Mumbai Calling, the comedy pilot co-written by Sanjeev Bhaskar (Goodness Gracious Me, The Kumar's at Number 42) and long-time writing partners Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran (Shine on Harvey Moon, The New Statesman, Birds of a Feather, Goodnight Sweetheart) has been commissioned by ITV.

Mumbai Calling stars Bhaskar as Kenny, a British born Indian who is transferred to a call centre in Mumbai, India, alongside Dev, played by Nitin Ganatra (who recently played Sid Gokahani in Jane Hall and Nitin in Meet the Magoons).

The programme is being made by two different companies. It is being created by independent producer Allan McKeown Presents in conjunction with Grey Cells Entertainment, an Indian company. Some scenes will be filmed in India with a local cast. The producer on the show is Nick Wood, who has previously directed a number of successful comedies including The Kumar's, Not Going Out, Grownups, Two Pints of Larger and a Packet of Crisps, Black Books and 2point4 Children.

During the pre-production stage the programme was originally called Hello Delhi however the title has now been changed. Celebrity Big Brother winner Shilpa Shetty was offered a role in the pilot however it appears she has turned the opportunity down in favour of appearing in Australian Big Brother.

The pilot is likely to be screened later in the year. It has been confirmed by an ITV spokesman that if the episode is well received a full series will be made. This is yet another in the long list of comedies that has recently been commissioned by ITV's head of comedy and entertainment, Paul Jackson.