Kids

India’s quest for good animated content

Published

7 years ago

November 26, 2018

MUMBAI: If you don't give the audience what they want, someone else will. Kids' content producers and broadcasters have figured out that Indian kids want relatable and even local characters.

The OTTV Kids and Animation Summit 2018 saw a session on the making of home-grown characters with panelists Punnaryug Artvision founder Ashish Kulkarni, Toonz Media Group content alliance and partnerships SAARC Kishor Srivastav, Green Gold Animation chief strategy officer Srinivas Chilakalapudi, Graphiti Multimedia director and COO Munjal Shroff and Sony Yay head of programming Ronojoy Chakraborty. Dveo Media CEO Deepak Ramsurrun moderated the panel.

Highlighting more about the making of home-grown characters, Shroff said that it should keep kids engaged and enable them to dream about it. Adding to Shroff’s point, Kulkarni said that when he started, he had to look at the heritage characters as they didn’t have the liberty to use those projects in other countries because they didn’t have the support from government to produce original content. "There was support for content services but not for content creation. The challenge here is that we are struggling with budgets to create our original content. When you create a character, there are certain things to be taken into consideration. First is that kids don’t understand sequel. Second is that kids would like to see the same character that they relate to. So when you touch upon the heritage, you cannot create 150 episodes of repetitions. The start, middle and end of the story should be in that 11-22 minute episode and they should be able to find themselves inside the characters.”

Commenting on the same, Srivastav said that while creating original content, we need to see the channel’s feedback and proper research is to be conducted on industry trends and need gap. He added, “We consider the steal character while making an original content, which means, how the character speaks, what they wear and what effect they have on their storyline and background of the character is also important.”

Chakraborty chipped in saying that according to their research kids love remote control cars and that is why they came up with a show named Kicko and Super Speedo. He said that they also found out that that kids love funky hairstyles, clothes etc.

When asked about the aspects being considered while making a localised show, Kulkarni said people need to find new content. One should look at the economics, which plays a major role. The key to animation content is powerful idea, powerful character and the ability to tell hundreds of stories in the same plot.

“I have never sold my IPs to anyone till date; I only gave licensing rights to the channels. So it depends how you want to do it and why you want to do it. If you are selling the IPs, there’s a lot of creative people tampering with the content around. The dilemma that we have with this country and the struggle that we are facing since the last decade is that the price gaps of 22 minutes caps around Rs 12 lakh or Rs 20-25 lakh and that is the challenge to build quality content," he said.

Only if people are willing to fund animation will we see a future where Indian content is making waves abroad.

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Kids

Om Nom bites into India as Warner Bros. Discovery picks up the series

Published

3 weeks ago

January 20, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: The little green hero is making a big leap east. Zeptolab has struck a major distribution deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, bringing its hit animated series Om Nom Stories to audiences across the Indian subcontinent.

Under the agreement, Warner Bros. Discovery has acquired the series for exclusive Pay TV broadcast and non-exclusive digital streaming in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka. The move marks a significant expansion for Zeptolab as it pushes one of its most successful original IPs into one of the world’s fastest-growing entertainment markets.

As part of the deal, all 26 seasons of Om Nom Stories will be rolled out across Cartoon Network, Pogo, Discovery Kids and Discovery+, offering both linear and digital access to the franchise’s slapstick humour and expressive, dialogue-free storytelling.

“We’re incredibly excited to partner with Warner Bros. Discovery to bring Om Nom Stories to the Indian subcontinent,” said Zeptolab executive producer Manaf Hassan, noting that the broadcaster’s reach and legacy make it a strong fit for the series’ growing global fanbase.

Warner Bros. Discovery, meanwhile, sees the acquisition as a natural addition to its children’s portfolio. Warner Bros. Discovery head of factual entertainment, lifestyle and kids for South Asia Sai Abishek, said the series aligns with the network’s focus on cheerful, imaginative and universally appealing content for families across the region.

The timing adds an extra layer of significance. The expansion coincides with Om Nom’s 15th anniversary, underlining the franchise’s staying power and its evolution from a mobile game character into a global animation brand. With this latest bite at the Indian subcontinent, Om Nom’s adventures look set to find a whole new generation of fans.

