Keypad Warriors to Millionaires: The Rise of the Indian Gamer

These are exciting times for Indian gamers! In the last decade, gaming has exploded from a simple pastime to a $3 billion industry. The money poured into gaming is bigger than IPL. Worldwide it’s a $300 billion industry, bigger than TV and OTT. From humble beginnings to cult status, we explore the lives of young gamers who've transformed their hobbies into million-dollar careers. But behind all the fame and fortune, these young players are also grappling with a short shelf life, hectic schedules, performance pressure, and trolling. It’s a man’s world where female gamers deal with sexism and harassment. There are limitations of training infrastructure and reach. But the love for gaming conquers all. Hosts Anirban Chowdhury and ET’s Himanshi Lohchab take you to a gaming house and get you the voices of the top players, top team owners and India’s first gaming venture fund.  Listen to them in the latest episode of The Morning Brief podcast! We spoke to: Deepak Negi (Sensei) - Esport Player - Team Revenant Harshit Mahajan (MJ) - Esport Player - Team Revenant Nishant Singh Laspal (Apollo) - Esport Player - Team Revenant Rohit Jagasia - Founder and CEO - Team Revenant Animesh Agarwal (8bit Thug) - Founder and CEO - S8UL Esports Kaashvi Hiranandani (KaashPlays) - Content Creator - S8UL Esports Saloni Kandalgaonkar (Mili Kya Mili) - Content Creator - S8UL Esports Salone Sehgal - Co-founder - Lumikai Fund Disclaimer: This episode has some interviews in the Hindi language. Enhance your sonic journey: Plug in your earphones for an immersive listening adventure! Clip credits: Krafton India Esports and Revenant Esports. If you like this episode, check out our other interesting episodes on Gaming Gladiators and India’s Esports Arena, Nike to Plaeto: Legendary Designer Focuses on Indian Sneaker Heads, Business of Sleaze: The Dark Side of Livestreaming? And much more! You can follow Anirban Chowdhury on his social media: Twitter and Linkedin  You can follow Himanshi Lohchab on her social media: Twitter and Linkedin Catch the latest episode of ‘The Morning Brief’ on ET Play, The Economic Times Online, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, JioSaavn, Amazon Music and Google Podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.