MAM
AntFarm raises Series-A funding from Bay Capital and Hausela Capital Partners
MUMBAI: Looks like start-ups in India have nothing to worry as venture capitalists seem to be eager to put their faith and money in them.
AntFarm, a digital innovation company, has raised Series-A funding from Bay Capital and Hausela Capital Partners. The funds that have been raised will be channeled to reinforce the current portfolio, grow upcoming businesses in the travel space and to build new early stage ventures in the fitness, hyper-local and mobile categories.
“With more and more start-ups in India entering the billion-dollar club, AntFarm is poised to explore business opportunities in the dotcom and mobile space in high impact markets and create products which are disruptive. Over the last year, we have already made successful forays in the fashion, advertising and travel industry verticals. We are now gearing up to disrupt the multi-billion dollar health/fitness space,” said AntFarm managing director and CEO Rishi Khiani.
AntFarm has a track-record of building profitable business units in a year’s time with Stylista.com, a collaborative fashion label, and Fork Media, a native advertising platform.
AntFarm’s most recent venture, Arrive.com, is a travel discovery platform that is close to rolling out a mobile app for the East Asian market.
AntFarm follows a unique approach in jumpstarting successful businesses by putting together unique cross-functional teams led by industry veterans and entrepreneurs that work on business opportunities identified internally at AntFarm.
Hausela Capital Partners MD Piush Kumar said, “The digital landscape in India is on an exponential growth trajectory. This dynamic landscape has thrown open exciting opportunities to create new products and innovative business models. AntFarm has demonstrated its mettle with successful ventures in the digital space. They bring a unique mix of industry experience, technology expertise and entrepreneurial spirit. And, we are confident that they will be able to build successful digital business models.”
Antfarm has previously raised an angel round from Bennett Coleman & Co CEO Ravi Dhariwal and leading entrepreneur, Sanjay Kalra, who previously served as the CEO of Tech Mahindra.
Bay Capital is an independent investment management firm while Hausela Capital Partners is the investment office of Piush Kumar with the objective of funding start-ups in the digital technology space.
Brands
Kingfisher signs three-year IPL partnership
Packaged water brand signs on as ‘good times partner’ for 2026–28 cycle
MUMBAI: Kingfisher Premium Packaged Drinking Water is betting big on cricket’s biggest stage, sealing a three-year partnership with the Board of Control for Cricket in India to sharpen fan engagement at the TATA Indian Premier League.
The brand, owned by United Breweries, will serve as the official “good times partner” for the men’s IPL from 2026 to 2028, extending a relationship that began with the Women’s Premier League. The move signals a broader push to embed itself deeper into live sport, with a focus on immersive, consumer-led experiences rather than conventional sponsorship visibility.
At the heart of the tie-up is a suite of fan-first activations spanning broadcast, stadiums and digital channels. These include the “Kingfisher Bird Cam”, offering a branded spider-cam perspective during live matches, and the “Good Times Zone”, an in-stadium entertainment hub during play-offs aimed at amplifying match-day buzz. The brand will also back IPL fan parks, elevate public screening experiences and run digital contests tied to key moments through the season.
Vikram Bahl, chief marketing officer, United Breweries, said cricket in India “is more than a sport, it is a shared cultural moment”, adding that the IPL brings that energy alive at scale. “For Kingfisher Premium Packaged Drinking Water, being present at the heart of these moments, in partnership with the BCCI, is a natural extension of what we stand for. Through this association, we aim to enrich how fans experience the game… making every match more immersive, social and memorable,” Bahl said.
Devajit Saikia, honorary secretary, BCCI, said the IPL “has always been at the forefront of redefining sports entertainment and fan engagement”. He added that the collaboration would fuse cricket fandom with “innovative fan experiences that extend beyond the stadium”, helping create memorable moments for audiences nationwide.
For United Breweries, part of the HEINEKEN group, the play is clear: move from passive branding to active participation in the fan journey—on screens, in stands and across social spaces. With millions tuning in and turning up each season, the IPL remains the country’s most potent marketing theatre. The question now is whether “good times” can translate into lasting brand recall in a market where visibility is easy, but engagement is hard-won.
