Does Children's Television Make Business Sense in India

DOES CHILDREN”S TELEVISION MAKE BUSINESS SENSE IN
INDIA?
Project submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for
Master’s in Communication Management
by
Sashank Kini
Submitted to
Flame University, School of Communication
March, 2016

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgement .............................................................................................................. 5
Background To the Topic………………………………………………………………………….7
Literature Review……………………………………………………………………… 13
Methodology……………………………………………………………………………..26
Data Analysis, Results and Discussion…………………………………………………..28
Conclusions, Limitations and Scope For Further Research……………………………...49
Appendix and Bibliography……………………………...................................................57

Acknowledgements
I am a greatly drawn towards subjects that stoke my curiosity – movies, paintings, poetry,
literature, pop culture, television among others. They are in my opinion the most potent sources
of an individual’s growth. They impinge on our (hectic) times and, in poet William Davies’
words, make us ‘stand and stare’. We turn more reflective, more observant towards life, the
myriad relationships we have formed, the tumult of emotions we have experienced, the lessons
we’ve learnt along the way. Therefore, I extend my deepest regards to all those filmmakers,
artists, writers, celebrities and entertainers from around the world who have over time created
such a rich heritage for their successors, to inspire them to build a better future.
During my undergraduate programme, I was inspired to understand ‘the factors behind
purchase of paintings by affluent individuals’ to gauge the investment potential of ‘art’. For my
Post Graduate Program, I have undertaken a study on the business potential of children’s
channels in India. It was a brief encounter with an art collector that inspired me to undertake a
research on the former. In the case of children’s channels, it was my recurrent interactions with
Professor Shukla Das, a veteran documentary and ad filmmaker, programming head (Star/Sony
TV), a specialist in children’s television and currently my professor of television-related courses
and mentor for graduation project. I am extremely gratified to say the least by her continual
guidance and inspiration, and her caring passionate and fiercely intelligent spirit.
I thank Ms. Ruchi Jaggi, professor at Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication
and Symbiosis International University and an expert on children’s channels for providing me
additional help in designing discussion guidelines as well as advice on conducting interviews
with children. The indispensable contribution that Mr. Siddharth Iyer, a content specialist at Red
Chillies and former Chief Sub-Editor (Content & Business Development) at

AnimationXpress.com, has brought in as an industry expert has been an eye-opener to my
research. And most importantly, I am heavily indebted to each and every child who provided
their precious time to add value to research and every parent who permitted them to partake in
this study. A few of them have received a Dairy Milk – a paltry offering – for their roles, but I
hope the recommendations and insights within this research paper can add value to their lives.
I am extremely thankful to Prof. Shubhda Arora, a professor at Flame School of
Communication (F.S.C.), for her tireless efforts in coordinating the Graduation Project for
Students of Communication. She has remained extremely flexible, understanding and helpful
throughout the course, bringing in wonderful professors such as Prof. Sonam Mansukhani and
Prof. Ravikant Kisana to impart their wealth of knowledge in research.
The extraordinary opportunity to conduct a research over a period of six months wouldn’t
have been possible without the sanction and support of Prof. Rajneesh Krishna, Dean – FLAME
School of Communication, and Prof. Devi Singh, the Vice Chancellor, FLAME University.
Lastly, I feel deeply appreciative of the administrative support provided by FSC staff Ms. Uma
Dudhale and Ms. Geeta Choure.
And yes, before moving to the next section, I would like to acknowledge the inadvertent
contribution of two people – Pravir and Vivhaan. My dear cousins of 14 and 6. Their endless
narration of their beloved shows – Pokemon, Doraemon, Ninja Hattori etc, has entertained,
amused, amazed and arrested my attention towards the universe of children’s television.

Background to the Topic
The kid’s genre has burgeoned rapidly in the last decade due to multiple favorable factors best
encompassed in FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry reports as well as
various online sources covering broadcast business. Today India has approximately 200 million
children, one of the largest in the world, watching cartoons (AnimationExpressTeam, 2014). For
the audience that made up 7.3% of the viewership-pie in 2014, next to Hindi GECs (31.2%),
Regional GECs (17.9%) and Hindi Movies (13.6%), (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and
Entertainment Industry Report , 2015) there are over 22 channels, more than double from just the
year before. The Big 4 corporations – The Walt Disney Company (through its Mumbai-based
The Walt Disney Company India), Viacom (through its joint venture Viacom 18 Media Pvt. Ltd
created with India-based Network 18 group), Turner (through its Indian-arm Turner International
India) and Chennai-based Sun TV Network own and operate 14 among them, while the rest are
under Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Discovery, Fox International and Animax India. Children
are looked today as consumers with their own tastes and preferences that may differ depending
on various factors such as age, gender, socioeconomic status, language etc. Therefore, there is
diversification in these channels’ STP (segmentation-targeting-positioning) strategies, with
children finally to choose what they want to watch based on what appeals to them.
They are spoilt for choices, with content from a host of countries (US, Japan, UK, Canada,
France, Pakistan etc) available on these channels. Shows such as Phineas and Ferb, Mr. Bean the
Animated Series, Doraemon, Pokémon, Oggy and the Cockroaches etc have achieved
tremendous popularity among this demographic. Adding to this, on account of growing affinity

for characters that are Indian in spirit, (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry
Report , 2015), (often drawing inspiration from mythological tales and Indian comics), is the
boost in local content which in 2014 made up 40% of children’s programming in India (as
compared to 2008 when it only comprised 10%) (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment
Industry Report , 2015). 13% of the animated shows on Indian television are domestic in origin,
and for a country that aired exclusively international content for kids in the 1990s on a singular
channel Cartoon Network, this statistics is very encouraging. Chhota Bheem and Motu Patlu are
among the top favorite kid’s characters (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry
Report , 2015), and their success has led to a slew of local animated programmes such as Roll No
21, Kumba Karan, My Name is Raj, Pakdam Pakdai, Vir – The Robot Boy etc. The demand for
local content has led to a surge in the output of original content from Indian content creation
houses such as Green Gold Animation Toonz Media Group and Maya Digital Studios, who have
otherwise mostly outsourced animation services for international studios. Domestic content
would give these studios a unique opportunity for original IP creation (FICCI-KPMG Indian
Media and Entertainment Industry Report , 2015), which can enable them to monetize through
various avenues other than content-generated revenues. Besides this, the favorable market
climate also leads to further investment in technological and human resources to improve the
quality of animated content. The only bump in the road for local content houses is the cost of
production, which is very high as compared to acquired content costs; this is the major reason for
international content overtaking local content.
The USD 150 million Animation Licensing and merchandising (L&M) industry is growing at
10-15% in developing countries; in India, it is estimated at Rs. 3000 crores and growing at 15%

every year (Kakkar, 2014), thus becoming a highly lucrative revenue stream that has tremendous
potential to be explored. For example, Disney, among the first to step into the Indian L&M
market in 2005, and Turner, with 3000 SKUs across 6 categories and 8000 SKUs across 53
categories respectively, have each earned over Rs. 1000 crores in FY 2015 (Kakkar, 2014).
Besides the big league players, Green Gold Animation has also entered L&M and cashed in on
its trademark character of Chhota Bheem, with its merchandise available in 12000 stores across
the country. The company has also set up 30 exclusive stores for the children’s brand, something
even Disney and Turner haven’t attempted thus far (Kakkar, 2014).
Children’s channels in India are thus witnessing a. diversification in the channel and content
offering b. increased demand for local programming c. exploitation of merchandising
opportunities. Despite these positive signs, the genre has still not been able to generate adequate
ad revenues, making up only 3.8% of AdEx in 2014, a decline from 4.2% in 2013 (FICCI-
KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry Report , 2015). News channels, for example,
draw in almost thrice the times of advertising spends that children’s channel get at roughly the
same viewership (Kohli-Khandekar, 2014). However, there has been an increase in the
categories which advertise on kids genre channels after trends of co-viewing (i.e. parents and
children viewing together) and pester-power in children were observed. Therefore, kid’s genre
channels continue to generate new opportunities for advertisers as well.
Children’s channels in India still have tremendous untapped potential. Digitization presents
an avenue for differentiated high-quality programming (Subramanian, 2012) and ensures
transparency in subscription base (Farooqui, 2013); before digitization, last mile cable operators,

would prioritize general entertainment channels over children’s channels leading to bad visibility
and lower viewership for the latter (Kohli-Khandekar, 2014). Children’s theme parks haven’t
gained the traction in India as it has in other countries. Walt Disney Company has been the
frontrunner in successful execution of resorts and theme parks through its popular brand
Disneyland. The company has launched theme parks in different parts of the world but has ruled
out India, blaming poor infrastructure as the reason (Companies: Business Standard, 2013). And
despite the popularity of franchise based movies such as ‘Krrish’, ‘Dhoom’, and cartoons such as
‘Chhota Bheem’ and ‘Krishna’, India is yet to see its first movie-themed resort or theme park
(FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry Report , 2015).
It can be surmised that for despite its challenges, there is extensive potential in children’s
television in India for all its major stakeholders – content production houses, children’s channels,
companies, advertisers, merchandising companies and DTH and cable companies. Whether it
makes business sense in the purest sense i.e. its profit-yielding capacity, is still a matter of
contention. There are approximately 400 million children in India (Statistics of Children in India:
Cry.org), the largest in the world making up 1/3rd
of the total population. This statistic alone
underscores the potential reach of children’s television. Dubbing and multiple language settings
on set-top boxes have helped to break language barrier, and adaptation of foreign content as well
as home-grown content have shrunk cultural barriers. Digitization has led to diversified offerings
for this demographic. The rising prevalence of digital media, cell-phones and gadgets among
children has inspired companies to create engagement with them across platforms through media
convergence. Merchandising and on-ground activities ensure that kids have a tangible connect
with their favorite characters over an extended time period. And yet, the challenges of high cost

of content creation, criticism of local content quality, flagging ad rates, concerns over ethics of
advertising to children, piracy in the merchandising market, insufficient government support etc
must be faced. The research shall attempt to anticipate the future of children’s television in India
by understanding its current business scenario.
Rationale of the Study
More over European and North American markets, emerging markets such India, China,
Indonesia and Latin America are generating a great demand for AVGC (Animation, VFX,
Gaming & Comics) content (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry Report ,
2015). To fulfill the demand, there is a steady supply of local content from production houses, an
increase in number of children’s channels and a spurt in merchandising. A study on the business
prospects of children’s channels in India can be helpful to a. the current stakeholders b.
students/working professionals looking for job opportunities in this area, c. investors/venture
capitalists who intend to leverage on business opportunities in this sector, and most importantly
d. children, who are the building blocks of the nation and need content that aids in their overall
development.
Significance/Utility of the study
This research project shall throw light on the business prospects in children’s television in India
and delve into questions on its future. To provide a comprehensive outlook on the industry, the
researcher shall examine every major area that contains business potential. As the researcher is a
student of Communication specializing in Journalism and New Media, Marketing and

