Banijay Asia, a part of Banijay Entertainment, and NODWIN Gaming, a material subsidiary of Nazara Technologies, today announced a strategic partnership to revolutionize esports, gaming and youth entertainment in India. This collaboration marks a significant step in blending cutting-edge content with the booming gaming and youth culture ecosystem. As part of this alliance, Banijay Asia will take the helm in producing Playground, NODWIN Gaming’s flagship gaming reality show that has redefined the intersection of gaming, entertainment, and influencer culture in the region. The partnership will also bring new scripted and captive reality shows to daylight, with both companies co-developing new intellectual properties (IPs) and pioneering fresh content concepts across gaming, esports and youth culture.
Deepak Dhar, Founder & Group CEO – Banijay Asia & Endemol Shine India, commented, “This collaboration with NODWIN Gaming is an exciting extension of our vision to create content that resonates with evolving youth audiences. Gaming is not just a sport; it’s a culture, a lifestyle, and a massive content opportunity. With Playground and our upcoming IPs, we aim to redefine engagement and storytelling in this space.” He further added, “I look forward to the creative collaboration with Akshat Rathee, and Joost Roset who we previously worked with, in bringing iconic global IPs to India. This is an invaluable opportunity to create clutter-breaking formats in the youth and gaming space.”
With a diverse portfolio of high-impact IPs including the televised esports tournament – BGMI Masters Series (BGMS), Comic Con India, NH7 Weekender, and more, NODWIN Gaming is a key player in the gaming, esports and youth entertainment ecosystem.
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Talking about the partnership, Akshat Rathee, Co-Founder & MD, NODWIN Gaming, said, “Youth entertainment is evolving rapidly, and our partnership with Banijay Asia positions us perfectly to lead that change. With Playground, we’ve just begun to explore what’s possible. Backed by Banijay’s global expertise, we’re now set to scale the IP across multiple languages and markets, with the ambition of building an international format. At the heart of our approach is our philosophy of ‘timeshare of mindshare’. We’re not just creating content, we’re creating cultural moments. The Rusk creative team will stay actively involved as we expand the universe of Playground, aiming to grow from one show to between five and ten each year. This is just the beginning of a bold new chapter in gaming and youth content.”
With gaming emerging as one of the most influential youth-driven industries, this partnership is poised to set new benchmarks in how gaming and entertainment are consumed in India. By leveraging Banijay Asia’s expertise in content creation and NODWIN Gaming’s deep-rooted understanding of gaming communities, the collaboration promises to push creative boundaries and capture the imagination of young audiences nationwide.
Banijay Entertainment has strong expertise in the gaming space, via its global distribution arm Banijay Rights, with successful gaming activations leveraging key brands including Peaky Blinders, Black Mirror, Simon’s Cat and MasterChef.
About Banijay Asia:
Launched in early 2018, as a Joint Venture between content powerhouse Banijay Entertainment and Deepak Dhar, Banijay Asia is today amongst the biggest players in entertainment – across screens, and across genres. Over the last few years, Banijay Asia has delivered mega-hit scripted adaptations like The Night Manager, The Trial (The Good Wife), Hostages, Call My Agent: Bollywood, Fall and successful originals such as Dahan, Matsya Kaand, Undekhi, and Tribhanga amongst many others. The content studio’s upcoming shows include Indian adaptations of Monk, House and Suits. On the non-scripted front, Banijay Asia is leading the genre with blockbuster titles like Temptation Island, The Kapil Sharma Show, MTV Roadies, The Voice, The Big Picture, Into The Wild with Bear Grylls, Case Toh Banta Hai and more.
About NODWIN Gaming:
NODWIN Gaming, a material and independent subsidiary of Nazara Technologies Ltd. (BSE: NAZARA), holds a significant position in the global gaming and esports industry as a leader in emerging markets. Since its inception in 2014 by Akshat Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN Gaming has grown rapidly and was last valued at valued at $410 million as of November 2024 and has established a global presence in regions such as South Asia, Germany, Central Asia, Singapore, the Middle East and Turkey.
The company’s business centres around building and monetising #TimeshareOfMindshare across the youth of the emerging world. It has in its arsenal- gaming and esports IPs such as Leagues, Tournaments, reality shows, festivals, conferences, content, influencers and merchandise. Notable investors include Nazara, KRAFTON Inc, Sony Group Corporation, and JetSynthesys.
A key focus for NODWIN Gaming is the expertise in the mobile gaming and esports sector, where it has established a dominant position worldwide. By catering to the youth demographic, NODWIN is expanding its Total Addressable Market (TAM) by becoming increasingly relevant in the rapidly evolving digital entertainment landscape. Their diverse range of intellectual properties that engages the youth spans esports, gaming, pop culture, music, and comedy. This strategic expansion and cultivation of new intellectual properties are crucial to NODWIN’s aim of maintaining a significant role in the new age media economy of the global youth.
The Sportz Planet Desk
