After a hugely successful 2018, Nickelodeon has revealed its aggressive content strategy for FY 2019-20 and its plans for Sonic which will find a better pushing from the authorities this year.
Post huge success and popularity of seven IPs, the kids franchise has launched the 8th Indigenous IP Golmaal Jr. on SONIC. This newest kids animated series starts on 13 May, 2019 at 1:30 pm. Golmaal Jr. brings on board an entertaining and exciting show which promises endless fun, laughter and ‘golmaal’ to kids.
Based on one of the most popular movie franchises of Hindi cinema – Golmaal, which has been immensely popularised by known filmmaker Rohit Shetty. The animated show brings to life a mix of slice-of-life friendship, relatable characters, humour and loads of fun – all rolled into an enthralling joyride. Golmaal Jr. follows the fun face-off between two groups helmed by Gopal and Madhav respectively who indulge in pranks and funny encounters at Golden Hills Hostel. Together, they are fun, chaotic, mischievous and are sure to entertain and engage kids.
According to the latest BARC report, Nickelodeon has seen a 14 per cent increase in share and revenue whereas Sonic stands last in the list. Thus, being an integral part of Nick, Sonic is going to get more focus this year. Produced by Nickelodeon, Golmaal Jr. is created by Reliance Animation and Rohit Shetty Picturez is thus an attempt to pull up Sonic and keep it going in the race.
“We have been in the number one position for five years in a row. Nickelodeon leads with a fairly decent margin for the full year of 2018-2019. So, from the market share perspective, we are the leaders, not just in viewership share, but also in revenues. So the effort is to sustain Nick’s number one position and grow Sonic. We are not just looking at it from the viewership perspective but also from the monetisation standpoint,” explained Viacom18 Hindi Mass Entertainment and the Kids TV head Nina Elavia Jaipuria.
Nickelodeon has always identified white spaces and launched characters that are ground breaking. From Pakdam Pakdai to Motu Patlu to Shiva to Gattu Battu to Rudra Boom Chik Chik Boom, they have introduced kids to new genres of entertainment. With the launch of Golmaal Jr, the Nickelodeon franchise is set the motion for the aggressive content strategy for the year.
With over 500 hours of content the franchise has today, 2019 will see further scaling of the content library with 200+ hours of content which is expected to add shows as well as television movies.
What is more exciting is that Nickelodeon has improvised the character of Bhavani Shankar played by Utpal Dutt in the 1979 classic Gol Maal as the principal, in order to pay homage to the veteran.
Unlike its other shows Golmaal Jr. has a 2D animation format of 11 minutes which will be showcased in the usual half an hour slot. Answering to AnimationXpress, Sikka unveiled, “Kids, I don’t think differentiate between 2D and 3D. In fact, we’re planning to do more shows in 2D. 3D can go out of fashion but 2D will never feel archaic. Almost all classics are in 2D. And it’s also easy as it’s not high on effects as well as monetisation.”
Speaking about the Golmaal franchise Rohit Shetty said, “Golmaal franchise is very close to my heart. The film has already been popular amongst the family audience and new PRANK GANG- Gopal, Madhav, Laxman and Lucky are all set to entertain children on Sonic. The concept of Golmaal Jr. had been in place for a while and I’m very excited about the partnership with Nickelodeon, to bring this high decibel concept and show to life. Each character and their traits are so carefully crafted that I’m confident kids will love the Golmaal Jr. Prank Gang.”
Bollywood has been the wholly accepted religion of India which has entertained kids and adults alike. Commenting on the similar line, Viacom18 Kids Entertainment Cluster content head, Anu Sikka commented, “Bollywood is an important part of every Indian kids’ life and they have always loved films and always adored these characters. Golmaal has been a very successful franchise, much loved by kids and the animated series Golmaal Jr. with its unique take on fun, friendship and humor is sure to get the same patronage and love from our young fans. The addition of Golmaal Jr. will bring further depth and repertoire to our squad of indigenous Nicktoons.”
Jaipuria further noted, “Rs 30 lakh investment for an episode and a few above that, so you can multiply it to the hours of content and you’ll know how much we have been investing to produce content. We will be launching all-new episodes of every show.”
The launch of Golmaal Jr. will be supported by a dynamic 360 degree marketing and communication plan which will include an aggressive TV plan, within the Viacom18 network and outside the network. A high decibel outdoor plan along with mall visibility is sure to capture eyeballs across the country. Fun photo opportunities with the iconic Golmaal bike and audio standees at multiplexes playing the catchy Golmaal title track is sure to break the clutter.
It’s now a matter of time to see if Golmaal Jr. too turns into a phenomenon!