Indian Treatment for ITV’s I’m a Celebrity…

LONDON/MUMBAI: Sony Entertainment Television in India has signed on for its own version of the ITV Global Entertainment format I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!

Leading Indian production outfit MidiTech will produce the 40×1-hour show with ITV Studios-owned Silverback Productions. SET has not yet announced the names of the ten celebrities who will participate in the show, which will be filmed on location in Malaysia’s Taman Negara rainforest. The Hindi-language entertainment channel will premiere the show next month, airing it five nights a week in prime-time to a potential audience of 60 million. The Indian commission comes on the heels of NBC’s rollout of its own version earlier this month and last week’s order of a Swedish edition by TV4.

“I’m delighted to add another big-hitting international format to our strong programming line-up," said Gurdip Bhangoo, the senior VP and head of programming for Sony Entertainment Television in India. "I’m a Celebrity is a hugely successful series that has the potential to draw big audiences in India and across our global footprint. This commission fits our strategy of developing a range of channel defining entertainment shows that have scale and ambition."

James Ross, regional director for Asia at ITV Global Entertainment, added: “We are very excited about working together with Sony on building the profile in India for a show which is already proven around the world. We think the location in the Malaysian jungle will provide an excellent backdrop, as well as testing to the limit the endurance skills of the celebrities. We also believe the India version will be a great pre-cursor to launching the format in other Asian countries, which is already creating strong interest from top broadcasters.”