India’s Sony Yay! Launches ‘CID Squad’ as A part of Strategic Enlargement

Indian youngsters channel Sony Yay! is about to introduce “CID Squad,” a first-of-its-kind animated investigative thriller that reimagines India’s iconic “CID” franchise for a brand new technology.

The mission represents a strategic push to broaden animation’s attraction past conventional youngsters’ programming in what the channel describes as a “world-class animated expertise with cutting-edge expertise.”

Ambesh Tiwari, enterprise head of Sony youngsters and animation, explains the perception driving the brand new manufacturing: “We discovered that the age group between 15 to 35 is presumably one of many first generations who’ve come out with a tolerance and acceptance of animated content material far larger. That is the primary Cartoon Community technology to now totally be mother and father.”

In response to Tiwari, this demographic shift created a chance to inform tales with characters created in India. “What if the identical [“CID”] characters of Pradyuman, Daya, Freddie, Abhijit, with their very own qualities, had been kids based mostly in as we speak’s world?” he asks, outlining the idea. Whereas the unique “CID” targeted on homicide circumstances and organic crimes, “CID Squad” tackles modern points together with self-driving vehicles, synthetic intelligence and cyber safety.

The animated collection options Inspector Pradyuman as a 25 to 30-year-old main a staff of youthful detectives. Not like its predecessor, which adopted senior officers fixing conventional crimes, this reimagined staff consists of youngsters with distinct specializations. Abhijit, a 16-year-old with distinctive deduction expertise and a pointy reminiscence, makes use of his observational skills to assist construct circumstances. Daya, barely older than Abhijit, serves because the staff’s muscle however is reimagined as “a gutsy coder” within the digital age. “In the true model, he’s a bodily sturdy man, however in our model, he’s a younger bloke who breaks the firewalls,” Tiwari says.

The staff is rounded out by Fredricks, the youngest member who supplies comedian aid whereas sustaining a constructive staff spirit, and Constable Sushil, a seasoned officer with an in depth community of informants. Dr. Salunkhe, a mechanical genius who owns a scrap store, creates ingenious devices from discarded supplies to help the staff’s investigations.

“The characters have loads of affinity, even as we speak with youthful people,” Tiwari notes, pointing to the unique “CID’s” current profitable comeback on Sony TV and streaming platforms like Netflix. He emphasizes that the brand new iteration stands by itself advantage: “If you happen to don’t actually know ACP Pradyuman, you’ll decide up Inspector Pradyuman and see the way in which he leads the squad.”

With 13 episodes of 22-Half-hour every in its preliminary run, “CID Squad” is being positioned as a worldwide property. “The intent is to create a worldwide property which will probably be syndicated internationally, with India being a large market,” Tiwari says. The collection will probably be accessible within the Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Bangla languages to cater to various demographics throughout India.

Sony Yay! has partnered with Toonz Media Group, certainly one of India’s main animation studios, for manufacturing. The present’s post-production is dealt with by Eire’s Telegael, with worldwide music composers Gigi Meroni and Saveiro Rapezzi creating the soundtrack.

Sony Yay!’s strategic roadmap is guided by their “HUB technique,” making certain the model turns into a one-stop vacation spot for animation. The H stands for House to the largest toons, U for Limitless avenues, and B for Breaking boundaries. This method has positioned Sony Yay! as one of many leaders in Indian youngsters’ leisure by embracing the philosophy of “animation for all.”

The 2025 strategic focus areas observe this framework: repeatedly rising the content material library with iconic characters and world titles; increasing touchpoints past TV by means of collaborations, merchandise and digital ecosystems; and driving India’s animation revolution with a robust give attention to homegrown IPs and anime growth.

Past “CID Squad,” Sony Yay! is bringing the Japanese anime collection “Obocchama-kun” to Indian audiences by means of a Japan-India collaboration. The present’s scriptwriting stays with the Japanese staff to retain Obocchama-kun’s unique appeal, whereas Indian creators deal with animation manufacturing to make sure native relevance and seamless adaptation. This method preserves the core humor and storytelling whereas fine-tuning cultural nuances for Indian viewers.

Sony Yay! can be growing what Tiwari describes as “presumably India’s first anime collection” based mostly on Indian mythology, presently code-named “Undertaking Ok.” Whereas declining to specify which mythological character will probably be featured, Tiwari confirmed it’s neither Kalki nor Ashwathama. “This can be a very anime story with a bit man who has some form of powers, then a full bodily transformation occurs,” he says, noting that Japanese companions are serving to construct the collection with genuine anime storytelling parts.

These initiatives type a part of Yay! Animations’ strategic imperatives: IP manufacturing/co-production with “CID Squad” because the flagship collection, content material creation for different platforms and world expertise collaboration. Extra upcoming titles embody “Ray,” a collection based mostly on tales by legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray, and “Karna – The Guardian,” reimagining the long-lasting Indian character in a brand new avatar.

The channel has additionally acquired anime titles like “Naruto,” “Naruto Shippuden,” “Jujutsu Kaisen,” “Dr. Stone” and “Black Clover.” It has been performing strongly and is especially profitable in South India.

Sony Yay! has developed a balanced income mannequin leveraging promoting partnerships, syndication offers and licensing alternatives. The anime increase has added vital worth to its choices, permitting the model to monetize throughout varied channels. The model can be strengthening its digital presence, with 9 YouTube channels (4 show-centric Hindi-language channels and 5 regional channels) producing over 150 million viewers and 1.5 billion impressions per 30 days.

“What we have now understood — we now see the market of advertisers and licensers form of understanding the identical speculation —that it’s really time for anime for all,” Tiwari concludes.