Advertising and Film and Television, the research shall not go at length explaining financial
intricacies and rather looks at branding opportunities, role of content on children’s television in
audience building and channel profitability, online opportunities etc, which are no less a measure
of success of Indian children’s television business.

Literature review
Children’s television in India began in the 1960s with the Delhi School TV Project. Funded by
UNESCO and Ford Foundation, the programmes telecasted were based on the school curriculum
for students in Delhi, with 20000 secondary school students from 150 schools receiving benefits
of the programme (Agrawal, C, Kiran, & Vishwanath, 1999). In the beginning, content for
children was restricted to educational programmes which went in sync with the attitude of
policymakers, who regarded the television as a powerful tool to inform and educate.
Doordarshan aired a few original children’s programmes in the 70s such as Kilbil, Santakukdi,
Magic Lamp and Khel Khilone and telecast the acquired show Duck Tales in the evening.
Among these shows, Apple House’s Magic Lamp gained immense popularity among children in
Mumbai and Pune. It aired broadcasted on Doordarshan between 1974 and 1979, and became so
popular with time that over 3000 independent children’s clubs (fondly called ‘Panna Clubs’)
were formed that participated in various activities organized during the series’ golden run.
The show was best known for – 1) Puppets (given wacky Indian names such as ‘Aloo’ and
‘Phullu’) with distinctive personalities (for e.g. Aloo – a fun loving puppet eager to explore and
learn, and unafraid of making mistakes), 2) Variety of Mini-Series (adventures of Aloo and
Phullu in ‘Apple House’ episodes; Aloo’s experiences at school in ‘Halla Gulla Pathshala’, ‘Sing
Along Special’ featuring song and dance, animated vignettes about ‘Monu the Menace’) 3)
Blend of Live Action and Animation (inviting studio audience to celebrate birthdays of
characters within the show; introducing a special segment called ‘Nafisa’s Sweet Shop’ that
featured a lovely 16 year old girl), 4) Proliferation of Panna Clubs (no involvement of schools;
only children, known as ‘Panna clubbers’ who took part in various activities such as ‘Tree
Plantation’, ‘Annual Athletic Meets’), 5) Involvement of High Profile Individuals (some of the

special guests for athletic meets included the then Admiral General, the Chairperson of SBI), 6)
Characters stepping out into the world outside (thus building an unparalleled connect with
audiences) and 7) Edutainment Programming. It was hailed by the makers of world renowned
Sesame Street, which partly inspired Apple House series, during their visit to India. Sadly, the
show is unavailable because of Doordarshan’s resistance in selling its rights or making
restorations. The show is perhaps the first example of an Indian television series for children that
made business sense. (data obtained through multiple interviews with Shukla Das, creator of
Magic Lamp).
In the earlier days, producing domestic content was extremely difficult then because of budget
and logistic constraints. However, what is commendable is that the domestic content was very
much Indian in spirit; the abovementioned shows involved puppets with local names, Indian
traditional and folk dance forms etc. Domestic productions, both animation and live-action,
sprung up throughout the 80s and early 90s with shows such as Gaayab Aaya, Malgudi Days and
Potli Baba Ki on Doordarashan and Junglee Toofan Tyre Puncture and the hugely popular
Bournvita Quiz Contest on the channel Zee TV, launched in 1992.
In Match-April 1996 an empirical study was carried out in Chennai which was published later in ‘A Report on
Children’sTelevision Pro-grammes in India’ (Eashwer, 2000). Its findings can be summarized as
follows –
Children’s programmes on the 3 primary Doordarshan channels comprised of only 3
percent of the total programming, with metro channels airing only 11% of its
programming for children. Zee TV and the popular regional language channels in

Chennai Sun TV and Udaya TV each had an even less encouraging statistic of 2%
programming for children. English Doordarshan channels gave more time (10%) to
children’s channels than their Hindi (4%) and Tamil (4%) counterparts. A similar trend
was observed on private satellite channels, with English channels devoting a much
greater time (18%) to children’s programming than Hindi channels (2%). Most of the
cartoons were aimed at young children, leaving out pre-teens and teens. Foreign produced
cartoon shows were perceived as more entertaining and imaginative.
Until 1995, children’s programmes only occupied a miniscule segment in channels primarily
targeting adults. Also, there was a higher demand by then for English children’s programmes
because of their superior production quality. And on May 1 1995, Cartoon Network was
launched by Turner Broadcasting System in India, becoming the first channel in the country
solely dedicated to children’s programming. Beginning as a day-part, the channel aired its
programmes only in English until 1999, when it began dubbing content in Hindi and Tamil as
part of its localization strategy. By February 2000, Cartoon Network was offering nine hours of
Hindi programming every day (Kamath, 2000). In July 2001, on account of its growing
popularity, Cartoon Network announced that it would offer 24-hour non-stop service in India,
thus becoming a separate channel. Interestingly, children were not the only ones who watched
cartoons. According to Cartoon Network sources, 30 to 40% of the channel's viewership
constituted teenagers and adults, thus making it a lucrative option for advertisers to target both
segments (Cartoon Network - The Indian Experience, 2010).
While Cartoon Network struck gold in India, another popular international channel Kermit,
airing reruns of various Muppet productions, did not work in India, with Vishnu Athreya,

marketing manager, Splash TV opining that ‘Kermit Kids simply could not relate to the content”.
(Pande, 2001). Chennai based Pentamedia Graphics owned Splash TV itself created a splash
only temporarily in the Indian market, lasting for 3 years between October 2001 and November
2004-Early 2005. Despite becoming the first children’s channel to kick start with India-specific
animated programmes like Pot Pourri and India Folk Tales and planning localizing strategies
through different language feeds, the channel couldn’t live up to its pan-India ambitions and
subsequently exited the market.
On the other hand, another big-league player Nickelodeon, launched by giant American Viacom
International, stood the test of time on Indian shores. Both Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon
aired mostly American shows and did not produce local content for Indian audiences until much
later. This phenomenon was common across other countries as well where local children’s
television did not receive enough financial, technological and institutional support and hence
didn’t develop the way it flourished in US, UK, Canada, Japan and Australia. In such cases, as
the expense required in the local production of one episode, including the human and
technological resources, was usually much greater than the cost of the station’s purchasing a
year’s worth of old re-runs of an American series, television all over the world was heavily
dominated by American television. (Lemish, 2006) . Even dubbed content on Cartoon Network
was subjected to the ire of Indian parents, who at focus group discussions conducted in early
2002 by the Center for Advocacy and Research, did not approve of the inappropriate language
they were picking up from the shows and wanted their children to learn a few English words and
phrases through the medium of children (Cartoon Network - The Indian Experience, 2010). It is

for these reasons that domestic content for children took years to gain traction in India and also
the reason for foreign content to overtake.
2004 saw two the entry of two channels that soon became drivers for local content on children’s
channels in India – Turner International India’s Pogo and UTV Software Communication’s (and
presently owned by Disney Channel Worldwide after its acquisition of UTV in 2012) Hungama.
Pogo depended entirely on international programming during launch but increased Hindi
language programming by over 80% over first 18 months since inception; since 2005 been
increasingly producing local programming (Pinto & Bhattacharje, 2004). This was the channel to
introduce the mega-popular Chhota Bheem and other hit animated shows such as Mighty Raju
and the live-action series M.A.D. (Music. Art. Dance.). On the other hand, Hungama TV started
off with a host of local live-action game-shows, talent shows and television series, with Ronnie
Screwvala, then CEO of UTV, commenting that “Hungama TV’s locally produced live action
shows make it different from other kids channels” (Saha, 2005).
However, by late 2005, Japanese animation became flagship programmes by late 2005 itself with
the tremendous audience response to Doraemon, thereby reducing ratio between live-action and
animation thereafter to 30:70 (Mitra, 2005). Within 2-3 years, Hungama became the market
leader ahead of veterans like Cartoon Network and Pogo (Jaggi, 2014). Since then channel has
been identified by anime like Pokémon, Beyblade, Crayon Sin-Chan etc, and only a handful of
local animated shows like Vir the Robot Boy and Chorr Police are telecasted on this channel.
Japanese animation has also grown on other channels in a big way, becoming very popular

