Pokémon in South Asia
| Pokémon in South Asia | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Language | Hindi, Tamil*, Telugu*, English | |||
| Continent | Asia | |||
| Original anime airdates | ||||
| EP001 | April 1, 2003 | |||
| AG001 | May 9, 2006 | |||
| DP001 | November 9, 2009 November 16, 2009 | |||
| BW001 | June 17, 2013 | |||
| XY001 | ||||
| SM001 | ||||
| JN001 | ||||
| HZ001 | ||||
The Pokémon franchise (Hindi: पोकेमोन Pokémon, Urdu: پوکيمون Pokémon) made its debut in the Indian subcontinent in 2003, with the broadcast of the first anime episode in both English and Hindi languages on Cartoon Network India. The respective channel aired the show for eight years straight (2003-2011), up to Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Battle Dimension.
In March of 2011, the anime was shifted from Cartoon Network India to Pogo. It aired the Diamond & Pearl series in its entirety, along with the first season of Best Wishes series. In July 2014, the anime made its return to Cartoon Network India with Pokémon: Black and White. In May 2014, the anime was also picked up by Hungama TV, which is currently airing Pokémon: Indigo League.
Pokémon games
While Nintendo has yet to make its way in the Indian subcontinent market officially, the Pokémon games and some other Nintendo products are available on online retail stores.
Pokémon anime
The Pokémon anime is available in the following South Asian territories: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
| Country | Channels aired |
|---|---|
| Afghanistan | Cartoon Network Pakistan |
| Bangladesh | |
| Pakistan | |
| Bhutan | Cartoon Network India Pogo Hungama TV* |
| India | |
| Nepal | |
| Sri Lanka |
Cartoon Network & Pogo
Original series
Pokémon: Indigo League premiered on Cartoon Network India on May 12, 2003[1] as a part of its Toonami block and it was made available in both Hindi and English languages. The anime soon became one of the highly rated show on the respective channel, especially during its peak, and concluded its first run in the same year.
Immediately after the first season, Pokémon: Adventures in the Orange Islands made its Indian debut in late 2003 and ended its run in the mid of 2004. Following the year long re-run airings, Pokémon: The Johto Journeys made its long-awaited premiere on Cartoon Network.
Affiliated with Cartoon Network India, a separate Cartoon Network feed was launched for the Pakistani audience in 2004, which was later made available in Afghanistan and Bangladesh as well. Due to the affiliation, both channels simulcasted the anime. With Pokémon: Master Quest, Cartoon Network India introduced two additional dubs for the Indian viewers, Tamil and Telugu. The Original series concluded its first complete run in the mid of 2005.
On November 14, 2006, Cartoon Network India aired the first Pokémon movie, Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns, as a part of its Children's day programming.[2]
| Year | Season(s) of Pokémon Original series aired |
|---|---|
| 2003 | Pokémon: Indigo League |
| 2003 - 2004 | Pokémon: Adventures in the Orange Islands |
| 2004 | Pokémon: The Johto Journeys |
| 2004 - 2005 | Pokémon: Johto League Champions |
| 2005 | Pokémon: Master Quest |
Advanced Generation series
The first season of Pokémon Advanced Generation series debuted in 2006, on both channels. The first episode, Get the Show on the Road, premiered on May 9, 2006 on Cartoon Network India as well as on Cartoon Network Pakistan. At that time, Pokémon: Advanced was available in two different languages (English and Hindi) on Cartoon Network Pakistan and it was available in four different languages (Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and English) on Cartoon Network India.
The first season of the Advanced Generation series ended in July 2006, resulting in repeats airing on both Cartoon Network channels. After four months, both Cartoon Network channels began to air new episodes of Pokémon and through this Pokémon: Advanced Challenge debuted on November 6, 2006 as well as trailers of the seventh season appearing in Indian theaters. The seventh season ended on January 4, 2007. After the end of seventh season, Cartoon Network began to air re-runs in a new one-hour block called Dastaan-e-Pokémon.
Dastaan-e-Pokémon was a one-hour block, especially dedicated exclusively to Pokémon, on both of the sub-continent Cartoon Network feeds. Available in 3 different dubs, the block premiered on January 8, 2007 with the first episode of the anime, replacing Pokémon: Advanced Challenge. The block featured all of the old episodes, from the first season up to the seventh. Almost a year later, it included a brand new season to its line-up, Pokémon: Advanced Battle, and marked the first time when a season premiered with two back-to-back episodes on Cartoon Network in the Indian sub-continent. The block ended in the end of 2008, replaced by Pokémon: Battle Frontier.
