With a mix of original and acquired content in the pipeline, Gubbare’s Brian Dcosta looks back at their amazing 2022 journey

IN10 Media’s Gubbare, fairly new kid on the block had an amazing journey in 2022 with the launches of two more IPs – Roro Aur Hero Bhoot Mast Zabardast and Akul Nakul – The Asuras. The shows were well received by the audience. For them the year started on a high note as their first original, Akki Jaanbaaz, won an award (Best 2D Animated Series) at the third edition of ANN Awards.

All their original shows – Akki Jaanbaaz, Roro Aur Hero Bhoot Mast Zabardast, Akul Nakul – The Asuras were well received by the audience, and they plan to expand the library with new seasons and movies of the same. The channel is in talks with domestic and international studios for co-production and new IPs that they hope to see on air in 2023.

“Gubbare launched with never-seen-on-Indian-television content in 2020, and 2021 saw us launching our first original. We want to have a 50:50 ratio of originals and acquired content as we plan to build our library with existing shows available in the market and Angry Birds is one of them; the animated version of the show was launched on 24 December which is being aired every day at 6:30 pm. The show has been dubbed in a unique style keeping the current flavour which is popular amongst kids in mind. We also aim to launch more popular franchise legacy content in the coming months,” Gubbare content and strategy AVP Brian D’costa told Animation Xpress.

He predicts a change in the viewership pattern in 2023. According to him, the year 2021 saw a sharp 27 per cent rise in the kids’ category. However, post the end of the lockdown, the kids’ category has seen a drop in overall ratings, but they saw it gaining momentum as normalcy sets in. The consumption pattern has changed since the lockdown wherein every day was equivalent to a weekend but now they see that coming back to pre-COVID days. In 2023, the channel hopes to see a rise in kids consuming more TV hours than they did in the previous year.

Talking about the outlook and trends to look out for in 2023, D’costa said, “Glocal content will still reign 2023, the focus will be on bringing great shows with unique storylines that will appeal to our audience. The focus will be on a mix of original IPs and acquired shows in the coming year. I feel the genre will see an expansion, where broadcasters will be forced to launch shows that are different. Genres like mytho-fi will be the new emerging trend in the category. Folklore and legendary stories will be back in action.”

Gubbare promises to promote exciting and entertaining content keeping kids at the core. After thorough research on the pan-India market, they have prepared a thrilling line-up for 2023 with a mix of originals, premiere movies and legacy-acquired content. According to D’costa, in 2023 we will also see the launch of interactive activities on the channel which will be a first for any kids’ channel.