Kids
BBC commissions comedy series ‘Fresh’ for teens
MUMBAI: Following the success of its online debut on BBC Switch last year, Fresh, a comedy series set in the world of university freshers, has been commissioned for a seven-part series.
The series will air on BBC Two and BBC Three in September 2009. The half-hour episodes have been produced by multi-platform production company, Greenroom Entertainment. Set on a fictional UK university campus, Fresh explores the lives of a mis-matched group of fresh-faced students as they embark on university life and their first taste of independence, with all the mishaps and misadventures that entails.
The TV series will continue where the online show left off. The original five-minute webisodes will be reformatted to create the first TV episode, followed by six completely new half-hour episodes.
The show features a cast of both new and established actors, including Jonathan Bailey as Danny, Danny Morgan as Shane, Joanna Cassidy as Scarlet and James Buckley as Fred. Greenroom Entertainment executive producer Nick Hamm says, “The evolution of Fresh from online to a multi-platform broadcast, reflects a wider trend in our industry where programme makers are responding to the audience need to receive content across numerous platforms. Fresh is a comedy with wide appeal for young audiences which makes it perfectly suited to the multi-platform approach.”
Kids
Mukta Arts and Green Gold ink MOU to animate iconic film IPs
Kalicharan, Karz, Hero, Karma, Ram Lakhan to spawn animated shows plus features.
MUMBAI: When classic hindi movie meets animation, the result is a fresh reel of nostalgia with a cartoon twist. Mukta Arts Ltd. and Green Gold Animation have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on animated shows and feature films drawn from Mukta Arts’ four-decade treasure trove of iconic IPs. The partnership taps Mukta’s SGM Animation Studio launched in 2025 as its dedicated animation and games arm and Green Gold’s proven track record in building scalable, homegrown franchises. Creative teams from both sides have already kicked off discussions, with the first project currently in development.
The slate will draw inspiration from landmark Mukta films including Kalicharan, Karz, Hero, Karma, Ram Lakhan, Khalnayak, Saudagar and Iqbal, plus character-led spin-offs from those universes. The aim is to reimagine these stories for today’s young, global audiences while preserving their emotional core.
Green Gold Animation (home of Chhota Bheem) founder and CEO Rajiv Chilaka said, “This partnership with SGM Studios allows us to apply our experience in building long-lasting animation IPs to a truly iconic film catalogue. Together, we aim to create animated worlds that are rooted in these legendary stories, yet designed to connect with today’s young, global audiences.”
Mukta Arts Ltd. filmmaker and founder Subhash Ghai added, “Mukta Arts has always believed in creating stories with lasting emotional value. Through animation, we are extending our IP into a new medium for the next generation.”
In an industry where timeless tales never go out of fashion, this collaboration promises to bring beloved characters back to life with a modern, animated glow proving that some stories are too good to stay in live-action. Stay tuned for the first animated frame to drop.
