Toonz brings Hanuman back in action

Mythical hero Hanuman is all set to don a contemporary role, with a full length animation movie on the character getting ready at Thiruvananthapuram-based Toonz Animation India's workshop.

Thiruvananthapuram-based Toonz Animation India's workshop is paving the way for the return mythical hero Hanuman with a full length animation film based on the character.

Hanuman Returns, co-produced by Toonz Animation and Mumbai-based Percept Picture Co under an equal partnership agreement, is being positioned as a sequel to the earlier successful animation movie Hanuman, produced by First Serve Toonz, a Toonz Animation-FirstServe International joint venture.

A senior official at Toonz Animation India told Business Standard that ace writer-director Anurag Kashyap would be in charge of the overall scripting and direction of Hanuman Returns, while the animation part would be done by a team lead by animation director M Abhilash at Toonz.

Hanuman Returns will hit theatres nationwide during the third week of December, the official revealed. Toonz Animation is planning to make the movie an event in itself by rolling out merchandise related to the movie a month after the release of the film. Besides, other activities with the character of Hanuman will be organised, said the official.

Not revealing the production cost or the expected revenue numbers, the official pointed out that the animation company was also planning to release the music of the film soon.

According to Toonz Animation India CEO Jayakumar, "Toonz Animation India is co-producing Hanuman Returns as a sequel to India's first successful animated movie Hanuman. We have emerged from the shadows of an outsourcing hub for western clients to the status of a co-producer with media giants such as BBC, Disney, Sony Entertainment."

The company, which has completed eight years, has also entered a MoU with the Beijing and Shengyang universities in China to set up centres of excellence in animation training.

The company aims at setting up about 10-15 animation training centers in China. Toonz's client list includes big names in media and entertainment, such as Marvel, BBC, Hallmark, Paramount, Disney and Cartoon Network.