MAM
Pickleball auction serves up Rs 6.6 crore as global stars join the rally
MUMBAI: Pickleball has smashed its way into the big leagues. The Global Sports Pickleball (GSP) Season 2 Pro & Challenger League Auction in Mumbai turned into a sporting spectacle, with 10 teams battling it out for talent worth a potential Rs 6.6 crore. Each franchise had a player budget of Rs 66 lakhs Rs 55 lakhs for the Pro League and Rs 11 lakhs for the Challenger League setting the tone for a season that promises fierce rallies on and off the court.
The headline-grabbing deal of the day was 19-year-old Quang Duong from Vietnam, who went for a whopping Rs 27 lakhs to Mumbai Chhatrapati Warriors, proving youth is just as prized as experience. Close behind was Megan Fudge (USA), snapped up by Ahmedabad Olympians for Rs 25.5 lakhs, followed by fellow American Jack Munro at Rs 25 lakhs for Jaipur Stallions. The Delhi Snipers pulled the trigger on Bobbi Oshiro (USA) for Rs 24.5 lakhs, while Hyderabad Vikings secured Roos Van Reek (Netherlands) at Rs 23.5 lakhs. With ages spanning late teens to late thirties, the Pro League’s top buys showed the perfect blend of fresh legs and seasoned grit.
Indian players weren’t far behind in the bidding wars. Harsh Mehta led the Pro League pack with a Rs 21 lakh signing for Chennai Cool Cats, followed by Arjun Singh at Rs 8 lakhs for Nashik Ninjas and Aditya Ruhela at Rs 5 lakhs for Jaipur Stallions. In the Challenger League, homegrown talent sparkled Mihika Yadav was signed by Mumbai Chhatrapati Warriors for Rs 4.4 lakhs, Aman Patel by Jaipur Stallions at Rs 4 lakhs, and Tejas Gulati by Coimbatore Super Smashers at Rs 3.7 lakhs.
The Challenger League also brought international flair, with Leah Tauber (India) topping the charts at Rs 5.2 lakhs for Delhi Snipers, followed by Mihika Yadav and Alex Emery (USA) at Rs 4.2 lakhs for Ahmedabad Olympians. With base bids starting as low as Rs 50,000 and soaring much higher thanks to intense franchise battles, the auction underscored the sport’s rapid rise.
All 10 franchises, Ahmedabad Olympians, Bengaluru Blazers, Chennai Cool Cats, Coimbatore Super Smashers, Delhi Snipers, Hyderabad Vikings, Jaipur Stallions, Kolkata Kingz, Mumbai Chhatrapati Warriors, and Nashik Ninjas walked away with talent to watch.
Calling it a watershed moment Pickleball Growth chief architect Hemal Jain said the competition reflected the “groundwork being laid for pickleball to become a mainstream professional sport in India.” Co-founder of Global Sports and filmmaker Shashank Khaitan added that the event not only showcased fierce bidding and top-tier players but also “helped build a sustainable sports ecosystem for the long haul.”
With Rs 6.6 crore in play, marquee global names in the mix, and Indian youngsters stepping into the spotlight, Season 2 looks set to make pickleball not just a pastime, but a primetime passion.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
