India’s Prime Minister meets with Indian esports, gaming stakeholders

India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has met with some of the country’s prominent stakeholders and players in esports and gaming to discuss industry developments in India.

The discussion, which was teased on Narendra Modi’s YouTube channel, features the likes of S8UL Esports’ Animesh ‘8Bit Thug’ Agarwal and Naman ‘Mortal’ Mathur, Asian Games 2018 Hearthstone Bronze medalist Tirth Mehta, and Revenant Esports VALORANT player Ganesh ‘SkRossi’ Gangadhar, among others. 

According to a release, the discussion touched on how the government has recognised the ‘creativity of gamers’ in promoting the industry in India. The topic of women’s participation in the gaming industry is said to be explored and the teaser highlights the question of how gaming and gambling differ. 

The full video of the conversation between Narendra Modi and the esports and gaming personnel is expected to come out soon.

The last couple of years have been an interesting period for the Indian esports ecosystem with notable esports titles such as Free Fire and BGMI (PUBG Mobile) re-entering the market in 2023 following bans. In December 2022, India also officially recognised esports as a multi-sport event. Most recently, it was revealed that another well-known esports title, Honor of Kings, announced its entry into the Indian market.   

The meeting comes amid an important election in India, set to take place from April to June 2024.

Lokesh Suji, Director of Esports Federation of India and VP of the Asian Esports Federation (AESF), commented on the meeting: “Last year, our government recognised Esports as a sport and differentiated it from the umbrella term of online gaming. It is also encouraging that Modi ji realises the difference between gambling, online gaming, video gaming, and Esports. 

“I am pretty sure that with the support of our government under the leadership of Modi ji, we will be able to create enough opportunities where our Indian Esports athletes will be able to win medals, not only within India but internationally. We also look forward to Modi ji and his government’s consistent support to grow the Indian Esports ecosystem.”