The final season of the Advanced Generation series. Pokémon: Battle Frontier debuted in the month of November in 2008. Initially, it only aired on Cartoon Network India, but began to air on Cartoon Network Pakistan two weeks after its Indian debut. After the completion of the Advanced Generation series, both Cartoon Network channels began the repeat telecast of old Pokémon episodes. These reruns lasted for ten months, and ended with the debut of Pokémon: Diamond & Pearl.
| Year | Season(s) of Pokémon Advanced Generation series aired |
|---|---|
| 2006 | Pokémon: Advanced |
| 2006 - 2007 | Pokémon: Advanced Challenge |
| 2008 | Pokémon: Advanced Battle |
| 2008 - 2009 | Pokémon: Battle Frontier |
Diamond & Pearl series
The first season of the Diamond & Pearl series first aired in Pakistan on November 9, 2009 and in India on November 16, 2009. It was supposed to end on January 18, 2010 on Cartoon Network Pakistan but they ended the entire season within 35 days by skipping almost 23 episodes, from O'er the Rampardos We Watched! to A Stand-Up Sit-Down! due to unknown reasons. However, this problem was fixed in the re-runs of the season.
In early 2011, the anime switched to Pogo, a sister channel of Cartoon Network in India, which also aired the Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Galactic Battles in April. Even though the anime switched to another channel in India, Cartoon Network Pakistan continued to air the show which led to the premiere of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Galactic Battles on August 1. The finale of the twelfth season premiered on October 11, 2011 while the repeats of the same season took over the anime slot from the following day.
The last season of Diamond & Pearl series and thirteenth season overall, Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Sinnoh League Victors premiered on October 3, 2011 in India. During its airing, Pogo skipped two episodes instead of following the actual production order, from The Fleeing Tower Of Sunyshore! and Teaching the Student Teacher!, due to some unknown reasons. This problem was fixed in the re-runs of the season. The last episode of Diamond & Pearl series, that is Memories are Made of Bliss! aired on October 25, 2011 in India. Meanwhile it premiered on Cartoon Network Pakistan on February 1, 2012 and concluded its run with the season finale on March 19, 2012.
| Year | Season(s) of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl series aired |
|---|---|
| 2009 - 2010 | Pokémon: Diamond & Pearl |
| 2010 | Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Battle Dimension |
| 2011 | Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Galactic Battles Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Sinnoh League Victors* |
| 2012 | Pokémon Diamond & Pearl: Sinnoh League Victors* |
Best Wishes series
After almost a year and eight months long gap, Pogo premiered the fourteenth season of the anime on June 17, 2013. Many changes were introduced, including: a new time-slot for the show, the voice of the narrator as well as a new voice actor for Delia Ketchum. Instead of the original production order, Pogo skipped the episodes The Dragon Master's Path! which was going to air on Wednesday, 31st July 2013 and Cilan Versus Trip, Ash Versus Georgia! which was going to air on Thursday, 22th August, due to some unknown reasons. The channel completed the run of the season with the season finale, Battle for the Underground, on Thursday, 5th September. The re-runs of the season began from 9th September, continuing at the same time slot. Later on during the re-runs, these episodes of The Dragon Master's Path! and Cilan Versus Trip, Ash Versus Georgia! were broadcasted.
On June 27, 2014, after more than 3 years since Pokémon shifted to Pogo, Cartoon Network India made an announcement through its official Facebook page that Pokémon would soon be returning to Cartoon Network India. Cartoon Network began airing Pokémon: Black and White from July 2, 2014, airing 2 new episodes on the weekdays. However, many of the episodes were aired out of order, which created some confusion among viewers who were watching it for the first time.
| Year | Season(s) of Pokémon Best Wishes series aired |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Pokémon: Black & White* |
| 2014 | Pokémon: Black & White* |
Hungama TV
Around the beginning of 2014, Disney Inc. bought the airings rights for Pokémon. However, the respective company did not acquire the rights for the anime's previous Hindi dub. While the exact reasons for re-dubbing are not known, there is a good possibility that such decisions were made because of Disney India and UTV's policy, implemented in 2010-2011, that all the dubs of Disney channel properties will be carried out in-house.
