iWorld
Biiggbang Amusement announces its first collaboration with Assorted Motion Pictures with the award-winning film, Rikshawala
As the world is keeping up with the hustle and challenges of the new normal, Biiggbang Amusement is here to help its audience with a few moments of entertainment, cheer, and laughter with its unconventional content slate. The OTT platform specializes in bringing forth the most compelling stories within minutes for its viewers. With the thought to bring entertainment anytime, anywhere, Biiggbang Amusement announces its first collaboration with Assorted Motion Pictures with the award-winning film, Rikshawala. Breaking the bandwagon, the platform aims to curate critically acclaimed short-form content in one place.
The short-film entices its audience to think and throws light on an often overlooked sect; the Riksha-pullers. The film is laced with undertones of realism and portrays a simplistic sense of storytelling, similar yet distinct from Ram Kamal Mukherjee’s former projects. Set in the backdrop of the city of joy, Kolkata, Rikshawala features talented actors like Kasturi Chakraborty, and Avinash Dwivedi that add special elements of life to the story.
This fidelity and simplicity is being loved by audience across the world, helping Rikshawala getting selected for the esteemed Dadasaheb Phalke Film Festival, aimed to recognize the enlightening, entertaining and progressive new age cinema of youth and experienced filmmakers. The critically acclaimed short-film has also successfully brought back the award for the Best Human Rights Film at the Cardiff International Film Festival, while its talented director, Ram Kamal Mukherjee also won the awards for the Best Director at International Film and Television Entertainment Award, Australia and the Rajasthan International Film Festival.
Sharing his thoughts on the brand’s first collaboration, Sudip Mukherjee, CEO and Founder, Biiggbang Amusement quoted, “While the world is in shackles of the pandemic, we are all looking for a breeze of hope and positivity. We at Biiggbang Amusement aim to help our audience with this by bringing them relatable and meaningful stories, anytime and anywhere. While the upper-crust of the audience consumes English content widely, we are looking at seeping through the crust to reach every viewer, countrywide with distinct languages and genres catering for every niche. We are proud to associate with a talented creator like Ram Kamal Mukherjee and Assorted Motion Pictures to inscribe the first short-film on our content slate. We plan to populate our content library profusely with many more masterpieces and award-winning shows and films like Rikshawala.”
Sharing his thoughts on the premiere, Avinash Dwivedi shared, “Rikshawala is definitely a milestone for me and all the accolades including the award for the Best Actor at the 13th Ayodhya International Film Festival, and the awards at Cardiff and Melbourne have truly given me a boost as an actor. I was really excited about working on this project right after I heard the narration from Dada (Ram Kamal Mukherjee). Before meeting him I was a little nervous about his seniority but after meeting him, he made me feel very comfortable and we became friends at an instant. Every aspect from the film is relevant and touching. I could really connect to my character in the film. He is someone who would do anything for his family and really loves his profession to the core. The film will make you think, and will touch you in ways that you won’t forget. While I was comfortable with the Bhojpuri dialogues, Bengali isn’t a language that I’m very familiar but I did want to give it a shot, so I ended up dubbing both; Bhojpuri and Bengali dialogues in the film.”
Excited about the premiere, Kasturi Chakraborty said, “Being a part of Ram Da’s film Rickshawala was both enriching and inspiring. It takes a hard look at the lives of the people who struggle in their own way to get what they want. In the case of my character, she goes through the sweet torture of heartbreak which is something I have deeply felt personally. Ram Da had a vision for each of us and he encouraged us to take that journey into the lives of our characters to attain spotless authenticity. I think it is the unfiltered portrayal of the reality of the people in the film and his vision that made it worthy of all appreciation globally. It’s great that the film now will be available on Biiggbang Amusement for all the cinema lovers globally.
Commenting on this collaboration, Ram Kamal Mukherjee, Director & Writer, Rikshawala, shared, “Rikshawala is a unique love story with a special twist. It is a project that is really close to my heart, and what makes it relevant is the humaneness and realism of the characters. I am also overwhelmed with such a positive global response and all of these awards and accolades are truly encouraging and I strive to tell many more of stories embedded with realism and relatability. It was an amazing experience to work with talented actors like Avinash Dwivedi and Kasturi Chakraborty who gave their sweat and blood to make their characters alive. I spotted Avinash at a birthday party in Juhu while Kasturi is a known television face, and I instantly knew that they’re perfect for the roles I had in mind. I am also really excited about my very first collaboration with Biiggbang Amusement and take pride to be a part of their content library of carefully curated content.”
