K avalry Productions of Hamilton, Ont., has teamed up with Vancouver-headquartered Wind Sun Sky Entertainment to develop its original adult animated comedy series Bhalla.

The story of a basketball-loving Indian teen in a racially diverse suburb in Canada is inspired by the life of co-creator Anish Bhalla, according to a news release.

The series won the Stand Up and Pitch contest at last summer’s Just For Laughs ComedyPRO event in Montreal, where the Bhalla team plans to return this summer to share updates on the series and meet with potential cast members.

Kavalry partner Matt Kelly tells Playback Daily that the executive producers include himself, Kavalry partner Kyle Radke, and Bhalla, who’ve all written the pilot. On the Wind Sun Sky side, CEO Catherine Winder (Invincible, The Angry Birds Movie parts one and two, Star Wars: The Clone Wars) is attached as executive producer.

Kelly says Kavalry reached out to Winder after becoming fans of the Prime Video animated series Invincible, which Wind Sun Sky Entertainment adapted from a U.S. comic book series and produced with Skybound Entertainment. Kavalry sees Bhalla as “a globally relevant and salable franchise and story” with potential to reach many homes and platforms, he adds.

In a statement, Winder said “Bhalla is made up of a rich ensemble of diverse relatable, irreverent and funny characters ripe for animation,” adding that it brings a “fresh point of view and unique South East Asian perspective to life in an original story world yet to be seen in the animated adult space.”

Bhalla said Wind Sun Sky understands the creators’ vision and “is the perfect fit” to build the world.

With files from Angelica Babiera

Image courtesy of Kavalry Productions. From left to right: Matt Kelly, Kyle Radke, and Anish Bhalla