Indian Inspired Show Ordered By Disney Junior

South Asian representation has a pretty big step forward, as it was recently announced that production has begun on a animated mystery-adventure series for Disney Junior, which is the network that aims their content to young children. The show is called “Mira, Royal Detective,” and it’s set in the magical Indian-inspired land of Jalpur, following Mira (voiced by newcomer, Leela Ladnier), a commoner who is appointed to the role of royal detective after solving a mystery that involves saving the kingdom’s young prince.

Obviously, this isn’t going to be something aimed at me, but it’s still really cool to finally see something like this come from the biggest entertainment giant in the world. I’ve always been curious as to why Disney has yet to mine Indian mythology for one of their movies, as it’s incredibly ripe for that kind of treatment. Perhaps, this show will serve as a stepping stone to that. If it’s successful, maybe more projects like it will be green-lit. Even Netflix has been making greater efforts in funding and acquiring Indian shows and movies for their platform like they did with Sacred Games and Ghoul.

The other awesome thing about the show is the cast. It’s basically a who’s who of South Asian-American talent. Freida Pinto, Hannah Simone, Jameela Jamil, Kal Penn, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Aasif Mandvi, Sarita Choudhury, Aparna Nancherla, Kamran Lucas, Karan Brar, Karan Soni, Sarayu Blue, Parvesh Cheena, Sonal Shah, and Roshni Edwards (the other newcomer). Wow. Mindy Kaling must be furiously calling her agent, and asking why she wasn’t invited to the party. There’s even Indian folks working behind the scenes like choreographer, Nakul Dev Mahajan, and music producer, Deepak Ramapriyan, so it looks like their aiming this to be as authentic as possible.

In the press release, Joe D’Ambrosia, senior VP of original programming at Disney Junior, had this to say:

“We are eager to introduce kids and their families to the rich, diverse cultures and customs of India through Mira, a young girl who looks at things with her own unique lens to gain different perspectives and help others in her community. We hope that she will encourage our audience to actively engage with the inspiring world around them and appreciate the little details that make life extraordinary.”

Since the show is only just beginning production, the network is aiming at 2020 for the debut. There’s still some waiting to do. Still, it’s great to hear projects like this get the green light, and I hope there’s more to come. Like I said, it ultimately won’t be for someone like me, but I’m sure there will be many South Asian kids who will watch this, and be ecstatic at seeing something that reflects their culture.