Rusk Media raises Rs 100 crore in funding round led by Nazara Technologies

MUMBAI: Rusk Media has just pocketed a hefty war chest to take its Gen Z entertainment empire global. The Mumbai headquartered digital entertainment company has closed a Rs 100 crore pre-Series C funding round, led by Nazara Technologies, with significant backing from InfoEdge Ventures, IvyCap Ventures and a consortium fronted by Audacity VC. Representatives from Nazara and Audacity VC will also take seats on Rusk Media’s board, cementing the strategic ties behind the cheque.

The fresh capital will fuel expansion across content, platform and technology, with Rusk Media scaling its biggest youth led intellectual properties, including flagship talent reality franchise I-Popstar and unscripted dating show Engaged, into new languages and international markets. Proceeds will also grow Alright! TV, the company’s proprietary mobile entertainment destination built for Gen Z, and bankroll a fresh pipeline of sports and audio first content formats aimed squarely at Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences.

A big chunk of the strategy hinges on artificial intelligence. Rusk Media plans to deepen AI led production across its content workflows, building proprietary tools designed to cut production costs, speed up content output and unlock scalable brand solutions and monetisation features within the Alright! TV ecosystem.

Mayank Yadav, chief executive officer and co-founder of Rusk Media, said the company’s goal has always been to redefine storytelling for the new generation, and that with Nazara Technologies, InfoEdge Ventures and Audacity VC backing the round, Rusk Media is in a uniquely strong position to sustain its growth and go truly global, combining AI driven production with agile formats across Alright! TV, sports and audio news to build world class entertainment infrastructure from India for the world.

Nitish Mittersain, managing director at Nazara Technologies, said the firm has watched Rusk’s growth closely, and what stands out is the combination of strong youth led IP, a fast scaling B2C platform in Alright! TV, and a disciplined, technology first approach to production, the same building blocks Nazara believes create enduring value in new age media, adding that the company was delighted to lead the round and support Rusk Media going forward.

Kabir Kochhar, managing partner at Audacity VC, said Audacity has long believed in Mayank Yadav and his team, who have consistently exceeded the benchmarks set for them, noting that Rusk’s grasp of the future of media consumption and monetisation has been light years ahead of most traditional media operators, and that Audacity is proud to back Rusk’s ambitions of becoming one of the first Indian studios to make a serious global impact.

Amit Behl, partner at InfoEdge Ventures, said Yadav and his team have been pioneers in the content IP ecosystem, building culturally resonant, mobile first content for Gen Z audiences, adding that unscripted formats have become the universal language of today’s digital generation and that Rusk is well positioned to capture global audiences through authentic, engaging storytelling.

Vikram Gupta, founder and managing partner at IvyCap Ventures, said Rusk Media has built a strong foundation at the intersection of content, technology and audience engagement, and that its ability to create scalable digital IPs for the next generation of consumers gives it a unique position in the evolving media landscape, adding that IvyCap is delighted to continue backing Mayank Yadav and his team as they build globally relevant entertainment franchises from India.

With four heavyweight backers now on its side and AI baked into its production playbook, Rusk Media is no longer just chasing Gen Z eyeballs in India, it is gunning for a slice of the global entertainment stage, and this Rs 100 crore round looks like just the opening act.