iWorld
ZEE5 Global partners with the Patel brothers
Mumbai: ZEE5 Global has announced its partnership with the Patel Brothers, a US-based Indian grocery chain, to facilitate connecting with diaspora audiences on the occasion of the 75th year of Independence.
Commenting on the partnership, ZEE5 chief business officer global Archana Anand, said, “We’ve seen exponential growth in the US in our first year of launch, and we are happy to have been able to delight our audiences here with our rich content library. There’s no better way now to cement our leadership position in this market than with this partnership with the Patel Brothers, another iconic and much-loved South Asian brand, and we look forward to a long, wonderful relationship with them.”
Actor Sonali Bendre inaugurated the Patel Brothers shop on Oak Tree Road in Edison, New Jersey. Sonali discussed the collaboration and how it will help Indians living in the US.
Sonali recently made her comeback and a successful debut on ZEE5 Global with The Broken News.
Bendre added, “I’m very happy to be here to kick off this partnership between two deeply rooted South Asian brands, The Patel Brothers and ZEE5 Global. As the leading South Asian streaming service, ZEE5 Global has stepped out of the screens and is making an effort to bring together the diaspora audiences across the US through multiple community initiatives. Together with the Patel Brothers, who are America’s oldest, largest, and best-loved Indian chain in the US, we can expect many wonderful initiatives and experiences from this partnership.”
At the store, ZEE5 Global also held a competition where participants had to respond to inquiries about the platform and Patel Brothers. As part of the “Shop with the Stars” competition, the winner received the chance to shop for groceries worth $200 for free with Sonali.
Patel Brothers’ Kaushik Bhai Patel said, “We’re always looking for ways to cater to the needs of NRIs and South Asians in the US hungry for their home culture. We are very happy to partner with ZEE5 Global that shares this ethos.”
Gaming
MTG gaming chief Benninghoff joins NODWIN board as esports firm primes for IPO
The Gurugram-based esports firm is pursuing a public listing, has returned to profitability and is growing revenues by 42 per cent
GURUGRAM: NODWIN Gaming is moving fast. The Gurugram-based gaming and esports company has launched a pre-IPO fundraising round, appointed UBS as lead adviser for both the round and a subsequent public listing, and landed a heavyweight board director, all in one go.
The new board member is Arnd Benninghoff, executive vice president of gaming at Stockholm-listed Modern Times Group (MTG), who has overseen the group’s strategic investments and portfolio growth since 2014. He is no stranger to building things: Benninghoff has founded and built fifteen companies, served as chief digital officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, managing director of SevenVentures, and chief executive of Holtzbrinck eLAB. He began his career as a journalist at Deutsche Presse Agentur and various TV networks, holds a Diplom-Kaufmann in business and administration from the University of Münster, and previously sat on the board of Edgeware AB.
The numbers back the ambition
NODWIN is not pitching a story without substance. The company has returned to EBITDA profitability and posted a 42 per cent year-on-year revenue surge, reaching $58.5m in the first nine months of FY2026. The pre-IPO round will combine a primary issuance to fund global expansion through organic growth and acquisitions, alongside a secondary sale to give existing shareholders some liquidity.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, said Benninghoff understands “the entire lifecycle of the gaming and media ecosystem, from the boots-on-the-ground reality of building startups to the strategic complexity of managing multi-billion dollar global portfolios.”
Benninghoff, for his part, said the company “sits at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and technology, making it one of the most exciting players in the global gaming landscape today.”
A portfolio built for the global south
Founded in 2014 by Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN has quietly assembled one of the more compelling esports portfolios outside the Western hemisphere. Its properties include DreamHack India and Comic Con India, and it recently acquired StarLadder, the Ukraine-based tournament organiser behind premier events in CS:GO and Dota 2. The company also serves as a long-term strategic marketing partner for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s most prominent fighting game tournament, helping push it into new geographies.
Its geographic focus spans South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Backers include Nazara Technologies, KRAFTON, Sony Group Corporation, JetSynthesys, and the founders’ investment vehicle Good Game Investments.
What comes next
With UBS running the books, a board freshly reinforced with European media and gaming expertise, and revenue heading in the right direction, NODWIN is laying the groundwork deliberately. The esports industry has burned investors before with big promises and thin margins. NODWIN’s return to profitability, combined with a real portfolio of owned intellectual properties across gaming, music and youth culture, gives it a more credible runway than most. The IPO clock is now ticking.
