NENT STUDIO UK’S “BLACK WIDOWS” TI BE RE-MADE BY ZEE5 IN INDIA

NENT Studios in the UK struck a large two-season deal with India’s largest video streaming platform, ZEE5, and producer Big Synergy Media Ltd., which will include a localized version of its scripted format "Black Widows" created for Indian audiences. “With its universally relatable themes, intrigue and focus on female relationships, ‘Black Widows’ is a contemporary scripted format that continually proves itself to be readily adaptable,” Jess Khanom, SVP Sales for APAC at NENT Studios UK said. “ZEE5 and Big Synergy Media have exciting plans for this production, and we cannot wait to see how Indian viewers respond to a fresh new version, complete with local sensibilities and cultural references.”

The show is due to premiere on ZEE5 this year and will be produced by Namit Sharma and Big Synergy Media Ltd. Based on the Finnish drama of the same name, the ‘Black Widows’ deal includes the rights for the two original series that consisted of episodes12-hour The Indian version will be the eighth international remake following versions in Ukraine, Estonia, Lithuania, the Middle East, Mexico, Scandinavia, and the Czech Republic.

The series  was created by Roope Lehtinen and Mikko Polla (now of Fire Monkey, then Moskito) for Finnish broadcaster Nelonen. Winner of three Finnish Venla Awards in 2014 and an International Gold Panda Award for best TV drama, it tells a darkly comic story of three best friends who try to kill their husbands. It doesn’t all quite go to plan; one of the
men survives and looks set on revenge. The women’s friendship and mutual trust are then put to the test as their lives get even more complicated, and they do what they can to stay
alive. “ZEE5 has seen exponential growth since launching on the back of great content and technology,” Tarun Katial, CEO, ZEE5 India said. “With over 100 Original web series and films across genres and languages, we aim to continue to offer consumers content that is real, relevant, and relatable. ‘Black Widows’ is an engaging story featuring strong female protagonists, plenty of suspense, and a large dose of dark humor.”

This ‘Black Widows’ deal is the latest in a long line of recent scripted format deals from NENT Studios UK’s drama catalog. In addition to the other ‘Black Widows’ remakes, ‘Doc Martin’ has been adopted in Germany, France, Greece, The Netherlands, Spain, and the Czech Republic/Slovakia , with a spin-off, ‘Constable Topinka’, in the latter, while ‘Shameless’ has been remade in the US and Turkey. Norwegian dramas ‘Eyewitness’ and ‘Mammon’ have both been adapted internationally: the former in the US, Romania, and France, with the latter in the Czech Republic. Finnish crime drama ‘Easy Living’ has been adopted in Hungary, and the Australian title ‘Small Time Gangster’ has been remade in Romania. We could immediately see its appeal for Indian audiences and found credible partners in NENT Studios UK and Big Synergy Media Ltd. I am certain that this could prove to be a hugely popular, binge-worthy series when it launches later this year.”