The riveting short-film also made its way to the ImagineIndia festival held at Madrid and Spain, and also fetched laurels including the Best Actor and Best Director award at the 13th Ayodhya International Film Festival. Biiggbang Amusement is set to launch soon and is gearing up with a competitive and unequalled content slate aimed at entertaining, inspiring, and amusing its audience across the globe.
Gaming
India’s new online gaming rules take effect today, banning money games and creating a regulator
The rules, in force from today, separate e-sports from gambling and impose jail terms and stiff fines on violators
NEW DELHI: India’s online gaming sector woke up this morning to a new reality. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026, came into force today, May 1st, turning a year of legislative intent into enforceable law. The message from New Delhi is blunt: e-sports and social games are welcome; online money games are not.
The rules operationalise the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming (PROG) Act, passed by Parliament in August 2025. Together, they represent the most sweeping regulatory intervention India has made in its booming digital gaming market, one that generated Rs 23,200 crore in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11 per cent to reach Rs 31,600 crore by 2027. The stakes, in every sense, could not be higher.
A sector out of control
The urgency behind the legislation is not hard to find. An estimated 45 crore Indians have been affected by online money gaming platforms, with losses exceeding Rs 20,000 crore. Addiction, financial ruin, money laundering, and suicides have all been linked to the sector. Seventy-seven per cent of the market’s revenues came from transaction-based games, a figure that made regulators deeply uneasy.
The government’s response, effective as of today, is categorical. Online money games, whether based on chance, skill, or any mix of the two, are banned outright. So is their advertising, promotion, and facilitation. Banks and payment processors are barred from handling related transactions. Unlawful platforms can be blocked under the Information
Technology Act, 2000.
The penalties are designed to sting. Offering or facilitating online money games can attract up to three years in jail and a fine of up to Rs 1 crore, or both. Repeat offenders face a minimum of three years, extendable to five, with fines between Rs 1 crore and Rs 2 crore. Advertising such games carries up to two years in prison and fines of up to Rs 50 lakh, with repeat violations attracting higher penalties still. Cyber cell officers at state and union territory levels, including at police station, district, and commissionerate levels, are empowered to investigate offences.
The new sheriff in town
At the centre of the new framework sits the Online Gaming Authority of India, a digital-first regulator constituted as an attached office of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, headquartered in Delhi. It is chaired by the additional secretary of MeitY and includes joint secretary-level representation from home affairs, finance, information and broadcasting, youth affairs and sports, and law and justice, a deliberately multi-sectoral design built for a complex sector.
The authority’s powers are broad. It will maintain and publish lists of online money games, investigate complaints, issue directions, orders, and codes of practice, hear appeals on user grievances, and coordinate with financial institutions and law enforcement to ensure effective and timely action.
Its decisions on game classification are to be completed within 90 days, a time-bound commitment that industry players have welcomed after years of regulatory ambiguity. Classification can be triggered by the authority acting on its own initiative, by an application from a service provider, or by a notification from the central government. Games will be assessed on objective factors: whether stakes are involved, whether players expect monetary winnings, the revenue model, and whether in-game assets can be monetised outside the game. The outcome is recorded in a determination order specific to the game and provider.
E-sports gets its moment
While the crackdown on money gaming dominates today’s headlines, the rules also carve out a structured path for e-sports and online social games. Registration, required when notified by the central government, applies to all games offered as e-sports and is based on factors including risk to users, scale, financial transactions, and country of origin. A successful application yields a digital certificate of registration with a unique number, valid for up to ten years. Service providers must display registration details, designate a point of contact, comply with data retention requirements, and follow directions on facilitating payments.