across India. It has re-appropriated and re-contextualized itself in the Indian space through
dubbing, tweaking narratives and allied marketing efforts (Jaggi, 2014).
While Animax was the first all-Japanese anime channel that gained popularity in India after its
launch in 2004, popular anime series became channel drivers for Hungama TV and Nick (with
Ninja Hattori) as well. Therefore, it comes as no surprise when Ashish Kulkarni, CEO, Big
Cinemas quoted in a Business Today magazine article “ Thus, 90 to 95 per cent of animation
shows Indian children watch are either American or Japanese” (Sharma, 2012). The
predilection of children for foreign content is one of the key reasons why domestic production is
still underwhelming in India, because of which content houses such as Green Gold Animation
had to expand to merchandising in order to sustain. High costs, relatively lesser demand, intense
competition from foreign productions, a cold response from advertisers and criticism of content
quality are the main challenges they face at present which are potential reasons that retard their
business potential.
Going against the trend of introducing Japanese anime on its channel, Disney Channel India,
owned by the third giant (after Turner and Viacom) Walt Disney Company, focused on
localization since the beginning, with Managing Director, Walt Disney Television International
(India), Rajat Jain saying there is a lot of focus on catering to local needs and tastes, adding “But
Indian children spend only 10% of their television viewing time watching kids' channels and we
believe that this is due to lack of high quality programming which parents can trust and kids
would like to see" (Bajoria, 2004). They have expanded their target audience to 4-34 and
currently position themselves as a family entertainment channel, producing a host of local live-

action shows (many of them adaptations of popular US Disney originals such as That So Raven
(Palak Pe Jhapak), The Suite Life of Zack and Cody (The Suite Life of Karan and Kabir), Best of
Luck Nikki (Good Luck Charlie)) that make up for the absence of live-action on its sister
channel Hungama TV.
Over time, after extensively researching the Indian kids’ market, the 3 giants – Turner
International India, Viacom 18, Disney India – created further segmentation in their offerings by
introducing new channels post 2010. Turner International India, besides Cartoon Network India
and Pogo, launched Toonami in 2015, airing action-adventure content for boys between 8 and 14
years. Viacom 18, besides Nickelodeon India, has also introduced 1. Sonic Nickelodeon in 2011,
targeting children in the age group of 10-17 years with action, sitcoms and adventures 2. Nick Jr
and Teen Nick in 2012, the former aiming kids between 2 and 6 while the latter between 10 and
14; with the launch it has expanded its portfolio from 2yrs to 62 yrs (Home: Adgully, 2011).
Disney introduced 1. Disney Junior after finding 2-7 age-group has its own set of programming
needs that centered on theme-based fun shows, different from 7-14 age-group (Sarkar, 2012),
and 2. Disney XD, an action-oriented channel that was formerly programming block Toon
Disney that aired on Jetix (2004-2009), targeting 4-14 year boys with certain content aimed at
girls (World Library); it has emerged a leader in the South markets and has shown increasing
traction in the Hindi Speaking Markets (HSM) (Television: BestMediaInfo Bureau, 2012). As
mentioned previously, after Disney’s acquisition of UTV, it also owns Hungama, thus building a
formidable portfolio in India.

These newer channels have very limited local content, with Nick Jr specifically targeting
youngsters who consume greater Western English content (Exclusive: Adgully website, 2012).
Some of them operate as PayTV channels featuring no ads and relying entirely on subscriptions
(Toonami and Disney Jr) for the time-being. The revenue-generating potential of these channels
(as well as of recently launched independent channels like ZeeQ and Discovery Kids India) in
the light of massive digitization drive in India, should certainly be looked into.
In terms of viewership, Nick is leading the race, followed by Pogo TV, Cartoon Network,
Hungama TV and Disney Channel. Nick’s driver show is Motu Patlu, which now commands
higher ratings than Pogo’s Chhota Bheem. Table 1 on the next page captures channel and show
positions along with their ratings over the 6th
-9th
Weeks of 2016.

TABLE 1
Week
9
(indian
televisi
on.co
m,
indiant
elevisi
on.co
m,
2016)
Position Channel Ratings Show Ratings
1 Nick 77619 (000s sums) Motu Patlu Deep Sea Adventure (Nick) 702(000s sums)
2 Pogo TV 60792(000s sums) Motu Patlu, Kungfu, King Returns (Nick) 568(000s sums)
3
Cartoon
Network
55414(000s sums)
Chhota Bheem: Mission Mangalyaan
(Pogo)
564 (000s sums)
4
Hungama
TV
55388 (000s sums)
Chhota Bheem Himalayan Adventure
(Pogo)
516 (000s sums)
5
Disney
India
53835(000s sums)
Kid Krrish (Cartoon Network) 493(000s sums)
Week
8
(indian
televisi
on.co
m,
indiant
elevisi
on.co
m,
2016)
1 Nick 81897 (000s sums) Motu Patlu Kungfu King Returns (Nick) 766 (000s sums)
2 Pogo TV 66609 (000s sums)
Doraemon The Movie : Toofani Adventure
(Disney)
673 (000s sums)
3
Hungama
TV
57121 (000s sums) Motu Patlu Aur Khazaane Ki Race (Nick) 651 (000s sums)
4
Cartoon
Network
53108 (000s sums)
Chhota Bheem & Krishna vs Zimbaraat
(Pogo TV)
514 (000s sums)
5
Disney
India
52110 (000s sums) Chhota Bheem Himalayan Adventure
(Pogo TV)
500 (000s sums)
Week
7
(Indian
televisi
on.co
m,
2016)
1 Nick 79007 (000s) Motu Patlu in Alien World (Nick) 918 (000s sums)
2 Pogo TV 55453 (000s sums) My Friend Ganesha (Hungama TV) 879 (000s sums)
3
Hungama
TV
55043 (000s sums) Patlu Kungfu Kings (Nick) 781 (000s sums)
4 Disney 51470 (000s sums) Shiva (Nick) 516 (000s sums)
5
Cartoon
Network
51400 (000s sums)
Chhota Bheem And The Sky Dragon with
(Pogo TV) 504 (000s sums)

Week
6
(indian
televisi
on.co
m,
indiant
elevisi
on.co
m,
2016)
1 Nick 81634 (000s sums) Motu Patlu Kungfu Kings (Nick) 876 (000s sums)
2 Pogo TV 77521 (000s sums)
Doraemon The Movie: Toofani Adventure
(Disney)
652 (000s sums)
3
Cartoon
Network
57635 (000s sums)
Chhota Bheem & Krishna: Pataliputra -
City of the Dead (Pogo TV)
615 (000s sums)
4 Hungama 54735 (000s sums Shiva (Nick) 515 (000s sums)
5
Disney
Channel
52422 (000s sums) Chhota Bheem Aur Ganesh In The
Amazing Odyssey (Pogo TV)
514 (000s sums)
(Data obtained from Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India’s all India (U+R) data in
NCCS All 4-14 Individuals category)
One observes that both Nick and Pogo TV rule the roost, retaining top and second position
respectively in the 4 week period. The local 3D animated cartoon Motu Patlu airing on Nick
beats other shows to chart No 1 as well as multiple slots in Top 5 in the four week period.
Chhota Bheem airing on Pogo TV and Doraemon, currently on Disney, are recurrent among Top
5 shows; one is local while the other is dubbed Japanese anime. Despite airing multiple original
Indian live action content, Disney has able to crack into top 5 largely on the strength of the
acquired cartoon Doraemon. Certain shows seemed to have boosted channel performance as
well; for e.g. Hungama TV jumped from 4th
to 3rd
position in a week where its show ‘My Friend
Ganesha’ had the second highest viewership. Flagship shows of these channels seem to drive
performance, with the top performing Nick and Pogo TV having their flagship shows rank in
Top 5 each week. The other 3 channels and their shows aren’t maintaining this stability.

But the most important observation here is that 90% of shows in Top 5 are local animated shows.
Solely based on the ratings chart, one can claim with certain confidence that “Indian Children’s
television and local shows make business sense’. However, one needs to study the reasons
behind popularity of these channels and shows, and the best source to obtain this data would be
its viewers.
Merchandising in Indian Children’s Television
Organized retail in India is expected to grow from 9 per cent of the total retail market in 2015 to
a staggering 20 per cent by 2020. (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment Industry
Report , 2015) There is a shoot in merchandising targeted towards children, with the Big 4
companies having high stock keeping units (SKUs) across various categories to delight children.
FICCI 2015 report states that ‘Disney currently has 3,000 Store Keeping Units (‘SKUs’) across
six categories under license, from sheets and towels, to soft toys, fruit juice and bicycle. Turner
with its Cartoon Network and Pogo channels, has 8,000 SKUs over 53 categories. Viacom 18
Media’s Nickelodeon which shows popular characters like ‘Spongebob Squarepants’, ‘Motu
Patlu’ and ‘Dora the Explorer’ has close to 100 product categories in the market, over 300 SKUs
and a presence across 200 cities and town.’
While other animation studios forgo IP rights to channels, Green Gold Animation, the sole owner
of IP rights of its flagship Chhota Bheem and Arjun, has got into L&M segment. Over 30
exclusive retail outlets with 3,000 SKUs have been set up already, and owing to Chhota Bheem’s
appeal in smaller towns, there are stores in cities such as Chandigarh, Agartala, Jaipur, Patna,
Indore and Kakinada. Utility merchandise are currently the most popular among kids, with bags

