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Next month, your kinds won’t be shocked to have 40 thieves in your living room.
Alibaba, the latest animated series on Carton Network and the fifth Indian cartoon character on the channel’s new franchise Cartoon Theatre will be launched on July 27.
More recently, the channel acquired two other animated series namely Chota Birbal and Hanuman, which are expected to hit the airwaves next year.
Indian history and mythology have found their way into Cartoon Network’s programming, increasing the channel’s viewership to 18 million household, from 15 million a year ago.
The Indian toon saga started with Sindbad – Beyond the Veil of Mists launched in April 2002, followed by Pandavas – the Five Warriors launched in May 2002, both created by Chennai-based Pentamedia Graphics. Incidentally, Alibaba, also produced by Pentamedia, was nominated at the Oscars this year.
“I think Pandavas was very successful,” says Sumathi Sridharan, vice-president (Operations) at Pentamedia Graphics. “We’re negotiating the broadcast rights for two more productions, namely Son of Alladin and Buddha, with the channel.”
In an earlier statement, Ian Diamond, senior vice-president and general manager, Turner Entertainment Networks Asia Inc, said Cartoon Network’s aggressive localization strategy has led to strong growth in ratings and viewership.
The Adventures of Tenali Raman, the witty folklore character in Krishnadevaraya’s court, was recently launched on June 14. It has been produced by Hyderabad-based Toonz Animation. “I think introducing Indian characters has been a great outlet, though the series occupies a fraction of the total volume of animation on the network,” says Ram Mohan, co-director of Ramayan – the Legend of Prince Ram, which also went on air on the channel last year.
Just Kids on Sahara Manoranjan is another slot that features Jungle Books as a part of its Indian programming. “I definitely think that Indian-based characters have a high viewership,” says Ashok Aggarwal, commissioning editor on Just Kids.
As film-maker Sai Paranjpye sums
up, “Just like fast food, Indian character-based comics are fast read and
animation is taking them a step further. I think it’s wonderful to have
historical and mythological characters on TV now.”
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