#panja

The website linked above contains a photo of Osamu Tezuka and information about the history of the Leo(Apparently, the face was modeled after Leo's father, Panja. Leo has black tips on his ears, while Panja has white tips.) mascot.

"In 1979, the Seibu Lions, starting anew in Tokorozawa, Saitama, needed a mascot that would capture the hearts of their fans. That's when Osamu Tezuka, who had ties to the Seibu Railway line, came to mind.

The Tokiwa-so apartment building, where young manga artists once lived together, was located in Shiinamachi along the Seibu Ikebukuro Line.

His subsequent workplace was also located near the Seibu line. And Tezuka had a major work, "Jungle Emperor," featuring a white lion named Leo as the protagonist.

Panja is a weaving technique from Haryana in India. It is mostly used for weaving light rugs called dhurries. It gets its name from a claw-like tool called panja which is used to beat the weft threads into the warp to adjust them there. Panja rugs are famous for their lightness and portability. They are made from cotton or wool or jute. The designs are usually geometric. In the past, when these rugs adorned the palaces of Rajasthan the designs were more elaborate and resembled Persian rugs, however, over time as demands increased and rugs became common for household use, the designs simplified into the distinct geometric form they are recognised for today.

Lotte Jungle Emperor Leo wafer chocolate stickers (2005)

Panjyamon is a reference to Panja from Jungle Emperor/Kimba the White Lion.

Talking about references I was thinking if Hououmon X-Antibody is a reference to Tezuka's Phoenix, but it's probably more of an inspiration from Fenghuang myth than from Tezuka's design.

And there is also Plutomon, I think it's more the general shape that gives me that impression, but it's probably not inspired by it directly either.

Look, it's Panja and Ekant again! I drew them once before but didn't post about it on all my socials, so you can read more about them here! I never thought I'd drawing them ever again... But now they're a bit older.