garnering most sales, followed by clothes and tiffin boxes as per Oramax – Small wonder report,
November 2014. Character merchandising is increasingly being seen as an effective tool for
offsetting a large portion of the money that is spent on television and film production. The
weaknesses in the L&M segment are a. Brands launched without the characters being given
sufficient time to gain popularity b. Overexposed products introduced in wrong categories
c. Lack of robustness in India’s organised retail network and d. Threat of piracy.
Movies for Indian Children
Rajiv Chilaka, Founder and CEO, Greengold Animation Pvt Limited has to say about movies
centered around kid’s favorite characters – “ Green Gold Animation’s ‘Mighty Raju Rio
Calling’ and ‘Chhota Bheem and the Throne of Bali’, made on a budget of Rs.50 crore and Rs.
124 crore earned Rs. 11 and Rs. 43 crore respectively. The path to international success lies in
producing good quality movies with smaller budgets of INR60 to 100 million for the domestic
market and then tying up with an international distribution agency. This path to international
fame will take another 2 to 5 years.” Currently children’s movies aren’t exactly ringing box
office figures as well as television shows.
On Amusement Parks for Children
Though not as developed as the West or the the rest of Asia, theme parks, amusement parks and
entertainment zones in India are slowly but surely gaining traction. The common themes running
amusement parks are: i. Family and friends segment as a consumer; ii. Targeting the same share
of wallet of the consumer; iii. Provide experiential and novel entertainment which is fully out-of-
home: and iv. To encourage repeat/multiple visits by the same consumer. In an amusement park

the consumer tends to spend a full day and spend between INR1200 to 2500 for rides and
refreshments. a growing ‘mall culture’, an increasing ability to spend, the experience of family
time together and a safe, indoor environment. (FICCI-KPMG Indian Media and Entertainment
Industry Report , 2015)
Over the last 35 years, amusements parks such as Appu Ghar, Essel World, Nicco Park, Ramoji
Film City were established and eventually shut down. Currently, Adlabs Imagica, established in
2011 in Mumbai, offers live action entertainment cum leisure destination, including Bollywood-
themed stage shows.
Though footfalls are increasing, amusement park is still in its infancy stage and there is
tremendous scope for expansion. Consider the giant Disney World, that brings in millions of
people each day. Would an amusement park featuring children’s favorite characters work in
India the same way?

Methodology
The research attempts at understanding potential costs and revenue streams for the various
stakeholders of children’s television – production houses, children’s channels, advertisers and
merchandising companies. Understanding the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to
these stakeholders helps in shed light on future scope and developments in children’s channels in
India. The present situation cannot be understood completely without considering the needs of
audiences. Therefore, besides stakeholders, it is essential to understand views of children, the
ultimate consumers and buyers (if not directly the buyers, at least the influencers and choosers)
whose viewing habits lead to strategizing among the stakeholders.
Secondary sources used for this study include Books (e.g. Dafna Lemish Children and Television
A Global Perspective), Periodicals (e.g. Business Today), Websites (e.g. Indiantelevision),
Reports (e.g. FICCI Reports/ TAM reports) and Journals (e.g. Media Asia). Most of the data
from these sources have been mentioned in Introduction and Literature Review section.
In case of primary sources, the first part of this qualitative exploratory and partly explanatory
study shall comprise of an interview with Mr. Siddharth Iyer, an industry professional formerly
working at AnimationXpress.com, an Indian-focused news portal for Animation, VFX, Gaming
professionals, students and enthusiasts. During his tenure as Senior Content Head at the
company, Mr. Siddharth learnt on the working of various animation studios operating in India.
He shall shed light on investments incurred by studios, various cost (technological, human etc)

and revenue streams (advertising, merchandising etc) for production houses (Green Gold), and
channels.
The second part comprises of 2 focus group discussions and 2 group interviews with 14 urban
children from multiple schools across Pune. Both male and female viewers between age group of
4-14 have been interviewed. The selected age group represents the standard target audience of
most leading Indian children’s channels. Convenience sampling has been used in selection.
Children were interviewed without the presence of adults as it may lead to less openness in
responses. Interviews were conducted between 1st
and 15th
March 2016. As schools do not
permit research activities on children within their premises, interviews were conducted in
locations chosen by children themselves (such as in parks, in coffee shops, libraries). Allowing
children to decide where to conduct their focus group discussions and group interviews helped in
reducing their level of resistance. Younger children were provided incentives such as chocolates
after a round of 10 questions, and promised a better incentive on completion of interview. This
incentive kept them committed and cooperative throughout research. Each interview lasted
between 40-50 minutes.
Each interview was transcribed, and key points from the interview were then analyzed for
similarities in opinions. This content analysis took 2-3 days in total. Views from previous
research and secondary sources have been appended to these points, and elements from other
disciplines such as psychology, communication theory, television studies, marketing and
branding etc. have been utilized to further understanding.
The insights shall help in deriving sound conclusions and recommendations pertaining to
development of Indian children’s television over the next few years.

Data Analysis, Results and Discussion
Part A – Industry Professional
In order to get an industry professional’s perspective on children’s programming, I conducted an
interview with Mr. Siddharth Iyer, content specialist at Red Chillies and former Chief Sub-Editor
(Content & Business Development) at AnimationXpress.com. He answered questions on ‘Indian
children’s production houses, children’s channels and merchandising companies –
Here are key points from his interview –
a. Investment – Three Important Elements to be considered while investing in production
house for children are a) Infrastructure (technological and physical b) Artists
(experienced and freshers) and c) Turnaround time of projects at hand. He didn’t put
specific numbers to this, but stated that the platform (broadcast/digital/find) on which
content is to be distribution decides the possible level of investment.
b. Technology – Currently local production houses use Autodesk’s 3ds MAX and Maya for
modeling, which is easily available off the shelf. Autodesk holds a monopoly in the
3D/CGI technique of animation, and having gotten rid of the perpetual license model for
its softwares, it is giving out in bulk as customized monthly, quarterly, half-yearly and
annual basis (a yearly package of Autodesk / Maya costs approximately Rs. 95000).
The most popular software for storyboarding at pre-production stage is Toon Boom
Storyboard Pro/ Boom Box Harmony. This costs approximately Rs. 30000 annually but
has a longer wear and tear life of 5 years minimum. However, the frequent
customizations required as when the team works on the project means additional features
need to be added.

but there are various open source storyboard softwares as well. Interestingly, creating
3D/CGI content is relatively cheaper and cost effective than 2D. Both 2D and 3D
animation are popular among leading television production houses in today’s time,
although few have experimented with stop motion as well.
c. Human Resources – A production house for children’s television usually comprises of a.
The creative team (story, character development and storyboards) with a staff strength
between 3-10 depending on the demand b. The production team (BG< Animators,
Riggers, Lighting Artists, Texture, Artists etc) with a staff strength between 25-50, and c.
The post production team (sound, music, editors) with a staff strength varying between 2
and 7. In total, there would be between 30-70 employees in these production companies.
The success of a creative studio depends on the quality of artists. 75% of the team include
artists/animators, followed by 10% for Team Leads/Creative Directors, and 15% of
Content and Strategy. He hasn’t given any specific numbers to the investment level
required on human resources.
d. Acquired vs. Local Content costs – The cost of production of an episode of leading
shows Chhota Bheem (2D) and Motu Patlu (3D) are 4-5 lakhs and 2-3 lakhs respectively.
While acquisition costs of a season (52 episodes of 12 minutes each or 26 episodes of 24
minutes each) of popular shows such as Doraemon costs between 20-30 lakhs, which is
way cheaper than costs of local content.

e. Regarding Channel Sale – Earlier channels would license content from animation
house. But co-production ensures that IP rights remains with channels for India and a few
key South East Asian reasons, and the rest of the world rights stays with animation house.
So, while animation houses can’t reap benefits of repeat telecasts and merchandising and
break even on shows that they work on with channels in India, they manage to garner
heavy profits by licensing the shows out to international markets by investing a low
additional costs on subtitling or dubbing as per requirement of the buying studio or
network. Mr. Siddharth calls this ‘the easiest and most lucrative model for animation
studios’. He doesn’t hold a favorable opinion on expansion of animated studios to other
ventures, unless they are heavy duty projects, calling it ‘an added cost’.
Channels on the other hand benefit greatly from co-production deals as they have high
quality control over characterization as well as dialogues, storylines and plots. The
animation house works on production and post-production under its supervision, thus
ensuring proper hygiene of content shown on television. Channels also bear a sizable
amount of production costs (70:30 ratio).
f. Advertising Related – While in terms of viewership, the kid’s category is the third most
viewed category after G.E.Cs and sports, it occupies merely 3-5% of advertising pie. Ad
rates range between Rs. 2000-Rs. 5000 (2015 figures). This statement corroborates the
FICCI 2015 report. More than advertising, it is brand integration that’s working best for
Indian content owners. For example, Chhota Bheem, the most popular IP in India,
features with Kellogs Chocos in special episodes and Kellogs has tied up with Tinkle for
their Youtube channel. Motu Patlu also has a couple of brands that work with the IP.

