Actor Kajal Aggarwal Picks Up Stake In Gaming Startup Okie Gaming

Mumbai-based online gaming startup Okie Gaming has received an undisclosed amount from actress Kajal Aggarwal. She has picked up a 15% equity stake in the company and will be joining Okie Gaming as a board member.

The company plans to use the funds to leverage the number of games on the platform and bring in new talent as it aims to clock INR 50 Cr revenue by the end of this fiscal year.

Launched by OKIE Ventures in February 2020, OKIE Gaming aims to tap into the evolving market with indigenous digital games. OKIE Gaming is a self-funded company under OKIE Ventures and the platform has unveiled a ‘Desi Sports League’ for Indian audiences.

The company said that Desi Sports League will primarily focus on regional sports like Vallam Kali (Boat Racing, Kerala), Dahi Handi (Maharashtra) with a new game set to launch every 30 days.

“We are excited to welcome Kajal into the Okie family as a strategic partner,” said Masand, MD, Okie Ventures told ET. “Kajal’s personal interest in the gaming industry, wide reach and appeal will help the brand scale up to a much higher level. She is an involved investor who brings a unique set of ideas and insights to Okie Gaming.”

The company claims that it will release 25 games by the end of December and expects to have 1 Mn downloads and 1 lakh concurrent users by then.

“The gaming industry is booming at this time, this is the right moment to be part of it. A passionate gamer myself, we hope to bring the finest user experience with our innovative and quirky games,” said Kajal Aggarwal. “With Okie Gaming, I also hope to influence and open new avenues for women gamers in India.”

Currently, the gaming platform offers Smart Housie, Fantasy Cricket, Smart Number Quiz, Ludo, Cricket, Smart Words, as well as ‘Desi Sports League’ focusing on popular regional sports like Vallam Kali (Boat Racing, Kerala) and Dahi Handi (Maharashtra).

A recent FICCI report and consultancy firm EY observed that the online gaming industry, including transaction-based real money skill games and casual games, clocked around INR 6,460 Cr in revenues in the financial year 2019-2020, with transaction-based games accounting for around INR 4,600 Cr. The report estimates the CAGR of the industry to be more than 40% and the industry to reach a size of around INR 18,700 Cr by the financial year 2021-22.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.