Outsourced (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Outsourced is an American television sitcom set in an India
n workplace. It was based on the John Jeffcoat
film of the same name and adapted by Ken Kwapis
(In Cahoots Productions) and Universal Media Studios for NBC
. The series originally ran from September 23, 2010 to May 12, 2011. The show was officially picked up by NBC on May 7, 2010 and on October 18, 2010, the show received a full season order. Outsourced was filmed at Radford Studios in Studio City, Los Angeles
, California
.
When the renewal of the show was not announced with renewal of other NBC shows, the cast and crew started a campaign for fans of the show to request its renewal. On June 22, 2011, NBC announced that Outsourced was canceled.
, India
, where an American novelties
company has recently outsourced
its order processing. A lone American manages the call center and must explain American popular culture to his employees as he tries to understand Indian culture.
. Joel Keller of TV Squad in a review of the pilot episode
stated, "As long as the show can examine the cultural divide, show how all offices are the same no matter where they are, and stay away from the easy jokes, NBC could have another Thursday comedy hit." Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times
stated "The fact that it's neither embarrassing nor deeply offensive—once it gets rolling, the show is actually quite charming—is a credit to the cast and the writers." Critics such as blogger Mikey O'Connell have accused Outsourced of being racist.
, for broadcast on Global
at the same time as the American broadcast.
Outsourced is being broadcast in Singapore
, Indonesia
, Thailand
, and Hong Kong
on Universal
.
In Australia
Outsourced is being broadcast on Seven Network
.
In Brazil
Outsourced is being broadcast on Rede Record
, premiered on November 5, 2011, with title Aprontando na Índia.
In New Zealand
Outsourced is being broadcast on FOUR
.
In the Philippines
, Outsourced is being broadcast on 2nd Avenue.
In Norway
Outsourced is being broadcast on MAX
.
In South Africa
Outsourced is being broadcast on SABC 3
.
In Mexico
Outsourced is being broadcast on Warner Channel
.
In Sweden
Outsourced is being broadcast on TV3
and TV6.
In Denmark
Outsourced is being broadcast on TV3+
.
In Poland
Outsourced (Dostawa na telefon) is being broadcast on Comedy Central Poland.
In the Middle East Outsourced is being broadcast on OSN COMEDY.
In Latin America
Outsourced is being broadcast on Warner Channel
In Malaysia Outsourced is being broadcast on RTM
's channel tv2
.
In Italy
Outsourced is being broadcast on Mediaset Premium
channel Joy
.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n workplace. It was based on the John Jeffcoat
John Jeffcoat
John Jeffcoat is an American film director. He is most famous for his film Outsourced starring Josh Hamilton and Ayesha Dharker. The film has been adapted as a television series, and was recently picked up by NBC for their fall schedule after The Office....
film of the same name and adapted by Ken Kwapis
Ken Kwapis
Ken Kwapis is an American film and television director and screenwriter. He specialized in the single-camera sitcom in the 1990s and 2000s and has directed feature films such as Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and He's Just Not That Into...
(In Cahoots Productions) and Universal Media Studios for NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. The series originally ran from September 23, 2010 to May 12, 2011. The show was officially picked up by NBC on May 7, 2010 and on October 18, 2010, the show received a full season order. Outsourced was filmed at Radford Studios in Studio City, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
When the renewal of the show was not announced with renewal of other NBC shows, the cast and crew started a campaign for fans of the show to request its renewal. On June 22, 2011, NBC announced that Outsourced was canceled.
Premise
Outsourced is set in a call center in MumbaiMumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, where an American novelties
Novelties
A novelty item is a small manufactured adornment, especially a personal adornment.- Novelty item :This term covers a range of small manufactured goods, such as*antiques*collectables*chocolates*esoterica*executive toys*gadgets*tools and implements...
company has recently outsourced
Outsourcing
Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider...
its order processing. A lone American manages the call center and must explain American popular culture to his employees as he tries to understand Indian culture.
