‘Ms. Marvel’ Star Iman Vellani Makes Solo Comics Writing Debut With ‘Chachu’
Iman Vellani, known for playing Kamala Khan in “Ms. Marvel,” will make her solo comics writing debut with “Chachu,” a five-issue neo-noir miniseries illustrated by Marianna Ignazzi and colored by Jordie Bellaire, set for release from Image Comics and Tiny Onion on Aug. 5.
Set in 1979, the series follows Leila, a 19-year-old Pakistani-Canadian young woman with a love of film and pulp novels who travels to California to reconnect with her estranged uncle – a semi-retired private eye once celebrated for having married the starlet he was originally hired to find. When that same wife vanishes again, uncle and niece find themselves on an unplanned road-trip investigation, one that pushes Leila’s first taste of adulthood into a reckoning with family secrets and the myths both have built around their lives.
“I’ve always been deeply curious about comics as an art form because of their capacity to hold contradiction – arguably better than any other medium,” Vellani said. “That became especially meaningful to me while writing Chachu, which grew out of this tension between mourning my youth while I still have it, and an incessant urge to come of age already.” Popular on Variety
Ignazzi, whose prior credits include “Exquisite Corpses,” illustrated the series alongside colorist Bellaire, whose recent work includes “Absolute Wonder Woman.”
“From the very first reading of Iman’s script, I could already picture this 70s world revealing itself through reflections in sunglasses and rearview mirrors, slowly emerging through cigarette smoke and neon lights,” Ignazzi said.
"I tried to capture Leila and Chachu’s journey through strong blacks and a graphic style that could still feel emotional and deeply narrative. Seeing my pages come to life through Jordie’s colors has been wonderful – she brought an incredible atmosphere, warmth, and cinematic depth to every scene.”
“It’s been an immense privilege to build my first original series alongside such an accomplished roster of collaborators, all of whom challenged and supported me in ways that made this book far better than anything I could’ve imagined on my own or in therapy,” Vellani added.
“Chachu” is being co-published with Tiny Onion, the independent production house founded by James Tynion IV, co-creator of “Something is Killing the Children” and “The Department of Truth,” which has been expanding beyond comics into film, animation, and video game development.
The first issue goes on sale at comic book shops on Aug. 5 with five cover variants, including incentive editions by Matías Bergara, Jacob Phillips, and Christian Ward. It will also be available digitally through Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.