Archie Panjabi boards BBC Studios ‘Anisha Accidental Detective’

Emmy Award-winning actress Archie Panjabi has joined the BBC Studios Kids & Family comedic mystery series Anisha Accidental Detective as an executive producer.

Based on the books of the same name by Serena Patel, the ten-part live-action adaptation will follow 10-year-old Anisha Mistry, whose life is upended when her aunt’s fiancé disappears a few days before their Bollywood-style wedding. Anisha must then use her sleuthing skills to discover what happened to the groom and get him to the wedding on time.

The series is described as "a bingeable whodunnit series for audiences aged 7+, bursting with intrigue, laughs, twists and turns”.

The adaptation is being developed by BBC Studios Kids & Family in a deal optioned by Emily Hayward-Whitlock at The Artist Partnership and Kate Shaw at The Shaw Agency, with up-and-coming screenwriter and children’s novelist Nikesh Shukla.

Talking about the series, Archie said, “BBC Studios Kids & Family have pulled together an amazing team to bring these utterly delightful books to life. With a British Indian family at the heart, it's a wonderful celebration of British Indian culture. Anisha was the character I yearned to see on screen when I was a ten-year-old.

“The series is a refreshing comedy mystery about friendship, family and growing up, packed with vibrant characters. It's delightfully intriguing and will keep the whole family craving for more - just like Anisha's granny's parathas!"

BBC Studios Kids & Family VP of development, Edward Barnieh, said the series will feature "fresh, diverse characters and will be bursting with clues, suspects and hilarious mishaps." With a ticking clock counting down to a big family wedding, he added, "it's sure to keep audiences on the edge of their seats”.

Added Serena, author of the Anisha Accidental Detective books, “I was thrilled when I heard that Archie Panjabi was coming on board as Executive Producer for the series. I have huge admiration for her career as an actor and for her to be involved in bringing my books to the screen feels like a dream come true.”