Integrating characters with live action elements (such as Motu Patlu’s appearance on the
dance reality show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa) ensures more eyeballs and introduction to a new
set of audience.
g. New Channels Related – Channels like Zee Q, Discovery Kids, offered on a a-la-cart
basis, may have lesser reach in terms of channel presence in regional areas, but it looks at
attracting audiences from the Tier 1 cities alone currently.
h. Merchandising – As mentioned above, most animation houses don’t have rights to IPs.
An exception is Green Gold Animation. Therefore, it can’t benefit from merchandising.
Also, Green Gold’s merchandising has fallen prey to piracy on most of its merchandise in
the market, losing close to 20-30% of its revenues from that stream. Despite this,
merchandising does contribute nearly 10-15% of its annual revenues.
i. Movies – Merely looking at commercial failure of animated films on popular television
characters is a myopic approach. Hollywood animation feature films like Frozen, made
on a budget of $150 million and garnering $1.3 billion at the box office, have earned
merely Rs 4.1 crore in India. Chhota Bheem, with its relatively miniscule budget of Rs. 5
crore (or $750000) has made 3.5 crore at box-office. This comparison highlights that
despite registering losses, the revenues earned through local animated films is still
commendable. However, for animated movies to succeed in India, Indian audiences need
to evolve and understand that ‘animation’ doesn’t mean its purely for kids.

j. Digital and OTT – Mr. Siddarth has a favorable opinion of digital and OTT services. It’s
all about who gets on the bandwagon the earliest and runs it well. Revenues will come
only with maturity in the market, which shall come with a large user base. The business
model will also be important for the success of the digital venture.
k. Children’s Content – Local children’s content surely makes business sense, but it hasn’t
yet matured as a market in India. Writing has been the biggest weakness; while there is
no dearth of stories in India’s rich culture, most Indian programmes simply corrupt the
minds of kids with crass humor and slapstick content. Indian studios need to bring in new
writing talent through talent hunts and contests, supporting new talent with workshops.
Indian animated studios’ production strength has be tapped by international studios that
outsource work to Indian studios.
l. On Theme Parks – Imagica tried introducing movie characters in their parks and
managed to stay profitable. It shall take another 5-6 years for such big attractions to work
in Indian context.

Part B – Children
The following table mentions details of children interviewed as part of study –
Group Name Age Sex School
1 Kanika 4 F Tree House High School
1 Kartik 5 M Tree House High School
1 Kavya 5 F Tree House High School
1 Rishit 8 M Tree House High School
1 Ayna 9 F Tree House High School
2 Shruti 14 F St. Joseph’s School
2 Ishita 14 F St. Joseph’s School
2 Aaruhi 14 F St. Joseph’s School
2 Roma 14 F St. Joseph’s School
3 Khushi 12 F Vidya Valley School
3 Ronak 14 M Vidya Valley School
3 Rishi 14 M Sinhgad School
4 Meenakshi 12 F Ryan International School
4 Mayank 10 M Ryan International School
Understanding the needs of the audience is the crying need of today. A major part of the research
undertaken with children involved understanding the elements within children’s shows that
appealed to them. The most important part of programming is under-standing the audience.

Given below are finding pertaining to their views on the channels and the content of the
shows along with analysis and a discussion based on the data obtained –
1. Mood Booster / Boredom Killer
“Classic characters like Tom and Jerry are mood boosters” says Rishi, 14. Shruti feels the same
about Shin Chan, calling it a ‘stress killer’. Children have lots of time on hand; every participant
in Group 1 claim to watch at least 5 hours of television every day. Of course, children’s channels
become their only delight.
They do not have much stress in life, but rather a lot of free time, which is invariability spent
watching television to kill boredom. Older kids slowly switch over to movies and music
channels, but do find an alternative in cartoons when ‘nothing goes on’.
But even schools have become very competitive nowadays, so much so that 14 year olds call
cartoon channels a ‘stress killer’. Sometimes classic cartoons with simplistic but effective themes
just do the deal.
Towards the end of his interview, Rishi remarks astutely, “Who is able to watch television at a
later stage in life?” adding later “I like television (over online medium) because of the big
screen”. The topmost reason for continuing children’s business in India is that the television
means the world to them.
2. Humour
Respondents had a favorable view towards shows with lots of humor, such as Motu Patlu and
Chor Police. The only flipside is that if they do not hybridize and simply feature a jukebox of
gags, kids may not find it a memorable experience. Nearly every respondent interviewed did not

speak of the aforementioned shows beyond their ‘humorous appeal’, while on the other hand
shows such as Chhota Bheem, Ben 10, Doraemon were spoken at greater length.
Another dangerous possibility is when humor turns too crass or immature for young kids to
appreciate. The younger respondents seemed especially critical towards shows that had ‘bad
words’ or taught ‘bad manners’. Slapstick content especially needs to be monitored so that it
does not border on the offensive. A famous example is that of the show Shin Chan, which drew
the ire of Indian parents because of the protagonist’s mischievous nature. If parents themselves
turn against content on shows, it is likely to be problematic especially in the case of younger
audiences, its parents who control the remote. Shows like the classic Tom and Jerry have been
scrutinized by psychologists abroad for causing ‘violent tendencies’ among children, which
when disguised as ‘humorous’ could desensitize them to the nature of show.
The imitative nature of shows especially among younger children has been spoken of even by
older kids in the response group, who denounce some of the content as ‘meant for bad kids’. In
an environment where the child watches television alone, it is highly likely that it’s not mature
enough to process certain content perhaps the way it should. A mature mind may be able to
rationalize the content on online digital entertainment channels like, for e.g., ‘The Viral Fever
/All India Bakchod’ the way its creators intended. However, the same might not b the case with
children’s shows. Humour that encourages bullying, stereotyping and harmful behaviour in
younger children should be dispensed with.
While they may bring good ratings in the short run, in the long run, such shows may not make
business sense because of the backlash / negative response they generate. A business has to build
up in terms of its brand value to sustain like Disney. The fact that a show despite its popularity

isn’t memorable and worse, is criticized by former fans, does no good for a brand name of the
business.
On the other hand, one may argue that introducing slapstick humor and irreverent content in
children’s television has its share of loyal viewers, and there are parents who are more
permissive towards their children watching such content. One of the respondents, aged between
12-14, claimed that he/she viewed risqué All India Bakchod content along with his/her parents;
on cross-questioning the parent later the claim proved true. The problem occurs when there is an
overdose of such content on television; my older respondents complained about similar shows
being offered across various channels. Producers, on learning about a show’s success, apply the
same formula and create similar content. This leads to undifferentiated content fed to children,
and to many young viewers, for whom animation is extremely addictive, there is a gradual
cultivation of misguided values and notions. Siddharth Iyer, Content Head at
AnimationXpress.com says “Every Indian programme for children is simply corrupting the
minds of kids with crass humor and slapstick content, which is sad to see”.
Therefore, care should be taken to offer diversity even within a genre like humor. Additionally,
humor shouldn’t be crude for crude’s sake but offer an ultimately rewarding and educational
experience for children while simultaneously entertaining them.
3. Helpful Characters
A common value that most respondents learnt from their favorite shows was to help people. “I
want to be a savior like Chhota Bheem” said Kartik, merely 5 of age. Another respondent Kavya,
also 5, while asked why she wants to learn magic, says “it shall help people”. Her favorite
character Barbie has magical powers and uses it for good.
The characters in question may wear many hats – that of a mythology-inspired savior (Chhota
Bheem, Krishna in Roll No 21), a princess (Barbie, Sophia), an ordinary person, (Chutki from

Chhota Bheem), a martial arts warrior (Ninja Hattori), crime solvers (Scooby Doo, Cambala
Investigation Agency Team) etc. These are just a few of the many problem solving characters
that appeal to today’s kids.
It is interesting to note that while younger respondents stressed on ‘helping others’, older
respondents emphasized on ‘being helped by friends’. “Whenever Sunaina is in trouble, her
friends are always present to help her” recalls 14 year old Ishita. Ronak has learnt from Ben 10
that “people shall be present to help when needed”. This has to do with a. the increasing presence
of and trust in friends in lives of older children, b. the pressure faced by teenagers who get a
gradual unraveling of the world outside.
Trust, optimism and good faith in people have done magic in children’s programmes. Remember
in Harry Potter, when Professor Dumbledore says the memorable line “Help will be always
given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it”?
Shows that are laced with cynicism, pessimism, diffidence and mistrust towards the world are
surely not going to work among children, who still view the world as a place teeming with
goodness, a place of opportunities. Kids needs problem solvers, be it Oggy from Oggy and the
Cockroaches or the Mystery Inc. team from Scooby Doo. Investing in such content makes
business sense.
4. Lovable /Cute Characters
Cuteness wins all and sundry. 14 year old bratty Shin Chan was perceived as ‘cute’ by all 4
female respondents from St. Joseph’s school. “He reminds me of my little brother” quotes one.
Scooby Doo, Barbie and Jerry were named as ‘cute’ as well.
“Chutki (from Chhota Bheem) gives me love, and holds my hands” claims 4 year old bug eyed
Kanika. The winsome appeal of cute, lovable characters is the same reason why Disney and
Pixar films such as Monsters Inc. (little Boo), Wall E, and the iconic Mickey Mouse have
succeeded. ‘Most characters are said to have universal appeal because they offer a simplistic joy

of watching ‘adorable’ cute characters. The smooth faces of Disney characters are signs of
perpetual innocence; and the appeal of childhood is universal (Rohn) .
Social media is a searing example of this. Take 9gag for instance. Cute cats, bunnies, babies,
dogs, hamsters etc garner likes in millions. Therefore, the safest bet for children’s channels and
production houses would be cute universally appealing characters.
5. Interactive Characters
Respondents, especially young viewers, showed a liking for shows with characters that broke the
fourth wall and engaged with its viewers. Dora, Mickey Mouse and Playhouse/Clubhouse were
the names discussed in this context. Both shows are meant for younger kids.
An example for interactive characters for older kids would be Sanya, a live action show that
aired on Hungama TV in 2005. At the end of each episode, its protagonist would need to choose
between 2 paths and ask the viewers for help. The viewers would then SMS and decide the fate
of the character.
There is great possibility of integrating interactive characters across multiple mediums. For e.g.
Dora introduced popular games as well. Barbie, first launched by Mattel as toys, expanded to
television series and then dress up games as well. Khushi may have stopped watching Mickey
Mouse, but she still vividly remembers responding everytime Dora said ‘Point to this. Point to
that’. The viable possibility to expand to desktop, console and mobile gaming (Wii), books etc
makes these characters an even more lucrative for channels.
Interactive live action content such as M.A.D., Engineer This! (ZeeQ), Art Room (ZeeQ), Mister
Maker etc. were also appreciated by respondents. However a few respondents complained that
content on these shows were getting repetitive. This is the fault of channels that air similar
theme/activity based shows on different channels. For e.g., M.A.D., Art Room, Art Attack and

