Dressed in a glistening grey-and-blue princess gown, replete with a glittering tiara and sceptre, 8-year-old Nilasha Deuskar seems unfazed that she has had to check out of her room as early as 7-30 a.m. She sweeps into the reception of the Hollywood Hotel at Hong Kong Disneyland, followed by her parents and baby brother and poses for photos before proceeding to spend a few more hours at Disneyland and returning to India later that evening.
Nilasha is one of the 37 children who won a trip with family to Disneyland Hong Kong on participating in the Jet Set Go contest that Disney Channel ran earlier this summer.
Being family-inclusive is important to Disney, says Mr Vijay Subramanian, Executive Director, Disney Kids Network, Disney UTV. It is reflected in the choice of shows it puts out on the channel as well including
These shows reflect the rise of Indian programming at the channel. They are based on Disney’s shows abroad called
Currently, Disney Channel is the No 1 kids’ channel in the Hindi speaking market with 43 per cent share, claims Mr Subramanian. Other kids’ channels from the Disney network are Disney XD, targeted at boys aged 6-12 with action and comedic adventure, and Hungama, positioned as ‘unbridled fun’ with programming that includes Japanese anime.
Digitisation, which is round the corner, presents a significant opportunity to explore and evaluate products for younger audiences. “We expect to strengthen distribution overall,” says Mr Subramanian.
The Jet Set Go contest, in partnership with Jet Airways, involved contestants giving a missed call to a mobile number that flashed on the screen. A winner was declared everyday. The contest registered 6 million calls in a little over a month.
(The correspondent visited Hong Kong Disneyland at the invitation of Disney Channel.)