Cast
The show focuses on Todd Dempsy and a number of his employees working for the Mid America Novelties call center, along with other call center managers in the same building.- Ben RappaportBen RappaportBennett Eli "Ben" Rappaport is an American actor. He played the role of Todd Dempsy in the NBC sitcom Outsourced, which aired during the 2010–2011 television season. The series marked Rappaport's debut acting role on screen....
as Todd Dempsy, a Kansas CityKansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
native who is transferred to India to run the call center for Mid America Novelties. He quickly strikes up a friendship with Charlie (due to him being the only other American in the building), and finds himself at the center of a love triangle between Asha and Tonya. - Rizwan ManjiRizwan ManjiRizwan Manji is a Indo-Canadian actor. He is chiefly notable for his role as Rajiv in the now cancelled NBC Universal TV series Outsourced....
as Rajiv Gidwani, Todd's mischievous assistant manager at Mid America Novelties. He is hard-nosed and unapologetic, and desires Todd's job, either by Todd's promotion or failure. He is promoted to manager when Todd is promoted to Executive Manager. - Sacha DhawanSacha DhawanSacha Dhawan is an English actor. He has performed on stage, film, television and radio. Dhawan was born in Bramhall, Stockport, Greater Manchester.-Career:...
as Manmeet, a call center employee who dreams of the United States (especially American women and sexual freedom) and quickly becomes good friends with Todd. - Rebecca HazlewoodRebecca HazlewoodRebecca Hazlewood is an English actress of mixed English and Indian descent. Hazlewood was born in Wales and grew up in Kingswinford, England and studied English Literature at Bretton Hall...
as Asha, an employee and love interest of Todd, who is frequently the voice of reason in the office and plans to pursue an arranged marriage. - Parvesh CheenaParvesh CheenaParvesh Singh Cheena is an American character actor. He most recently played Gupta in the canceled NBC Universal TV series Outsourced. Cheena grew up in Naperville, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and went to Waubonsie Valley High School. He studied musical theatre at the Chicago College of...
as Gupta, the overly-talkative office misfit, who constantly yearns to be the center of attention. - Anisha NagarajanAnisha NagarajanAnisha Nagarajan; is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in the Andrew Lloyd Webber theater musical, Bombay Dreams, and as Madhuri on the 2010 NBC television series, Outsourced.-Early life:...
as Madhuri, a shy and soft-spoken employee whose income alone supports her entire family. - Diedrich BaderDiedrich BaderKarl Diedrich Bader , better known as Diedrich Bader, is an American actor, voice artist and comedian. Many know him for his roles as Oswald Lee Harvey on The Drew Carey Show, Lawrence from the film Office Space, the Tae Kwon Do instructor Rex from Napoleon Dynamite, Tank "Shredder" Evans in Surf's...
as Charlie Davies, call center manager for a company called All-American Hunter, and Todd's best friend in India. Insensitive and often crude and boorish, Charlie frequently hangs around with members of Todd's staff, despite lacking rapport with his own employees. - Pippa BlackPippa BlackPippa Black is an Australian actress. From 2005 to 2009, Black played Elle Robinson in the soap opera Neighbours. Black played Tonya in the NBC series Outsourced from 2010 to 2011.-Career:...
as Tonya, an AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n call center manager for the company Koala Airlines. Tonya is easygoing and adventurous; by mid-season, she and Todd are romantically involved. However, she breaks up with Todd near the end of the season.
Reception
The show has received mixed reviews, reaching a 46 out of 100 on review aggregator MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. Joel Keller of TV Squad in a review of the pilot episode
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
stated, "As long as the show can examine the cultural divide, show how all offices are the same no matter where they are, and stay away from the easy jokes, NBC could have another Thursday comedy hit." Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
stated "The fact that it's neither embarrassing nor deeply offensive—once it gets rolling, the show is actually quite charming—is a credit to the cast and the writers." Critics such as blogger Mikey O'Connell have accused Outsourced of being racist.
| Season | Episodes | Timeslot | Original airing | Rank | Viewers (in millions) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season premiere | Season finale | TV season | |||||
| 1 | 22 | Thursday 9:30 pm (2010) Thursday 10:30 pm (2011) |
September 23, 2010 | May 12, 2011 | 2010–2011 2010–2011 United States network television schedule The following is the 2010–2011 network television schedule for the five major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 2010 through May 2011. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new... |
#108 | 5.2 |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Presenter | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | People's Choice Awards People's Choice Awards The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show recognizing the people and the work of popular culture. The show has been held annually since 1975 and is voted on by the general public. The People's Choice Awards air on CBS and are produced by Procter & Gamble and Survivor magnate Mark Burnett... |
Favorite New TV Comedy | |
| 2011 | NAMIC Vision Awards | Best Performance - Comedy for Anisha Nagarajan | |
| 2011 | NAMIC Vision Awards | Comedy |
International broadcasts
Outsourced was picked up in CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, for broadcast on Global
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
at the same time as the American broadcast.