its Indian Adaptation basically feature art and craft. The popularity of one has blossoms a series
of other shows, first acquired then adapted.
A show like ‘Engineer This’ proves a respite. Producers need to introduce new forms of
interactive live action content. For example, a viewer like Kavya, who ‘loved shows with magic
in them and would love to learn magic’, would certainly enjoy Pogo’s Magiskool. The traditional
art and craft, dance and music has to expand to include other interactive shows, say on magic,
tinkering, science, history etc. Only this can counter the increasing competition from channels
like Nat Geo, History TV, which have become favorites among respondents like Mayank,
Meenakshi, Shruti and Ishita.
6. Novelty / Inventiveness
In the basic model of programming proposed by Milton Hamburger, the selection factor includes
‘novelty’ as a component (Susan Tyler Eastman). This was echoed among respondents as well.
Shows like Phineas and Ferb stood out for ‘fun new ideas and inventiveness’. An ‘original’ Best
of Luck Nikki (perceived as original because its American adaptation ‘Good Luck Charlie’
hasn’t made it to Indian shores) was preferred by Ronak and Khushi over the fun but unoriginal
‘Suite Life of Karan and Kabir’. They find the former show to be ‘unlike the usual family crisis’
which is seen in typical Bollywood films and television soaps. Best of Luck Nikki may be
inspired by a run of the mill American series (enough American movies about big families with
many kids trying to stick together have been made), but for an Indian child that’s overexposed to
hackneyed drama on General entertainment channels and cartoons on children’s channels, such
live action content is definitely a breath of fresh air.

Children get bored of repetitive content, as mentioned in the section ‘Interactive Characters’. The
respondents held a more favorable view when familiar mythology-inspired characters transported
to contemporary milieu, admiring the show ‘Roll No 21’, which places Lord Krishna in a
classroom environment. However such connotations might as well be a double edged sword.
Ronak, for example, feels that such shows ‘aren’t in sync with the current irreligious sentiments
of many youngsters’ while on the other hand, a viewer like Mayank feels ‘he can learn about
religions from such shows’. Indian children’s programmes should move beyond appropriation of
familiar characters. Krishna, for example has been portrayed in Roll No 21, Kisna and Little
Krishna. The Indian culture is surely not mono-religious. Its culture extending far and wide.
Therefore, we need new and innovative stories that are set in an entirely contemporary world that
have unique characters with relatable qualities.
Industry expert Siddharth believes that ‘writing has been the biggest weakness; while there is no
dearth of stories in our rich culture… India needs to look to tap writing talent through talent
hunts and contests, and supporting new talent with workshops’. More such activities are
desirable.
7. Variety and Action
Another component in the selection factor of Hamburger’s programming model is
‘Differentiation’ – the need to differentiate from competing channels and shows (Susan Tyler
Eastman). Variety within shows is also another point of consideration. Kartik has an option to
choose between his two favorite shows – Chhota Bheem and Mickey Mouse; the latter having
lots of action but no depiction of ‘fighting’ among characters unlike Bheem. Meenakshi likes

shows that have ‘action, comedy, horror, emotion and education’ packed within them. This kind
of description is usually reserved for Bollywood films.
Children do not like long talk or inaction unlike some adults. An old show like ‘Junglee Toofan
Tyre Puncture’, aired on Doordarshan did not work, according to channel expert Shukla Das,
because it ‘bored children with long monologues and absence of music, dance etc’. While on the
other hand, shows like the Sesame Street worked wonders. The respondents who were very
absorbed while describing episodes always seemed to be excited while narrating the twists and
turns within the episodes. Protagonists who are action-oriented (Ben 10, Oggy, Insectibles –
name character, Ninja Hattori) appealed to them.
While younger viewers are able to consciously differentiate among shows to a greater extent
(they remembered the channels only later), older viewers differentiate among channels. Both
Meenakshi and Mayank prefer either children’s channels or educational (Nat Geo, History).
Ishita and Aaruhi find children’s channels an alternative to now favorite music and movie
channels such as MTV, VH1, 9XM, Star Movies etc. They realize that Disney and Nick target
older kids like them over channels like Hungama TV and Pogo. However, they get their variety
by watching favorite shows like Shin Chan on Hungama.
It is essential for programmers and channels to consider this gradual shift from children’s
channels to music and movies. Why? Because it means increased competition from those
channels and possible reduction in viewership. One possible way of retaining viewers would be
to integrate certain elements from competing channels. For e.g. Roma suggests having shows on
‘school bands’, which would integrate music into a tween’s life. There is enough scope for
further experimentation among genres (someone like Aaruhi, a big time fan of teen fiction
featuring vampires, would be ecstatic if Disney, a channel she watches, comes up with say a

children’s comedy/romance/horror on vampires; along the lines of Pyaar Ki Ek Kahaani on Star
One albeit for a younger audience).
Older respondents also favored shows that can titillate their short attention spans. This trend by
online shows to wrap up seasons within single digit episodes has wowed youth. Vignettes
(ephemeral series of episodes between shows) can entertain tweens and teenage viewers.
8. Dubbing
Says Shruti, about Oggy and the Cockroaches “I used to love the show in English, because it
only had background music and no voiceovers. Then it was dubbed in Hindi and they added
voices to characters. I found the commentary really funny. But then they changed the dubbing
and now it’s become bad. It’s in Hindi as well, but with Gujarati accent added on top of it. It’s
very overdone”. Her sentiments were echoed by Ronak and Khushi as well.
Dubbing plays a vital role in pulling or pushing viewers away from shows. It may so happen that
Nick deliberately changed the dubbing to push it towards a very young audience (the younger
respondents still love the show). Or it may just be poor dubbing. Whatever the case, the
importance of dubbing in localization needs to be understood.
Respondents felt that characters that convincingly ‘sound like them’ do a good job of dubbing
i.e. dubbing in ‘Hinglish’ has a positive impact.
9. Good Vs Evil
Binary oppositions underlie the narrative structures of many television programmes. The
opposition here is between good and evil. Many a times, complexity is achieved by embodying
contrasting values within a character. The audience’s pleasure partly derives from the

anticipation that these conflicts will be resolved satisfactorily. (Jonathan Bignell, An
Introduction To Television Studies, Second Edition (London, 2008), p. 90-92)
Superhero franchise have constantly played on this trope, and garnered millions of dollars and
fans worldwide. Children’s shows such as Chhota Bheem, Ben 10, Pokemon etc that play on this
theme have found major success as well. Says 5 year old Kartik, “Bheem is my favorite. He’s a
savior who fights bad people”. This thought doesn’t alter for Ronak, who while speaking on Ben
10, says “I learnt from the show that good always prevails over evil”.
Older / more mature kids are most conscious of contrasting traits within characters. Meenakshi,
while speaking of her favorite character from Insectibles, found an appeal in the fact that ‘a
good-natured but over-smart character finally gets humbled over the episode and eventually
solves the problem’.
She even goes on to compare her to an older friend who ‘is sweet but over-smart, gets in trouble
because of her ego and cracks the solution’. Her brother Mayank had similar thoughts on Oggy –
trouble maker but problem solver. Therefore, even while they play on the same theme of ‘good
vs. evil’, characterizations need to be increasingly complex, and gradually close in on grey areas,
for older kids to enjoy. This is a. add variety and novelty b. avoid repetition c. make characters
interesting and d. retain their ‘helping’ nature.
10. Presence of Family and Friends within characters –
As kids grow older, they find resemble between characters represented in media and the people
in their lives. 9 year old Rishit says the character of Ninja Hattori “reminds him of a friend he
had during his stay at USA who like Hattori, was helpful, generous and active”, while Ayna sees
within the character of Barbie a friend who ‘always wore princess like dresses’. All respondents

from St. Joseph’s school were constantly and spontaneously associating cartoon and live-action
characters to someone from their lives. Shin Chan and his mother remind Shruti of herself and
her mother, characters from Sunaina remind Ishita of her own school friends, and Daphne from
Scooby Doo has an uncanny resemblance to Shruti according to Roma as both as ‘stylish and
have a good dressing sense’.
Kids increasingly begin to consume media images with a perspicacity that allows them to find a
deeper bond (or a deeper dislike) for characters and stories depending on their own life
experiences. The business of children’s television can prosper further if it allows children to
think deeply about their favorite characters and identify with them at a conscious level. Kids
have a lot of free time of hand, which they spend in front of television and other devices. There
are several ways of connecting with kids, for e.g., by hosting a monthly competition on themes
like ‘Which friend / family member / teacher does character X remind you of and why? Send in
your answers in 100 words’ or ‘Why is X your favourite character? Mail us your answers!’).
Yes, the measure of a successful children’s television business is profits but shouldn’t it establish
a deeper connect as a brand?
11. Stories Centered on Real Life
Older respondents in the study looked forward to stories centered around ‘real life’, ‘high
school’, ‘classrooms’, ‘recess time’ ‘parties’, ‘family life’. Ishita loves the show Sunaina because

it is about ‘a girl whose dreams come true but not in the way she intends’, which bears a canny
similarity to real life.
Disney has caught their fancy lately by producing a number of live-action shows for family
entertainment. While it is currently at 5th
position and not able to generate the share that channels
like Nick, Pogo, and Hungama TV, it is nevertheless offering differentiated content for an
audience that is not content with, in their own words, ‘repetitive’, ‘childish’ programmes on
competitors’ channels. A channel like Disney shouldn’t head in the direction of Hungama TV,
which started off as a local live-action heavy entertainment channel for kids but soon gave in to
popular anime and should persist to create more live action content, perhaps following what is
trending among tween and teenage viewers as it was found that they were very receptive towards
real-life references (such as reference to latest cinema/musician/trending social media topics on
television shows).
12. Power vs Affiliation –
The female respondents interviewed stressed more on ‘friendship’, ‘socializing’ and ‘bonding’,
‘loyalty’ while the male respondents stressed on ‘need for power’, ‘adrenaline rush’, ‘cool
gadgets and weaponry’ (which could be considered a tool to achieve power). Ronak explains his
reason for liking the character Ben as “Ben has the power to control. I feel an adrenaline rush
watching the show. I think of ‘what can I do under extreme circumstances such as a meteorite
crash?”.
The Need Theory popularized by renowned psychologist David McClelland in 1961 explains
‘Need for Affiliation’ as ‘Preference to spend time creating and maintaining social relationships,
enjoy being a part of groups, and have a desire to feel loved and accepted’ while the ‘Need for