Kids

Colour outside the lines Chhota Bheem sketches a new play with Faber Castell

Published

1 month ago

January 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: If childhood memories had a colour palette, Chhota Bheem would likely be right in the middle of it and now, quite literally, in children’s pencil boxes too. Green Gold Animation has announced a landmark licensing partnership with Faber-Castell India, marking the global stationery major’s first-ever licensed character collaboration. The association brings Chhota Bheem to a specially curated range of student art and creative products, blending everyday learning tools with one of India’s most recognisable homegrown characters.

The move is a notable expansion of Chhota Bheem’s footprint beyond screens, reinforcing the character’s status as a multi-generational IP that has steadily grown from a television favourite into a cultural constant. For Green Gold Animation, the partnership signals a sharpened focus on extending its intellectual property into daily touchpoints, where entertainment meets education and habit.

In its first phase, the collaboration will roll out Chhota Bheem-themed products across key student art categories, including watercolour cakes, wax crayons, poster colours, sketch pens, oil pastels and creative bundling kits. The range is aimed squarely at school-going children, tapping into Bheem’s strong emotional connect while encouraging imagination, creativity and hands-on expression.

Green Gold Animation founder and CEO Rajiv Chilaka noted that Chhota Bheem’s journey has long moved beyond episodic storytelling. He said the partnership reflects a deliberate attempt to embed the character into moments of learning and creativity, while building a more purpose-led licensing ecosystem around Indian IP through collaboration with a globally established brand.

From Faber-Castell India’s perspective, the tie-up marks a strategic first. Faber-Castell India director marketing Sonali Shah said the collaboration opens a new chapter by pairing the brand’s long-standing reputation for quality and safety with a character that already commands trust and affection among Indian children. The aim, she added, is to make creativity more engaging and relatable without diluting product standards.

The launch will be backed by a 360-degree promotional push, spanning digital campaigns, social media storytelling, creative usage content and on-ground retail activations across select markets. Both companies have confirmed that this is only the starting point, with additional Chhota Bheem-themed products across new categories planned in the months ahead.

Headquartered in Hyderabad, Green Gold Animation continues to scale its ambition of building globally competitive Indian IPs, with Chhota Bheem leading the charge. This latest collaboration suggests that the brand’s next phase of growth may be less about what children watch and more about what they create.

Kids

Sony tightens grip on Peanuts with $457 million stake buy

Published

2 months ago

December 22, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

JAPAN: Sony has doubled down on the power of legacy brands, snapping up a majority stake in the Peanuts intellectual property in a late-year deal valued at about $457 million.

Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment Japan have acquired the roughly 41 per cent holding in Peanuts Holdings LLC previously owned by Canadian children’s entertainment company WildBrain. The move lifts Sony’s ownership to 80 per cent, with the Schulz family retaining the remaining 20 per cent.

The deal brings one of pop culture’s most durable franchises, home to Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang, firmly under the Sony umbrella. The characters were created by Charles M Schulz, whose daily comic strip ran for half a century before ending in 2000.

Sony had already been a long-time partner in the business. The latest transaction consolidates control and sharpens the group’s hand as it looks to keep the characters front and centre across film, television, music and consumer products.

President and group ceo of Sony Music Entertainment Japan, Shunsuke Muramatsu, said the additional stake would allow Sony to further elevate the Peanuts brand by drawing on the group’s global reach and creative expertise, while preserving the legacy of Schulz and his family.

President and ceo of Sony Pictures, Ravi Ahuja, said the combined ownership gives Sony the ability to protect and shape the future of the characters for new generations, expanding their relevance without diluting their charm.

Peanuts long ago escaped the confines of the comic strip, cementing its place in popular culture through perennial television specials such as A Charlie Brown Christmas and It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. More recently, WildBrain kept the franchise active with animated series including Snoopy in Space and The Snoopy Show.

Now, with Sony firmly in control, the message is unmistakable. In an industry obsessed with the next big thing, nostalgia still sells and Sony is betting big on a doghouse that refuses to age.