Gaming
BGMI drops the mic on Ads with a satirical spin
MUMBAI: Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) has taken aim at one of India’s cheekiest advertising tricks, the surrogate ad, and flipped it into a cultural spectacle. Teaming up with creative agency Talented, the brand has launched BGMI Drops, a tongue-in-cheek campaign that turns parody into performance art for the meme generation.
Instead of hiding behind substitutes, BGMI proudly parodies them. The campaign transforms the game’s most iconic elements into fictional FMCG products, BGMI energy drink, BGMI helmet, and BGMI only pans, each with its own delightfully over-the-top commercial.
Directed by Akimbo (Mandakini Menon & Bopanna MG) and produced by Potli Baba Mediahouse, the three short films blend nostalgia, satire, and absurdist humour, paying tribute to India’s golden era of ad jingles and glossy TV spots. The first film alone clocked 4 million organic views in just 24 hours.
The fun doesn’t stop there. Fans can head to trybgmi.com, a parody storefront where they can “shop” for the spoof products, discover hidden easter eggs, and unlock digital experiences, all part of the campaign’s interactive storytelling.
“BGMI has always set the tone for pop culture in India,” said Krafton India associate director – marketing and product Srinjoy Das. “With BGMI Drops, we wanted to speak in the native tongue of our players, referential, meme-driven, and self-aware.”
According to Talented’s Ritika Shriram and Aaliya Sheikh, “Surrogate ads were about hiding intent. We turned that inside out. These films wear their disguise proudly and invite viewers to join the inside joke.”
By remixing nostalgia with internet irony, BGMI Drops turns everyday scrolls into satire. In true 2025 style, it’s not just an ad campaign, it’s a wink, a nudge, and a meme waiting to happen.
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.