Power’ as ‘high value on discipline, status recognition, winning arguments, competition, and
influencing others’. This motivational theory was used in the managerial context. There is a
parallel seen in the likings of male and female viewers of children’s television. Since the study
was undertaken on a limited sample, the affiliation vs. power need can’t be conclusively proven.
However, the point here is that while create content for children’s channels, production houses
and channels must understand inner drives of an audience such as the one stated here.
13. Educational Content
Some of the respondents watched educational channels such ‘Nat Geo’, ‘History TV’ etc and had
a positive response towards new children’s channels such as Discovery TV and ZeeQ for
introducing many educational local shows. These respondents find solace in reading
‘encyclopedia of facts’ and other such educative books. It would be very lucrative for these
newer channels to expand their merchandising across educational categories.
Even shows that entertain should be wary of the kind of message it sends out to children. Some
older viewers, for example, did not approve of content on shows like Chhota Bheem. Three
respondents – Rishi, Ronak and Mayank – complained that it promoted unhealthy habits such as
‘overeating of sweets’. Young Indian kids may identify more with local characters from their
favorite television shows, and it is therefore a matter of concern if such shows do not take any
responsibility in teaching the right habits to children.
Mayank, while describing an episode from Oggy and the Cockroaches, could vividly recall ‘the
Big Ben’, ‘violin music’. Entertaining local shows can also be wonderful mediums for learning
about Indian culture, art and architecture, music, dance forms etc. For this, Indian children’s
shows, especially animated, need to move beyond depiction of fictional cities or overused
landmarks (the Taj Mahal, for example) and integrate the multifarious diversity of India.

Another aspect is value-based education. Certain values of ‘nonviolence’, ‘obedience’, ‘respect
towards elders’, ‘good manners’ although universal but highly stressed especially in a country
like India was cherished by respondents. Bringing American and Japanese shows is somewhat
problematic because of certain contrasting values depicted within them, especially a high level of
violence.
Given below are findings on the respondents’ viewing behavior –
1. The youngest respondents (between 4-6 years of age) preferred watching television
throughout the mornings.
2. Respondents between the age group of 6 and 10 watched television usually after school
and during weekends.
3. The oldest respondents (between 10 and 14) watched television after school and,
considering their newfound interest in other channels (movies, music, English / Hindi
GECs), they sometimes watch until late nights to early mornings. However, many a
times, early school timings prevent them from staying up until late except on Fridays or
the weekends.
4. While younger respondents would find most of their content on television, older respondents
would search online for content. This includes shows that are off-air or air late into the night.
5. All respondents consumed much more television content during summer vacations.
6. Some of the respondents picked lunch and dinner time to view television.

Given below are findings on the respondents’ views on merchandising within children’s
shows –
1. Older respondents (between 8 and 14) responded more positively towards utility merchandise
such as ‘bags’, ‘waterbottles’, ‘lunchboxes’, ‘jackets’, ‘pillow covers’, etc. of their favourite
shows. Tween/teen role models play a positive role in glamorizing an ordinary person’s world, in
only briefly.
Additionally, tweens and teens abhor ‘in-your-face merchandising’. Older respondents such as
Aaruhi and Ronak demanded for subtler merchandise; Aaruhi for example said she would be
game to purchase ‘a pillow cover featuring only the initials of Cambala Investigation Agency
(C.I.A)’. Roma would definitely check out ‘Daphne’s (of Scooby Doo) stylish sunglasses’.
2. Long term brand connect can be built through merchandise. For example, the first things Ronak
recalls when shown an image of Pokemon is ‘the Taazos, the playing cards’. Shruti went at length
to talk about the Hannah Montana merchandise she purchased when young. As they age, kids
may forget the plotlines of shows they used to watch (the older respondents, while recalling the
names of shows, couldn’t describe it as vividly as younger ones) but they shall carry memories of
merchandise. Remember the film Toy Story 3. In the final scene, Andy decides to keep his
favourite toys with himself.

Conclusions, Limitations and Scope for Future Research
A. Key Points on Content on Children’s Channels
1. Kids have a lot of spare time on hand usually spent in front of the television. They view it
as a. A Boredom Alleviator b. A Stress Killer and c. A Mood Booster
2. Humour has a broad appeal. However, crass and immature content or excess of it in
children’s programmes should be avoided because both Indian kids and parents haven’t
shown liking for it. Also, comedy shows may not be memorable unless they offer more
than simply a string of gags in them.
3. Characters that are ‘helpful’, ‘optimistic’, ‘action-oriented’ appeal to children than
‘cynical’, ‘depressed’, ‘diffident’ ones.
4. The soundest bet for channels is to include cute lovable characters in their shows.
5. Interactive characters and new forms of interactive live action content is the need of
Indian children.
6. Channels and production houses should look forward to creating new, innovative stories
set entirely in the contemporary world and feature unique characters (preferably not
mythology based)

7. Variety of genres on children’s channels and variety of genres within shows themselves
draws the attention of children. Differentiated content is the key to success.
8. A ‘Hinglish’ lingo works while localising through dubbing. Although care needs to be
taken in choosing the right dubbing artists, so that audiences do not move away from
show.
9. Shows revolving around the theme of ‘Good vs. Evil’ have a universal appeal. However,
tween and teenage viewers look forward to more complex characterisations (but not
entirely grey characters) than younger counterparts.
10. Kids began to identify both themselves and people from within their lives with characters
on their favourite shows. There is a great potential for channels to recognize this
identification in creating further brand loyalty among young viewers towards shows and
channels.
11. Older viewers tend to be drawn towards shows, especially live action, paralleling their
own lives and experiences. Reference to trending topics within their lives on these shows
can help in building further connect with these viewers.
12. It is most crucial to understand inner motivations and psyche of children while creating
shows for them. If this isn’t understood clearly, the show has little chances of appealing
to them. A story like Shin Chan might be considered ‘bad’ by some kids who heavily
influenced by their internalization of their parents’/teachers’ moral standard i.e. their ego

ideal (or imitate, becoming positively reinforced). But ‘bored’ tweens or teens may
satisfy their ego pangs by positively responding to its irreverent humour. It could be
stroke on memories of their lost ‘freer’ childhood.
13. There is a great demand for educational content on children’s television. Educational
content includes value based education. Even purely entertaining content can hit the right
chord with children if it is able to impart some values or ideals useful for their learning.
Key Points on Viewing Behavior –
Older respondents stated missed out on some of their favorite cartoon shows because of the
late night scheduling. They still want to catch episodes from popular old shows such as Johnny
Bravo, Dexter’s Laboratory that only air early morning (on Cartoon Network); the fact that these
shows have resonated over longer time period indicates the necessity of channels to employ
branding strategies that retain the shows’ extended resonance.
Also, they also expressed contempt towards daytime programming flooded with repeat
episodes of cartoons for ‘younger’ audiences. It is interesting to note that while many American
(usually non-dubbed) cartoons could strike a chord with younger as well as older viewers, there
exists gulf in the case of local content. All respondents beyond the age of 9-10, and among them
include former fans, had a negative opinion about Chhota Bheem, a favorite among younger
viewers. The problem isn’t when cartoons aren’t able to hold its appeal beyond a certain age,
which is alright; one would shift from shows such as Teletubbies after the age of 2-3. It is only

problematic when viewers grow out of it condemning the content. Both channels and production
houses need to rectify this.
Therefore, when older viewers who stay away from local cartoons cannot watch their
favorite shows when desired, they may switch from the channel altogether. Besides the fact that
local production houses need to work on their animated content so they do not resonate in the
minds of viewers for a limited time period, channels should also make more content, especially
of past shows, available online. The online medium can be a game-changer for tween and teen
viewers, especially with the increasing use of internet by teens.
Besides allowing the option to view classic shows on their official websites (especially in
case of shows airing only at midnight or early mornings), an additional option can be to make
such content available at High Definition on Netflix, the streaming service that had its India
launch recently (a lot of popular children’s shows are currently available in Netflix USA). It is
not just acquired content of the past that can have a second run online. Popular local content such
as Sunaina, Sanya, Shaka Laka Boom Boom, Malgudi Days, Son Pari, Shararat etc., can also be
added to online streaming services. This would entail major deals between channels and Netflix,
but since the data obtained from respondents shows nostalgia towards old shows, it is very likely
to hit it home. If a comedy series like Sarabhai vs. Sarabhai can command a legion of fans years
after going off air, why not Shakalaka Boom Boom and Sunaina? Since weekend also
spell free time for tween and teen viewers, ‘special’ reruns of these shows can be aired for a
limited time during the day.
Key Points on Merchandising–
Utility driven merchandising for older children. Positive influence of tween role models in
purchase decision making. Subtler merchandising. Through merchandising, a long term connects
with brand is possible.

