Movie Magic

If you are Indian and over 20, you will probably know these characters well: Vikram and Betal, Supandi, Uncle Pai and Shikari Shambu.

Chandamama8217;s iconic folk and adventure tales will now adorn the silver screen

If you are Indian and over 20, you will probably know these characters well: Vikram and Betal, Supandi, Uncle Pai and Shikari Shambu. Over years, we have connected with these eminent animated characters, and the comic books in which they appear. But these characters are now transforming. Amar Chitra Katha, Tinkle and Chandamama went online a few months ago; and now Chandamama, the iconic children8217; magazine looks to add yet another feather in its cap. One of the legends from the Chandamama library of 15,000 stories will be made into a full-length animated feature film by Technopark based Toonz Animation. 8220;Both of us are in a complementary business. We are in the business of creating content and Toonz in the business of rendering it in the audio- visual format. It is a natural fit,8221; says L Subramanyan, CEO of Chandamama.

Chandamama was first launched by legendary filmmakers B Nagi Reddi and his friend Chakrapani to familiarise the post-Independence generation with Indian tradition, folklore, mythology and history in the form of stories. After a successful print edition and rapidly going web portal, it was a natural choice to make it popular through the audio-visual medium as well. 8220;The beauty of these stories lies in their simplicity and the socio-cultural values they try to communicate. The animated film will be a platform to provide the youth with both engaging and educative entertainment,8221; feels Jaya Kumar, CEO, Toonz Animation Limited.

With the release date slated in 2011, work is on in full swing. 8220;We have short-listed six stories from the library. They are a mix of humour, adventure and folklore. Ideally we want to select just one story, but we might take references from other stories as well,8221; states Kumar. Toonz will undertake the entire production based in its state-of-the-art studio in Technopark and will finance 100 per cent of the production cost. 8220;In its nascent stage it is really difficult to say but the estimated budget of the film is pegged at around 20 crore,8221; confirms Kumar.

Although the cast and crew for the film is yet to be finalised, Toonz seems sure about hiring foreign scriptwriters and directors, while also taking help from their Indian counterparts. 8220;It is important to have a mix of both worlds. The final product will appeal to the world audience and in the bargain not lose the Indian flavour.8221; Also, as the trend is today, they are looking to rope in Bollywood actors to lend their voices for the characters in the movie.

Published in 14 Indian languages, will the movie be also dubbed in various languages? 8220;It8217;s primarily going to be in Hindi and then will dub in English for the world audience. Besides, it will be dubbed in four to five vernacular languages as well,8221; states Kumar.