Original Series
The anime made its Hungama TV debut on May 19, 2014 with its first season, which currently airs on every weekday at 1:00 PM, with repeats at 4:00 PM, 6:30 PM, 8:00 PM and 12:30 PM the next day. Pokéthon, a special block dedicated to Pokémon reruns, was a new feature. The respective block featured four back-to-back episodes.
Similar to the Cartoon Network airings, viewers noticed some inconsistencies in the airing order.
Pokémon movies
| Year | Movie(s)/special(s) aired* |
|---|---|
| 2006 | Mewtwo Returns |
| 2009 | Pokémon Chronicles Lucario and the Mystery of Mew Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea* |
| 2010 | Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea* |
| 2011 | The Rise of Darkrai Giratina and the Sky Warrior* Arceus and the Jewel of Life* |
| 2012 | Zoroark Master of illusions* |
Cast and Crew
Hindi dub
| Character | Voice actor |
|---|---|
| Ash | Rahul Sharma (Cartoon Network dub) Nachiket Dighe (Hungama dub) |
| Misty | Rucha Dighe (Hungama dub) |
| Brock | Abhishek Singh (Cartoon Network dub) Uplaksh Kochhar (Hungama dub) |
| Tracey | Nachiket Dighe (Cartoon Network dub) |
| Jessie | Shagufta Baig (Hungama dub) |
| James | Kishore Bhatt (Cartoon Network dub) Rajesh Shukla (Hungama dub) |
| Meowth | Saumya Daan (Hungama dub) |
Tamil dub
| Character | Voice actor |
|---|---|
| Unknown Character | Karthik [3] |
Pokémon manga
English-translated Pokémon manga was distributed in India by Chuang Yi.
Pokémon Merchandise
- Pokémon became an instant hit in India and almost always used to be the number one kids show on TV. Due to its huge popularity, many pirated Pokémon products began to be sold in India.[4]
- Pokémon merchandise is available in India from Reliance Home video and games.
- Pokémon Rakhis were available in India, with Pikachu and the starter Pokémon of Unova region.
- Pokémon collectibles were available for free in every Cheetos snack pack.
- On the Toonami block where Pokémon once aired, Cartoon Network in 2006 hosted a contest titled "Toonami-Game On Video Game Championship", with Pokémon merchandise given out as prizes.[5]
Trivia
- Starting from Pokémon: Black & White, Cartoon Network aired the show in English and Hindi only.
- After the first few airings, Hungama TV stopped airing the opening theme song and the credits.
- Instead of following the usual tradition of literally translating the moves' names in Hindi, several of them have been kept the same as in English starting season 14.
- Prior to Princess vs. Princess, Hungama TV did not include the Who's that Pokémon segment for Pokémon: Indigo League airings.
Related articles
External links
- Cartoon Network India official site
- Cartoon Network India official Facebook page
- Pogo TV official site
- Pokémon merchandise
References
- ↑ http://www.indiantelevision.com/node/6848
- ↑ http://www.indiantelevision.com/television/broadcasting/tv-channels/kids/cartoon-network-to-join-barbie-and-pok%C3%A9mon-on-childrens-day
- ↑ http://www.afaqs.com/news/company_briefs/index.html?id=14017_Karthik-singing-sensation-of-South-India-lends-his-voice-to-Pokemon%27s-title-track-on-Cartoon-Network
- ↑ http://www.indiantelevision.org.in/mam/headlines/y2k3/dec/decmam4.htm
- ↑ http://www.indiantelevision.com/television/broadcasting/tv-channels/kids/cartoon-network-to-host-toonami-game-on-video-gaming
| The Pokémon franchise around the world | |
|---|---|
| The Americas: | Brazil • Canada • Latin America • United States |
| Asia: | Greater China • Indonesia • Japan • Malaysia • Philippines • Singapore • South Asia • South Korea • Thailand • Vietnam |
| Europe: | Albania • Belgium • Bulgaria • Croatia • Czech Republic • Denmark • Finland • France • Germany • Greece Hungary • Iceland • Ireland • Italy • Latvia • Lithuania • Netherlands • North Macedonia • Norway • Poland Portugal • Romania • Russia • Serbia • Slovakia • Spain • Sweden • Ukraine • United Kingdom |
| Middle East: | Arab world • Israel • Turkey |
| Oceania: | Australia • New Zealand |
|
This article is part of Project Globe, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon franchise around the world. |
