By Money Sharma, April 20, 2011 – 15:06 IST

Animation films in India like The Return of Hanuman, Roadside Romeo, Jumbo, etc, failed to draw audiences to the theatres in spite of the big banners and the Bollywood stars associated with them. Apparently, the superior quality of animation in these films did not make a difference to the ticket-buying public.

While almost as many as 50 animated movies were announced in the past four years (after the success of Hanuman, to be precise), hardly few of them hit the silver screen or even the Home Video circuit. While many producers announced release dates of these films, a lot of these movies are yet to see the light of the day.

Some animation projects are under production, while others have been shelved due to budget constraints or lack of distributors’ interest. As a result, animation filmmakers and production houses are on the verge of shutting shop or are diversifying into other business models.

So if one wants to get into this supposedly lucrative and fascinating business of making animation films, one either needs to have a strong financial back bone or industry godfathers and financers who can help one make and release the film. Or else, one can choose a different model, that of making a ‘quick buck’.

Example of such a film was Icy N Spicy, an animation film which didn’t have its principles of animation in place, neither a story nor any finesse, but it still managed to get a theatrical release. Animation was More >