Cartoon Network and Pogo theme parks to come up in New Delhi

Two popular cartoon channels in India set to introduce theme parks.

PRAVEENA SHIVRAM

3 March 2006
CHENNAI, INDIA

For those of us who don't find the words Scooby Doo, Dexter, Powerpuff Girls and Noddy childish, silly, not-for-grownups, ridiculous or waste-of-time entities, then this is certainly good news. Turner International Private Limited, in association with International Recreation Parks and Unitech Amusements Parks , are ready to introduce two large-scale theme parks in New Delhi, the capital of India, based on the two cartoon channels in the country – Cartoon Network and Pogo. Planet Pogo and Cartoon Network Townsville are all set to make their presence felt in Rohini (West Delhi) and Sector 38A Noida (east of Delhi) respectively, and claim to be set to "change the face of family entertainment in India". With an investment of a whopping Rs 550 crores, that is definitely not an impossibility!

The statistics are something like this – Planet Pogo will be spread across an area of 3.5 acres, while Cartoon Network Townsville will be spread across an area of 6.8 acres. While Planet Pogo will be open to the public this year by October, Cartoon Network Townsville is slated for a 2007 launch. According to Ian Diamond, the Turner Entertainment Networks Asia VP and GM, the intent of the theme park is to foray into the world of entertainment by making the line between television entertainment and reality as negligent as possible. "And it makes sense for us to establish a space for entertainment with our retail strength so that people who watch the channels can take back bits and pieces of it to write with, to wear or to cuddle back home. It gives our characters, our retail and merchandising and our promotional activity another window to connect with the target audience," he claims.

With an international team, comprising of Canada-based Forrec for architecture, California-based Management Resources as operational consultants, Hong Kong-based MVA as traffic consultants, Germany-based TUV for measurement and monitoring and Scotland-based Euro Pools for water management, the theme parks are touted to be the first-of-its-kind in India. And what better time than now to launch this product. According to the company, sales revenues in India are skyrocketing, with the distribution for Cartoon Network touching 26 million and 17 million for Pogo. "It is our vision to develop a 21st century entertainment centre so creative in concept and so exciting in application that visitors will continue to discover new ways to enjoy the theme parks.," confirms Jiggy George, Director Cartoon Network Enterprises, India & South Asia.

With eight rides and seven attractions at Pogo Planet and thirteen rides and nine attractions at CNT, this mammoth amusement park is sure to set imaginations soaring for Indian kids, even as it sets new standards in the sphere of entertainment. A long wait, no doubt, but one that promises to be worth its while.