Crunchyroll transformed Mumbai Comic Con into an anime celebration showcasing the medium’s explosive growth in India, bringing Japanese voice actor Taito Ban, A-1 Pictures producer Atsushi Kaneko, and legendary musician Hiroshi Kitadani to the Jio World Convention Centre for two days of performances, panels, and immersive fan experiences on May 9-10, 2026. The weekend’s centerpiece was a Solo Leveling panel featuring Ban, who voices protagonist Sung Jinwoo in the massively popular anime adaptation, alongside Kaneko and Hindi voice actor Rajesh Shukla in a session hosted by Vijay Vikram Singh that provided behind-the-scenes insights into the production.
The event delivered one of Mumbai Comic Con’s most memorable moments when Ban performed Sung Jinwoo’s iconic “Okiro” (“Arise”) command live on stage, triggering eruption from the crowd that demonstrated Solo Leveling’s cultural impact in India. Hiroshi Kitadani’s high-energy performance of “We Are!” from ONE PIECE transformed the venue into a massive anime singalong, while Crunchyroll’s booth offered dubbing experiences, DJ Kazu’s anime music sets, exclusive merchandise, and interactive installations celebrating titles like ONE PIECE and Suzume throughout the weekend.
Solo Leveling Takes Center Stage
The Solo Leveling panel represented a significant moment for Indian anime fandom, bringing together the Japanese and Hindi voice actors who give life to Sung Jinwoo across language markets. Taito Ban’s presence acknowledged India’s importance as a growing anime market where simultaneous multi-language releases have become standard practice for major titles like Solo Leveling, which streams on Crunchyroll with Japanese audio and multiple dub options including Hindi.
The special live dubbing performance featuring both Ban and Shukla performing iconic scenes in Japanese and Hindi simultaneously showcased the craft behind voice acting while celebrating India’s thriving dubbing industry. This format allowed fans to appreciate both the original Japanese performance and the Hindi localization that makes anime accessible to viewers who prefer watching in their native language, validating both versions as legitimate ways to experience the story.
Ban’s live delivery of “Okiro” (“Arise”), Sung Jinwoo’s signature command that summons shadow soldiers from defeated enemies, became an instant highlight as the audience recognized one of Solo Leveling’s most iconic moments. The crowd’s explosive reaction demonstrated how specific anime catchphrases and moments transcend language barriers to become shared cultural touchstones among fans worldwide. This single word performance encapsulated Solo Leveling’s appeal: the power fantasy of a weak protagonist transforming into an unstoppable force.
Producer Atsushi Kaneko’s participation provided production perspective on how A-1 Pictures adapted the popular Korean manhwa into one of 2024’s most successful anime series. His insights into animation decisions, pacing choices, and visual direction helped fans understand the creative process behind adapting existing source material for a new medium.
Hiroshi Kitadani Delivers ONE PIECE Energy
Legendary musician Hiroshi Kitadani’s performance of “We Are!,” the original ONE PIECE opening theme that has defined the franchise for over two decades, created a communal singalong moment that united fans across age groups and backgrounds. The song’s enduring popularity reflects ONE PIECE’s multi-generational appeal and its status as anime’s longest-running and most successful franchise globally.
Kitadani’s setlist included additional beloved anime tracks from his extensive catalog, turning his appearance into a comprehensive celebration of anime music’s emotional power and cultural significance. His high-energy stage presence and interaction with the crowd transformed a concert performance into participatory celebration where fans became active contributors rather than passive observers.
The decision to feature both a contemporary hit like Solo Leveling and an enduring classic like ONE PIECE demonstrated Crunchyroll’s understanding that Indian anime fandom encompasses both longtime devotees who grew up with earlier generations of anime and newer fans discovering the medium through current releases.
Interactive Experiences and Community Building
Crunchyroll’s booth served as the event’s anime hub, offering hands-on experiences that went beyond passive consumption. The anime dubbing experiences allowed attendees to record their own voices performing character dialogue, providing insight into voice acting while creating personalized souvenirs. This interactive element transformed fans from consumers into temporary creators, deepening engagement with the medium.
DJ Kazu’s anime music sets maintained constant energy throughout the weekend, curating familiar openings, endings, and insert songs that triggered recognition and nostalgia while introducing attendees to tracks from series they might not have watched yet. The DJ format allowed seamless transitions between different anime and eras, creating musical journey through the medium’s history.
The Ani-May collaborative thread art installation invited fans to contribute to a growing artwork throughout the weekend, visualizing community through collective creation. This participatory art project resulted in a physical artifact representing Mumbai’s anime community while giving individual fans ownership stake in something larger than themselves.
Interactive experiences inspired by ONE PIECE and Suzume provided photo opportunities and immersive environments that brought iconic anime locations and moments into physical space. These installations served dual purposes: creating shareable social media content that extended the event’s reach beyond physical attendees while providing memorable experiences for those present.