Online money games are explicitly ineligible for recognition or registration as e-sports under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. The separation is deliberate, and the industry has noticed.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, called today’s operationalisation “encouraging,” pointing to publisher-led registration of esports titles and a time-bound determination process as creating “much-needed certainty for all stakeholders.” He added that the “continued emphasis on clearly separating esports from online money gaming is critical in preserving the integrity of competitive gaming as a skill-driven discipline.” He described it as “a proud moment to see official acknowledgement of the broader benefits of responsible esports and gaming, from building confidence, discipline, and teamwork to creating new career pathways for young talent,” and said the framework sets “a strong foundation for the ecosystem to scale in a more structured and globally competitive manner.”
Animesh Agarwal, co-founder and chief executive of S8UL, was equally bullish. “This clarity is critical in unlocking investor confidence and attracting multi-genre brands, while also enabling organisations to take a more long-term view, whether in investing in talent, scaling teams, or building globally competitive formats,” he said, adding that it “strengthens trust among audiences and mainstream stakeholders, positioning esports not just as a sport, but as a fast-growing youth entertainment category in India.”
But Agarwal urged caution on several fronts. There remains limited clarity around financial frameworks, particularly in how esports earnings are treated by banks and financial institutions. A well-defined pathway for the formal recognition or registration of esports teams is still evolving, as are structured player protections. He also called for smoother visa processes for esports athletes competing in international tournaments and for government support in developing infrastructure, including bootcamps, training facilities, and access to high-performance equipment across titles.
Vishal Parekh, chief operating officer of CyberPowerPC India, pointed to downstream effects on education and careers. “With formal recognition and policy backing, colleges and institutions are more likely to take the sector seriously, whether through dedicated esports infrastructure, training programmes, or curriculum integration,” he said, adding that this helps students view gaming as a viable career spanning roles across competitive play, content, game development, and allied industries. He noted that as esports gains prominence in global multi-sport events, the framework strengthens India’s position in international competitive gaming, and called on the ecosystem to provide the right infrastructure and access to high-performance hardware to unlock opportunities in talent development and job creation.
Protecting users, one safeguard at a time
The rules introduce a layered system of user protections calibrated to the risk profile of each game. These include age verification, age gating, time restrictions, parental controls, user reporting tools, counselling support, and fair-play and integrity monitoring. Service providers must disclose their safety features and internal grievance mechanisms when applying for determination or registration.
A two-tier grievance redressal system sits atop these safeguards. Users who are dissatisfied with a platform’s resolution can escalate to the authority within 30 days. The authority aims to dispose of such appeals within a further 30 days. A second appeal lies before the secretary of MeitY, who must also endeavour to resolve matters within 30 days. Enforcement proceedings will be conducted in digital mode wherever possible, with cases targeted for resolution within 90 days from receipt of a complaint.
Penalties under the framework are proportionate, taking into account gain from non-compliance, loss to users, the gravity of the offence, and whether violations are recurring. Mitigation efforts by service providers will also be considered when determining penalties. All penalties imposed under the Act will be credited to the Consolidated Fund of India.
The money follows the rules
For investors and founders, the implications are immediate and significant. Sagar Nair, head of incubation at LVL Zero Incubator, a 100-day sprint designed to accelerate early-stage gaming startups across India, argues that with real-money gaming now prohibited, capital will shift “away from transaction-driven models toward content-led, IP-driven, and global-first gaming businesses.” He acknowledged trade-offs: for operators with exposure to real-money formats, the market becomes more restrictive in the near term. But he argued that by clearly separating esports and non-money gaming from online money gaming, “India is positioning itself as a hub for responsible, creative, and scalable game development.” The opportunity, he said, is “to view India not just as a monetisation-first market, but as a talent, IP, and scale market,” adding that “for founders and investors willing to adapt, this shift could ultimately strengthen India’s position in the global gaming landscape.”
The government frames the wider impact in equally ambitious terms: a boost to India’s creative economy and digital exports, new career pathways for young people, protection for families from predatory platforms, and a stronger voice in global digital governance. India, it argues, offers a model for other countries grappling with the same tensions between gaming’s economic promise and its social risks, one that shows innovation and strong safeguards need not be mutually exclusive.
Whether the framework delivers on those promises will depend on enforcement, always the hardest part. But from today, the architecture is firmly in place: a regulator with teeth, a classification system with deadlines, penalties designed to deter, and a clear dividing line between games that build careers and games that destroy finances. For a sector that has grown fast and governed itself loosely, May 1st, 2026 is the day the free ride ends.
