Gaming
Stan Lee’s superhero mobile game released by Gamesbond-underDOGS, Graphic India & POW!
MUMBAI: India’s leading mobile game distribution and publishing house, Gamesbond, released its latest mobile game “Chakra: World Siege” in partnership with Graphic India and POW! Entertainment, the IP licensors for one of India’s leading superhero characters, “Chakra The Invincible.”
Gamesbond’s development partner for the game is the studio, underDOGS.
Chakra: World Siege is currently available for free on the Google Play store and was featured as one of the top games in their “New and Updated” section. “Chakra: World Siege” has been launched globally with a focus on targeting the Indian audience.
The game is based on the animation and comic book character “Chakra: The Invincible” created by superhero icon, Stan Lee and Sharad Devarajan. Lee is the legendary co-creator of the world’s most popular superheroes including Spider-Man™, X-Men™, Fantastic Four™, Iron Man™, Hulk™, The Avengers™, and more.
Stan Lee, brimming with enthusiasm added, “Against the spectacular backdrop of the great Indian metropolis of Mumbai, we tell the incredible saga of Chakra, one of my most exciting superhero creations, whose adventures will captivate audiences around the world.”
Chakra: World Siege involves the user playing as Chakra in a challenging quest to save the world from his long-time nemesis, the evil Boss Yama. The game is an action-packed running game that takes you on a journey through the Seven Wonders of the World to ensure their safety. As Chakra, players must jump and dodge various obstacles and unlock their “chakras,” to gain special powers and superhero moves needed to save the world.
“Stan Lee’s characters have generated $15 billion at the global box office, creating some of the most beloved icons in entertainment. More people today likely know the face of Spider-Man than they do the Mona Lisa,” added Graphic India CEO Sharad Devarajan. “I have no doubt this will be the first of many new games for our Indian superhero as we grow Chakra to become a successful gaming franchise in the future. Gamesbond and underDOGS have been amazing partners and creative collaborators to help us bring this game to audiences worldwide.”
The Chakra: World Siege game launch coincided with the airing of the third Chakra-The Invincible animated TV film, “Chakra: The Mystery of Mighty Girl” which premiered on Cartoon Network. The Indian superhero character is also in development as a theatrical live action Bollywood film, to be directed by acclaimed filmmaker, Vikramaditya Motwane and produced by Phantom Films, POW! Entertainment and Graphic India.
“We are excited with our collaboration with Graphic India and underDOGS studio for the Chakra game and the instant success it has seen will help us strengthening our collaboration towards investing more in the partnership. The Chakra franchise is quite popular among kids and the game is designed in a way that even a 5 year old kid will be able to understand, play and stay engaged”, says Mauj Mobile VP – products Anshul Singhal.
Talking about their plans he added, “We believe that with our understanding of the gaming consumers and distribution strengths; we are the ideal publishing partners for local IP owners and game developers towards creating and sustaining a successful game for the Indian users”
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.
