-timer Vatsala Kaul.

== Content == ''Target'''s outstanding production values as well as the quality of cartoonists and writers on its editorial board made it stand out from other contemporary Indian children's magazines<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tcj.com/comix-india-and-the-indo-manga-connection-an-interview-with-bharath-murthy/2/|title=Comix India and the Indo-Manga Connection: An Interview with Bharath Murthy {{!}} - Part 2|last=Holmberg|first=Ryan|date=May 6, 2013|website=|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-01-12|quote=It had an unusually high standard of illustration, unmatched still now by any other children’s magazine. The quality could compete with any adult magazine. Many of the most interesting illustrators in India started their careers there}}</ref> like Tinkle, Champak and Chandamama.

A popular feature in ''Target'' was pages with information on international pen friends. In the age before email revolutionised communication, having pen friends was a popular hobby, both for the purpose of knowing about the world at large, and collecting stamps from foreign countries.

Some of the popular comic strips published in ''Target'' were: * ''Gardhab Das'' by Jayanto and Neelabh * ''Detective Moochhwala'' and ''Funny World'' by Ajit Ninan<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lambiek.net/artists/n/ninan_ajit.htm|title=Ajit Ninan|website=Lambiek.net|access-date=13 September 2023}}</ref> * ''Granny's Gupshup'' by Praloy Chakrovorty and Joygopal Podder and others * ''It Happened in History'', written by Renuka Narayanan and illustrated by Suddhasattwa Basu * ''Science News'' illustrated by Priya Nagarajan and others

== Contributors == === Writers === * Dilip Salvi * Sigrun Srivastava * Ruskin Bond * Geeta Dharmarajan * Jacquelyn Singh * Joygopal Podder * Mala Marwaha (author and illustrator) * Margaret Bhatty * Meera Govil * Meera Uberoi * Paro Anand * Ramaa Isvaran * Renuka Narayanan * Roopa Pai<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://bengaluru.citizenmatters.in/694-heritage-walk-writer-roopa-pai-694|title=Talking the walks|last=Dasharathi|first=Poornima|date=2008-12-18|website=Citizen Matters, Bengaluru|language=en-GB|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-01-12|quote=... we moved to Delhi; that’s when I started writing for Target. I enjoyed those days and writing for children is what I’ve loved best}}</ref> * Rupa Gupta * Subhadra Sengupta * Swapna Dutta * Vijaya Ghosh (associate editor)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/society-the-arts/media/story/19850815-rajiv-gandhis-interview-by-children-turns-out-to-be-a-landmark-programme-on-doordarshan-770282-2013-12-31|title=Rajiv Gandhi's interview by children turns out to be a landmark programme on Doordarshan|last=Sethi|first=Sunil|date=August 15, 1985|website=India Today|language=en|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-01-12|quote=Target's Editor Rosalind Wilson and Associate Editor Vijaya Ghosh selected the children at random by telephoning school principals to ask for nominations|first4=2014 15:53}}</ref> *Viswajita Das *Vatsala Kaul (associate editor)

=== Illustrators === * Ajit Ninan (made the ''Funny World'' and ''All in Fun'' cartoon pages) * Jayanto Banerjee * Neelabh Banerjee * Suddhasattwa Basu (creator of India's first animated cartoon series, Gayab Aya) * Praloy Chakrovorty * Sujata Singh * Manjula Padmanabhan (author and illustrator)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tcj.com/comix-india-and-the-indo-manga-connection-an-interview-with-bharath-murthy/2/|title=Comix India and the Indo-Manga Connection: An Interview with Bharath Murthy {{!}} - Part 2|last=Holmberg|first=Ryan|date=May 6, 2013|website=|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-01-12|quote=Manjula Padmanabhan, one of the few woman cartoonists in India. She did a lot of illustrations for Target}}</ref> * Priya Nagarajan * Atanu Roy (illustrated the "HA! HA!" jokes page)

== References == {{Reflist|2}}

Category:1979 establishments in India Category:1995 disestablishments in India Category:Comics magazines published in India Category:Children's magazines published in India Category:Defunct magazines published in India Category:English-language magazines published in India Category:India Today Group Category:Magazines about comics Category:Magazines disestablished in 1995 Category:Magazines established in 1979 Category:Magazines published in Delhi Category:Monthly magazines published in India