Outsourced is being broadcast in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
on Universal
Universal Channel (Asia)
Universal Channel is a television channel specializing in movies and television series in the thriller, drama, comedy, crime and investigation genres. It is owned by NBC Universal Global Networks...
.
In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
Outsourced is being broadcast on Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
.
In Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
Outsourced is being broadcast on Rede Record
Rede Record
Rede Record de Televisão is a Brazilian television network, founded in 1953 by Paulo Machado de Carvalho, also founder of Rádio Record. Currently it is owned by businessman Edir Macedo, founder and bishop of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God. Since 2007 it is Brazil's second largest...
, premiered on November 5, 2011, with title Aprontando na Índia.
In New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Outsourced is being broadcast on FOUR
Four (New Zealand TV channel)
Four is a television station operating in New Zealand and owned by MediaWorks New Zealand. The channel launched 6 February 2011 at 6pm. The channel broadcasts on channel frequencies previously used by C4 with some shows previously screened on TV3 and C4 now screening on...
.
In the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Outsourced is being broadcast on 2nd Avenue.
In Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
Outsourced is being broadcast on MAX
MAX (TV channel)
MAX is a Norwegian television channel designed for a mostly male audience.The first program on MAX was the movie Wild Hogs, followed by the premiere of Breaking Bad...
.
In South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
Outsourced is being broadcast on SABC 3
SABC 3
SABC3 is a commercial South African Broadcasting Corporation television channel that carries programming in English and, as of April 2009, Afrikaans....
.
In Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
Outsourced is being broadcast on Warner Channel
Warner Channel
Warner Channel is a Latin American and Asian cable television channel owned by Time Warner's HBO Asia/HBO Latin America Group Warner Channel (commonly shortened to WBTV, but not to be confused with the WB Television Network or Charlotte, North Carolina station WBTV, and currently referred to in...
.
In Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Outsourced is being broadcast on TV3
TV3 (Sweden)
TV3 is a television channel targeted at a Swedish language audience owned by Viasat . It was founded on 31 December 1987 by entrepreneur Jan Stenbeck as joint Scandinavian channel, but Denmark and Norway soon got their own versions of TV3...
and TV6.
In Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Outsourced is being broadcast on TV3+
TV3+ (Denmark)
TV3+ Denmark is a general entertainment channel owned by Modern Times Group broadcasting to Denmark.TV3+ has its origins in the youth channel ZTV and women's channel TV6 that were launched in the mid-1990s when Kinnevik invested heavily in new free-to-air channels. In April 1996, Danish ZTV, TV6...
.
In Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Outsourced (Dostawa na telefon) is being broadcast on Comedy Central Poland.
In the Middle East Outsourced is being broadcast on OSN COMEDY.
In Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
Outsourced is being broadcast on Warner Channel
In Malaysia Outsourced is being broadcast on RTM
Radio Televisyen Malaysia
The Department of Broadcasting, Malaysia, DBA Radio Televisyen Malaysia , is a Malaysian state-owned public broadcaster. It owns and operates a number of radio and television stations in Malaysia, based in Kuala Lumpur...
's channel tv2
TV2 (Malaysia)
RTM2, also known as TV2 is a television station in Malaysia owned and operated by the Radio Television Malaysia, a division of the Malaysian Government. RTM2 is now broadcasting for 24 hours a day effective January 2006.- History :...
.
In Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Outsourced is being broadcast on Mediaset Premium
Mediaset Premium
Mediaset Premium is an Italian digital terrestrial television service provided by Mediaset. It provides pay tv and pay-per-view services through use of a smart card.-History:...
channel Joy
Joy
Joy may refer to:* Happiness, an emotion* Joy , people with the given name or surname Joy-Music:Bands & performers* Joy * Joy Albums* Joy ; also the title track from that album...
.
See also
- Mumbai CallingMumbai CallingMumbai Calling is a British-Indian comedy series, starring Sanjeev Bhaskar, set in the fictional Teknobable call centre in Mumbai. The series was shot on location in India. The pilot first aired on ITV on 30 May 2007...
, a 2007 British sitcom with a similar premise. - Outsourced (film), a 2006 movie from which the TV show takes its basis.