Holiday special

With an array of new shows,on-air contests,ground activities and big rewards,kids channels are going all out to lure little ones this summer

With an array of new shows,on-air contests,ground activities and big rewards,kids channels are going all out to lure little ones this summer
Hooray,hooray its a holi holiday,sing a summer song,skip along,holi-holiday…. Yes,most schools are shut or will close latest by mid-April. As their dreaded exams get over,children across the country are looking forward to stashing their books away and enjoying the summers holidays. But if theres anyone even more excited about the holidays,its the kids channels that want to cash in on the summer break. From launching new shows,fresh episodes of popular shows,movies,contests to sponsoring international trips and on-ground activities,channels are leaving no stone unturned to grab attention of the whopping 350 million kids in India.

As Nina Elavia Jaipuria,Senior VP and GM,Nick India says,This is a very important period for us. We foresee our viewership growing by 10 to 20 per cent. There is a phenomenal rise in the time children spend watching our channel. It actually doubles,going up to over 200 minutes. Avers Devika Prabhu,Head of Programming,Walt Disney TV International (India),Typically the viewership goes up by over 20 per cent and kids television viewing is at its peak. Whats more,parents really dont mind. The prime-time of kids viewing also expands significantly allowing us to offer more content.

Monica Tata,Vice President and Deputy General Manager – Entertainment Networks,South Asia,Turner International India,shares data of Cartoon Network and Pogo for the year 2009, proving the tremendous rise in viewership. In January,February and March 2009,CN was viewed on an average by 19.1 million kids every month. This went up to 20.7 million kids every month in the summer months of April to June 2009. For Pogo,there was an even more significant increase in viewership – from an average of 16.7 million per month Jan – March 09 to an average of 18.4 million kids per month viewing Pogo in the summer months of April – June 2009, informs Tata. The data is sourced from TAM,all India kids 4-14.

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With that kind of spike in viewership,is it any wonder that channels meticulously prepare a special line-up for summer? Premiering this month on Cartoon Network are new episodes of popular shows such as Billy Mandy Aur Life Mein Haddi,Ben 10: Alien Force,Winx Club (series 4). The star attractions on Pogo include new episode launches of The New Adventures of Hanuman,MAD Make It Easy Season II,animation series Maruti Mera Dosst and a new show called Wonder Bevil.

Disney has introduced a theme celebration titled Superstars Summer,which will feature a new Disney star every week. It will kick off with popular pop star,Hannah Montana and showcase new episodes of the show from April 26. A new property Big Bada Boom will have other tweens – Tara,Murtaza and Zain hosting shows,which will essentially be a fun zone with games,trivia on popular shows and music. New episodes/seasons of on-going shows like Wizards of Waverly Place and Phineas And Ferb will also be introduced. Two new shows Ek Tha Jungle (starting April 5) based on the popular Tamil literature Thirukkural and an international animated series Jungle Junction will be launched this season.
It has recently acquired Feluda – The Kathmandu Caper the first ever animated TV movie based on the famous detective series – Feluda,written by Satyajit Ray. The 60 minute movie is scheduled to air in May,though the date is yet to be finalised.

Nick is attempting a new genre with Kung Fu – Master Of The Zodiac,the teasers of which are already on air. Based on Chinese folklore,the shows protagonist Hoffen is a reincarnation of a God called Polaris who has to fight a evil demon Year Devil for which he has to learn the martial art Kung-Fu. He has 12 animals to help him,which represent the zodiac signs. There is a lot of humour in it and we are expecting a lot of traction on it, says Jaipuria. May will see new episodes of their popular Ninja Turtles besides two movie premieres Yeh Hai Chakkad Bakkad Bumbe Bo and Gili Gili Atta.

Disney will be showcasing Pixar movies like A Bugs Life,Meet the Robinsons and the latest adventures of Buzz Lightyear and Woody in Toy Story 2. Desi movies Jaane Tu..Ya Jaane Na,Singh Is Kinng and Chandni Chowk To China are also lined up in these two months. While Disney XD,the channel that is focussing on boys with shows on sports,technology and gaming will present Red Hot Heroes Of Summer,Aaron Stone and Zeke & Luther and new shows Little Moonlight Rider and Kick Buttowski. Cartoon Network and Pogos special movie block Popcorn and Lights Camera Bada Cinema respectively will feature Bal Ganesh 2,Chhota Bheem Aur Krishna and Meerabai Not Out among others.

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Hungama TV,which is positioned as a fun channel is set to give its viewers Hungamental Holidays with new episodes of all time favorites Doraemon,Kiteretsu,Shin Chan and Genie Family. Then theres Hungamental Excuse Me Please,a funny take on regular things. A new show Robotan is scheduled to launch soon.

Last but not the least,channels are starting the summer blitzerkieg with numerous on-ground activities and interactive contests on air that will talk to the kids directly with mind-boggling prizes. Nick will be giving away cars and taking children on international trips to London besides hundreds of other small prizes. Incentives work very well with kids. Sometimes small gratifications help and sometimes big gratifications are necessary, says Jaipuria. Believing in the touch-feel-play concept,Nick will have mobile vans going to different places and give kids the Nick brand experience. Hungama will hold Hungamental Krazy Karaoke Mega Singalong Marathon and the best krazy karoake singer will get a chance to feature in a special music video on the channel. Disney is handing out 1001 prizes for answering questions aired on the channel. Their big-ticket prizes include (hold your breath!) a trip to Disneyland,a hotair balloon ride and a chance to air in a video,both separately,with the cast of a show.
An interesting line-up,interactive shows and tempting prizes,looks like kids are in for a delightful summer. Dont you wish you were back in school too?