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Cosmos-Maya’s new kids’ animation show Bapu: An ode to Gandhi
Cosmos-Maya’s brand new show ‘Bapu’ was premiered by Disney India on 01 May 2020. The date could not have been more felicitous as it also marks the international Labor Day. What a befitting tribute by The Walt Disney Company to the greatest Karma Yogi who ever lived!
“If we are to reach real peace in this world,” Mahatma Gandhi said in 1931, “we shall have to begin with children”. Come 2020, when the world faces the perils of pandemics, wars, climate change, global warming, and plastic pollution, all caused by the over-exploitation of natural resources, inculcating Gandhian values into the lives of our children is the need of the hour.
In this article, I will highlight some of Mahatma Gandhi’s sayings, which have also been incorporated in episodic storylines, and are an integral part of the show itself.
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony”
Cosmos-Maya began work on ‘Bapu’ two years ago. Only a month into development, when we pitched the show to Disney India, much to our delight, they greenlit the show at the concept stage itself! Disney has believed in our vision from the word go. For ‘Bapu’ to have become a reality, it could have been done by no other than Disney. The essence of the show is a direct match with the ethos of the Walt Disney Company, and we are happy to have worked with them on this pioneering concept. With ‘Bapu’, we aim to empower kids the world over with Gandhiji’s values in a non-didactic format and communicate Gandhiji’s teachings with child-friendly, responsible, fun and entertaining storytelling. We have exercised our Creative Social Responsibility.
“A man is but the product of his thoughts; what he thinks, he becomes”
The task was no easy one. Children of the 4-11 age group do not know much about Gandhiji, and the scant knowledge they have is passed on by their elders. This was the backdrop when we envisaged creating an animation IP based on the Mahatma. Gandhi's teachings have to be broken down and simplified for very young children to decode. Children are known to have short attention spans, and hence, they must be kept engaged and entertained so that the message is imprinted in their minds. It was imperative for us to capture their imaginations with catchy visuals and keep them engaged with exciting storytelling and entertained with humor. It has also been our endeavor to make each episode a family viewing affair. The show has been made such that even parents can watch it with their children, and in the process give additional commentary to kids on the Mahatma. Rajkumar Hirani utilized similar strategies to propagate Gandhi's teachings, both in Lage Raho Munnabhai and the video he made last year with top Bollywood celebrities to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of the Mahatma, attempting to remind people of his values and bring him alive within us again.
“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.”
While contemplating the happenings of the last two months, the pre and post Covid eras, I am reminded of a couple of episode plots of the upcoming series. There is one called ‘Shopping Competition’ which highlights the flip side of growing consumerism, where a couple of individuals fight over who can possess more material goods at a given time, thereby overspending and on the verge of bankruptcy, before Bapu steps in to set things right. There is another one where a tiger cub wanders into the neighborhood and causes panic. Bapu comes to the rescue before any harm comes to it. Antagonism towards nature will be our greatest undoing, the Mahatma had prophesied.
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”
‘Trends’ like cleanliness, ecological conservation, fitness, healthy eating, and de-cluttering have reappeared and are now normative behaviors, but they were advocated a long time ago by Gandhiji, who lived a frugal and minimalistic, yet purpose-driven life. He advocated for every organism on mother earth living together in harmony, and every human being working for the greater good of society – a give rather than a take approach. Here is a man who dedicated his life to ‘Sarvodaya’, the welfare of the people around him, every last human being, rich and poor, old and young, able-bodied and specially abled, and all of nature’s life forms.
“Be the change you wish to see in the world”
This show just had to be made. There is very little content for children on Gandhiji. His teachings shall forever be relevant and more such content should be produced the world over. Our children must grow up to be leaders of tomorrow. Who better than Mahatma Gandhi to guide them in their quest? The barrister from Porbandar is a testament to the fact that there is a leader within all of us. ‘Work is Worship’ is a dictum Mahatma Gandhi kept very close to his heart. Labor and faith, according to Gandhiji, were pre-requisites for leadership. The strength required to be able to practice this is what molds a leader. He knew that belief is contagious, that it binds a people. Without belief, the world would be a meaningless place. The man in the loin cloth changed the course of destiny and handed us a bright future. It is now up to us to teach our children well and keep Gandhiji alive forever.
(The writer is CEO of Cosmos-Maya. The views expressed are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)
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.
