Animation for Bollywood

doweshowbellyad=0; The kiddie thing (TOI Photo)Blame it on Hanuman.
The animated saga about the monkey god was not only a money-spinner, but even started off a deluge of animation films in Bollywood. Major animation films are shaping up from story boards of leading Bollywood studios with big money and star power riding on them. With the $285 million animation industry in India (according to the Nasscom report, 2007) touted to touch $1billion by 2010, it’s natural for leading production houses and corporates to opt for the animated way of making money at ticket windows.
Coming at a theatre near you are: Hanuman Returns, Yash Raj Films and Walt Disney’s animation film Roadside Romeo, Ghatothkach, Govind Nihalani’s Kamlu (and three more animation projects after that), Soundarya Rajnikant’s Sultan The Warrior with Rajnikant in the lead, Karan Johar’s animation film based on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, besides Arjun, Dream Blanket and Alibaba produced by a top Indian film production company, Ashmit Patel and Hrishitaa Bhatt starrer 3D animation film, Friends Forever.
Yash Chopra has been quoted as saying that animation has a "huge business potential" and his company is making a 3D animated flick which will have all the ingredients of a typical mainstream film, will be directed by Jugal Hansraj and have voiceovers done by Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan. Nihalani is known to have invested close to Rs 12 crore in Kamlu, an animation flick with four songs which will also release in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and English. Animator Ram Mohan, who is regarded as the father of India’s animation film industry, is developing two animation films that are being produced by Anubhav Sinha.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says, "Animation industry is growing in India and will definitely evolve in times to come. The success of Hanuman has opened doors for this kind of cinema and bigger projects are being made now." Sandeep Bhargava, CEO of a production house, says, "The rising popularity of animation movies has got to do with the multiplex culture. The combination of the movie, merchandise and gaming makes moviewatching a wholesome adventure for the audience. This effort by producers has created an environment for the animation industry to flourish."
With big names stepping in the animation arena, the picture’s almost perfect. Producer-director Ravi Chopra, who’s all set to make Paanch Pandav, an animated film based on the childhood of the Pandavas, feels, "Animation is an important element of filmmaking. Since this field of work is being noticed by people these days, it made sense to make this film." Filmmaker Pritish Nandy feels animated films also generate good box-office returns. "I think by making animation films, one gets a lot of scope to show one’s creativity. The audience is ready to accept this media and it will only grow with time."
Bangalore-based animator, Manu Ittina, who did animation for Shrek 2 and Madagascar, feels it is a transition for India with animation touching every aspect of our lives now. "Earlier, there was a crunch when it came to technology, infrastructure, exposure and talent. But all this has changed with more Hollywood studios taking up ventures in India. Success of an animated film depends on how well a story is told through animated characters."
And as long as Bollywood mints millions, animated films will continue to roll out from story boards!