Now Indian fans can look forward to live Noddy show

New Delhi, May 29 (IANS) He has cast a spell on generations of children, and now storybook character Noddy, created by British writer Enid Blyton, will be brought to life for his fans in India through a musical extravaganza.

Organised by Just Because It's Children (JBC), a Delhi-based company, the Noddy show would be an hour-long event to be held in the capital in August. It will also travel to Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.

Nick Larkin, founder and executive producer, Millennium Entertainment International (MEI), which is collaborating with JBC on the venture, says the success of last year's Barney show - based on another cartoon character - has inspired them to bring Noddy alive.

"The Barney show got a phenomenal response here in India. Many people came up to me and literally begged me to bring more of such performances to India," said Larkin.

Kavita Bedi, who heads JBC, said: "The young Indian parent today is looking at everything almost world-class for their child, be it international food, games, education. And so they look forward to such a qualitative and educative recreational activity as well."

On being asked about their procedure of selecting one single cartoon character out of so many, Bedi replied: "Barney was a passionate and personal decision because when I saw the show in the Philippines, I was touched. So I thought of bringing it here too. Otherwise, what influences our decisions are a number of factors."

One of the oldest cartoon characters, Noddy from the fictional place Toyland has sustained its popularity and is a favourite with people of various age groups.

JBC is looking forward to attracting an audience from almost 500 schools at the national level, and the show would be free of cost for a few underprivileged children.

Bedi feels that whatever children watch has a great impact on them. "If they watch violence, they would imbibe that. Here, through this show, they would get positive vibes and would get to learn a lot more."

Popular British author Enid Blyton created Noddy, whose tales were originally published between 1949 and 1963. The television show based on the character is by far the longest running show on British TV since 1955, and continues to appear to this day.

The two companies are still deciding on the marketing strategies for the show but have plans to merchandise apparel, toys and reading material related to Noddy.

• Television