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Aruna (comics)
Encyclopedia
Aruna is a fictional supeheroine published by DC Comics
. She first appeared in Batgirl Annual
# 1 (August 2000), and was created by Scott Peterson
and Mike Deodato
.
. Her family were treated as Dalit
(untouchables) the lowest rung of the ancient varnas class structure still predominant in India. She was orphaned while still very young, when her parents were abducted by two unknown men. She adopted the name Aruna (after Aruna
, a male "Charioteer of the Sun" in Hindu
mythology), and eventually became one of the top stunt persons in India due to her shapeshifting abilities.
After a young Indian actor is kidnapped from the streets of Gotham City, Batgirl and Batman
travel to Mumbai
, India, home of Bollywood
, to solve the mystery of his abduction. The duo come into conflict with Aruna, a metahuman
stuntwoman who is also looking for the boy, who was discovered to have been murdered by his own agent. The agent was motivated to do so by his own prejudiced beliefs after learning that his client came from a Dalit
family.
At the conclusion of the story, Aruna decides to use her powers to fight for justice and stamp out intolerance
.
.
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. She first appeared in Batgirl Annual
Batgirl
Batgirl is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, frequently depicted as female counterparts to the superhero Batman...
# 1 (August 2000), and was created by Scott Peterson
Scott Peterson
Scott Lee Peterson , an American, was convicted of murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn child in Modesto, California, in 2002. Peterson's arrest and subsequent trial dominated the American news media until 2005, when he was sentenced to death by lethal injection...
and Mike Deodato
Mike Deodato
Mike Deodato , sometimes credited as Mike Deodato Jr., is the professional pseudonym of Brazilian comic book artist Deodato Taumaturgo Borges Filho.-Biography:...
.
Fictional character biography
According to Aruna, her shapeshifting powers manifested when she was very young. Because of this her parents were never sure of her true genderGender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
. Her family were treated as Dalit
Dalit
Dalit is a designation for a group of people traditionally regarded as Untouchable. Dalits are a mixed population, consisting of numerous castes from all over South Asia; they speak a variety of languages and practice a multitude of religions...
(untouchables) the lowest rung of the ancient varnas class structure still predominant in India. She was orphaned while still very young, when her parents were abducted by two unknown men. She adopted the name Aruna (after Aruna
Aruna
In to Hindu mythology and Hindu scriptures, Aruṇá or Aruṇ is a personification of the reddish glow of the rising Sun, which is believed to have spiritual powers...
, a male "Charioteer of the Sun" in Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
mythology), and eventually became one of the top stunt persons in India due to her shapeshifting abilities.
After a young Indian actor is kidnapped from the streets of Gotham City, Batgirl and Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
travel to Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India, home of Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
, to solve the mystery of his abduction. The duo come into conflict with Aruna, a metahuman
Metahuman
Metahuman is a term to describe superhumans in DC Comics' shared universe, the DC Universe. It is roughly synonymous with both mutant and mutate and posthuman in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. Use of the term in reference to superheroes was coined in 1986 by author George R. R...
stuntwoman who is also looking for the boy, who was discovered to have been murdered by his own agent. The agent was motivated to do so by his own prejudiced beliefs after learning that his client came from a Dalit
Dalit
Dalit is a designation for a group of people traditionally regarded as Untouchable. Dalits are a mixed population, consisting of numerous castes from all over South Asia; they speak a variety of languages and practice a multitude of religions...
family.
At the conclusion of the story, Aruna decides to use her powers to fight for justice and stamp out intolerance
Toleration
Toleration is "the practice of deliberately allowing or permitting a thing of which one disapproves. One can meaningfully speak of tolerating, ie of allowing or permitting, only if one is in a position to disallow”. It has also been defined as "to bear or endure" or "to nourish, sustain or preserve"...
.
Powers and abilities
Aruna is a metahuman who can change her physical shape and appearance at will, but not her mass. She is also trained in the martial arts. Aruna uses these abilities to work as a stunt doubleStunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
.