22 Apr 2015

The first issue of a funny yet conservative comic book geared towards stimulating humour among readers has hit the shelves.  

Apply Pressure is a comic book derived from four friends who liked passing jokes at school.  This is how the concept was born and the creation of the book came about.

Tumelo Mathe, who is the mastermind behind the creation, rallied behind his friends to put the book on paper and Apply Pressure comic book was created.

He said it was hard to get the five friends together because they had all dispatched to different tertiary institutions, but they met again in 2013, and started hanging out and jotting down pieces of material to include in the book.

The book is a hilarious day to day activities of Batswana, and it is conducted in street language or sepantsula as it is commonly known to appeal to a younger audience, with the youth being the target group.

The five page booklet is structured in a way that the characters are in a dialogue between groups of friends who are entirely fictional. One of the brains behind the book, Thuso Morake, mentioned that it is geared towards promoting young and upcoming business for the youth as it offers an advertising strip.

He added that, “The front cover has an advertising space with strips for advertising; even the characters have placements where an outsider, company or clothing label can be put in the book.”

Botho David, who is one of the directors, is in charge of graphics, adverts and sketches, while Mathe is both a director and script writer. The main characters in the book, Hova, Situation, Arafat, Kudjoe and others are for illustration purposes.

The first issue has printed 5 000 copies and each copy sells for P3.50 at the Main Mall and University of Botswana once a week. The book will soon be availed to all major villages and towns across Botswana. Morake said, the book narrates social experiences and everyday events in a humorous way. 

“We are putting humour and at the same time trying to make sure companies through advertising have maximum brand impact,” he said. He said some have welcomed the initiative while others do not understand its concept. ENDS