After examining the ratings of children’s channels and current trends, and getting a fresh
perspective from industry professionals and viewers, it can be surmised that children’s television
does make business sense in India and can grow exponentially in the coming years. However,
one mustn’t simply consider television ratings as barometer of success. Children should be
looked upon as active consumers who have great expectations from the medium. As their
cognitive abilities develop and they begin to think rationally, their needs begin to differ from
younger viewers. Channels therefore need to welcome stories they can empathize with and
discuss a wider range of themes within children’s shows. One of the respondents feared that ‘the
government and fundamentalists might not want certain content to be aired’. This kind of
censorship and paternal outlook is limiting channels and content houses from discussing themes
that resonate with them. Conversely, they are fed slapstick content that, while popular, may not
offer them an experience that aids in their development as individuals. Viewers want to see
more, and content houses must hire better quality writers and voiceover artists and create shows
that are novel, have lots of variety, teach the right principles, and educate and entertain them.
Merchandising is a lucrative revenue source for channels and, in the case of Green Gold, an
animation house, but they shouldn’t be sold with the sole purpose of expecting monetary returns.
‘In Your Face’ merchandising should be avoided, and their integration into shows must not
hamper the quality of content but complement it.
Despite dominance of Big 4, newer channels such as Discovery Kids and ZeeQ must continue
airing original content and not resort to the done-to-death tactics used by the leaders for profit
motive. There is an audience that are tired of the hackneyed shows on leading channels which
prefers content on these new channels. Movies must be made despite their financial failures as
they introduce content to a large set of audiences and boost sales of merchandising. They also

make characters nearer, dearer to children. Online platform must be tapped into, especially for
older viewers.
In the book ‘Walt Disney The Triumph of The American Imagination’ by Neal Gabler (Vintage
Books) the unparalleled Disney shared his experiences on how he had a prescience that
television would save him. He knew that “Television is the coming thing… television was not
the enemy of the motion picture; it was its ally… it would help advertise movies… television, he
saw, was a way to underwrite the entire studio operations”. He realized its ability to pump a
regular stream of income into the studio.
Television attracted American families’ attention towards Disneyland, and its audience kept
growing, it’s rating climbing. The popular show Davy Crockett was a trendsetter among
children, who sang songs, bought records, t-shirts, knives, books, jackets etc. Disney wasn’t one
to compromise on quality. His studio budget overshot as he reshot scene after scene until he
thought it was perfect. His company ran into losses, but Disney had a larger objective in mind –
to promote Disneyland. It was a genius like him who envisioned shows that had the greatest
impact on children in the history of communications. He kept the views of Parent Teacher
association in mind while creating content to skirt avoidable controversies. He hired kids rather
than adults to perform at Disneyland. When Disneyland translated into heavy profits, stock
prices for his firm shot up.
He would always keep profits at the back of his head while getting into ventures. But he was also
a risk taker and a perfectionist. And he meant business. His perseverance bordering on religiosity
made his projects eternal.
Indian children’s television needs its own Walt Disney.

Limitations of Research
1. While the research does dwell on live action content and attempts to find insights through
the perspectives of children, due to paucity of time, opinions of industry professionals
currently in live action productions for children couldn’t be included in primary data.
Further study needs to be done in this regard.
2. The project proposal mentions conducting interviews with channel houses and merchandising
companies. Unfortunately, much effort taken to coordinate appointments were proved fruitless.
The FICCI report does a fine job in quoting opinions from within the industry.
3. While the research takes into consideration similarities and differences in the views of
respondents depending on factors such as gender and age, it does not pontificate further.
Also, there is an imbalance in the sampling based on gender – a. interviews of 9 girls vs.
5 boys and b. lesser interviews with younger children. This may bring in certain biases in
analysis.
4. As mentioned in the significance or utility of research, the study was conducted from the
point of view of a student of journalism, marketing and branding and film and television.
There could be further scope to study in-depth financials of children’s television
programming.

Scope for Future Research
As this research shows that Indian children’s television does make business sense in India,
studies can be conducted in the future on fields such as –
1. Children’s Television and Gender
- Similarities and differences in viewing behaviour and content interpretation
based on gender
2. Creation of a Contemporary World for the Indian Child on Indian Television
- How can Indian television create a contemporary world for an Indian child?
What is the contemporary world? What kind of stories children like to see?
What can be created for them and what potential resources can be used to
make this world?
3. Live Action Content on Indian Children’s Television
- What possible live action forms that can be created? What has been created in
the past? How can it be made indigenous? What kind of values can be
imparted?
4. Viewing Patterns among Indian Children
- What kind of television content do Indian children view? How do they view it
– alone/siblings/parents? What is the effect? When do they view it?

APPENDIX
Discussion Guideline for Children
1. Which children’s channels can you remember? Which ones do you watch?
2. Have you tried watching the other channels? Why/why not?
3. When is your favourite time to watch programmes?
4. Do you watch alone/with family/with sibling/with friends?
5. What are your favourite shows?
6. Why do you like these shows? What do you remember about them?
7. Which language do you prefer watching them? Why?
8. Can you describe the show?
9. Who are your favourite characters from the show?
10. Can you describe these characters?
11. Why do you like them? / What do you like about the characters?
12. Do these characters remind you of someone?
13. What have you learnt from these characters?
14. What is the nationality of the character?
15. Have you purchased any toys etc that features these characters? How did you know about
the toys? What do you think about it?
16. Do you watch these programmes or related content around it online?
17. Show a Power Point Presentation consisting of images from popular shows and note their
opinions and reactions.
18. What do you think about (select) Indian programmes?
19. Have you watched them?
20. Why do you like / not like them?
21. What kind of stories do you like?

Questionnaire for Mr. Siddharth Iyer (AnimationXpress.com)
(ALL QUESTIONS ASKED FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF INDIAN PRODUCTION
HOUSES/CHANNELS/MERCHANDISING COMPANIES)
1. What is the level of minimum investment required to begin a production house that
specializes in animated content for children?
2. Questions related to –
a. Technology
- What are the popular technologies (software & hardware) used in creation of animated
shows (in production: character/setting creation etc) and post-production: (editing/sound
designing/dubbing etc) stage)? Are these indigenously available or imported?
- What are the popular animation techniques used by leading Indian children’s television
production houses today?
- What is the approximate level of investment required in these technologies? (if possible,
please mention their lifespan to give a better picture of investment required over a time
period; for e.g., Rs. A investment in X software – renewed every 2 years at additional
cost Rs. Y)
b. Human resource
- What is the usual employee strength in children’s television production houses?
- Who are the key personnel in children’s television production houses? (Have mentioned
a couple below)
Top Level – COO / CEO/Chief Strategy Officer / Content Heads / Creative Directors
Mid and Lower Level – Graphic Designers / Sound Engineers / 3D Animators / Texturing
Artists/Scriptwriters etc
- How much is the approximate level of investment on human resources by animated
production houses?
- What are the stages of production adopted by Indian animated companies?

3. What is the approximate cost of producing an episode / a season (in case costs decline
over episodes for various reasons) of local animated shows like Chhota Bheem/Motu
Patlu/Shiva today (giving a range would suffice) vis-a-vis acquiring foreign shows?
4. Other important costs content houses bear –
5. Channel Sale Related –
a. What is the usual process of selling to channels (for e.g. making a pilot, which is
commissioned by channel if successful)? Could you give me an idea of this
agreement between channels & content houses?
b. How much money do production houses end up making through sale? Are they
paid extra for repeat airings of episodes/higher viewership of certain episodes or
is it fixed?
6. Channel Related –
a. What are the ad rates (in range from lowest to highest) for (general) content on
children’s channels today?
b. How is the situation of Indian content – is it attracting more advertisers in current
scenario?
c. How does product placement within animated shows work? To what extent does
it contribute to revenues for channels and production houses? (also what about
integration with other channels, for e.g. Motu Patlu on Jhalak Dikhla Jaa)
d. How do ‘ad-free channels’ such as ZeeQ etc. survive? Is solely relying on
subscription revenues enough or do they rely on alternative revenue sources?

7. To what extent does merchandising today contribute in revenue stream for a.
production houses and b. channels (in India)?
8. Animated films based on popular characters like Chhota Bheem and Motu Patlu are
being made despite their commercial failure. What do you think is the rationale of
Indian children’s production houses behind extending to cinema?
9. How according to you is the digital medium impacting children’s channels in India?
Can it be a potential revenue stream for production houses/channels in years to come
and how?
10. If you were to compare all revenue streams (channel revenues/merchandising/box
office collection of movies etc), which are the most lucrative for Indian children’s
production houses today? Is expansion the only route to profitability or can
production houses survive only through revenues received from channels?
11. How much time do Indian children’s channels and local animated production houses
take to attain a breakeven? Do you think they make business sense today solely in
terms of profitability?
12. Indian production houses for children’s content as well as Indian children’s channels
have to face challenges like poor unoriginal content/ high costs etc and low ad rates
respectively. What in your opinion can help this situation?
13. What is your opinion on the prospects of theme parks featuring local Indian
characters akin Disney World in the near future? Can it work like Disney World did –
if not, what needs to be changed to make it happen?
14. What is the USP of Indian programmes for children (be it animation or live action) on
children’s channels today?

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