The entire JetSynthesys narrative is built upon the strength of India: Rajan Navani, Vice Chairman & Managing Director, JetSynthesys

In the field of esports and cross-platform gaming, the younger generation of India has limitless potential. No one is a bigger advocate of this than the Vice Chairman & Managing Director of JetSynthesys, Mr. Rajan Navani.

As the President of the Indian Digital Gaming Society, Mr. Navani strives for a future where the nation is a global leader in the creation and marketing of digital products.

He is a firm believer in the “made in India for India” catchphrase. IPs and partnerships like Sachin Saga, Real Cricket, and WWE Racing Showdown represent that perfectly.

In an exclusive interview with Abhishek Mallick of Sportskeeda Esports, Mr. Navani opens up about a lot of his aspirations for young India. He dreams of getting a large part of the nation’s workforce into the field of video games and esports.

Here is an excerpt of that conversation.

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Q. With more people spending time at home because of the Coronavirus lockdown, there has been a surge in gaming consumption, both casual and esports. How have the JetSynthesys games performed during this period and are there any specific learnings that the company has had during this time?

Rajan Navani: Absolutely! Unlike most of the other industries, gaming and esports have received a huge boost due to the Coronavirus lockdown. This is especially true for those games which already had a significant player base even before the lockdown began.

I feel that the challenge which most gamers face is that they don’t get to spend as much time as they want in the video games that they love. Working individuals especially have it rough and normally they would seldom get much time to invest in games.

The lockdown period has helped them play to their heart’s content, and we particularly found a much larger surge in games that people had already downloaded, games that people were already playing. JetSynthesys saw growth both in terms of consumption and monetization, and the overall player engagement has had a 40% to 150% boost, depending on the particular game in question.

When it comes to esports, I think the entire viewership and spectator experience has had significant growth as well. It’s because of the very same reasons as above, and the time spent by people watching esports has increased significantly in terms of percentage.

Coming to downloads, I feel that is another area where we saw very high growth. But because there was so much digital action going on during the lockdown, most companies realized that the lack of discovery was becoming the initial challenge. At some point, the ability to grab the attention of a user became a bit more expensive.

However, the good news that came at the time was that a large part of the monetization also happened in terms of inventory. So there was a surge on that front as well. So eventually, the downloads grew by 100-200% depending on what we had planned and player engagement improved from the previous average of 30-45 minutes a day to 50-55 minutes a day.

For JetSynthesys the plan that we had for the next 18 months got realized in a period of 6 months. Overall the lockdown has been really good for us.

Q. Earlier in July, there was an infusion of fresh capital for JetSynthesys to strengthen various aspects of digital products. Which specific areas have this capital really shown results in?

Rajan Navani: The capital infusion helped power our global expansion, and because of it we were able to invest in teams that are present all over the world. As growing internationally has been one of JetSynthesys’ biggest commitments to the gaming industry, this infusion allowed us to leverage Indian talent as well as global capabilities to build world-class products.

It’s only natural that there will be audiences in other parts of the world, and they will also be benefiting from this. So our major focus with the capital was on expanding our footprint globally.

Secondly, we were also looking to strengthen our talent pool. Acquiring both Indian and international talent is something that we strongly focus on, and building “capabilities” out of India has always been a part of our plan.

Also, I think it provides us with a unique opportunity of becoming part of the global supply chain for the video game industry. India has had some great strength in technology in the past in any case.

Hence, from engineering to art, to design, to a variety of talents, we are looking to leverage that which is yet to be a part of the larger global pool.

Thirdly, we also wanted to focus on improving the visibility for our brands, to grow and strengthen both marketing and sales, to boost new product launches. I feel it’s a good combination of all the things that we have already embarked on, and had a good deal of success with.

Q. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasizing on made in India apps and with the ban (and soon the return) of the popular Battle Royale game PUBG Mobile, is this a potential space that Jetsynthesys is looking to get into?

Rajan Navani: Yes! Absolutely! I think the big difference is that JetSynthesys was always built with the view of creating a large digital entertainment market, which would be made in India for India, and then leveraging that to the rest of the world

So, I think if one is to look at the “Googles of the US," or the “Tencents of China," the gap which was there in India is what JetSynthesys was founded upon.

I feel that what Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done has helped to reiterate and strengthen what we are already doing at JetSynthesys. We built business families that operate globally but have their roots coming out of India. The investments in our projects have come from our own businesses and our Indian family offices as well.

The entire JetSynthesys narrative is built upon the strength of India, and showcasing and building a large digital entertainment market for gaming and esports.

Moreover, PUBG Mobile not being here has given the Indian digital companies a big opportunity, and we at JetSynthesys have been able to capitalize on that. Recently we have launched a new WWE game which helped us engage with newer audiences. All of our previous IPs have also benefited, may it be of sports, action, RPG, or any other genre.

Given that Chinese companies are being challenged on their growth in India, I feel it’s a very big opportunity for local companies to grow and expand.

As an Indian company, JetSynthesys has been able to capitalize on opportunities, not only to leverage this gap but to also grow significantly with our bases and talent pools.

Overall, with the decline of the Chinese companies in India and the “Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan” movement, JetSynthesys and other Indian digital companies will be growing in strength from here on.

Interestingly, I had shared a very large agenda with the Confederation of Indian Industry, called “India at 75,” which aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of the nation in 2022. If we look at the entire basis of creating a “new-age, digital, technology-led, content-driven, consume-enabled internet business," we will see that it did derive its inspiration from the Indian audiences that are young and growing.

Hence, there is a deeper alignment with what we are doing at JetSynthesys and what the overall agenda is for young India.

Q. JetSynthesys is renowned in the gaming industry for showcasing top-level partnerships and IPs, be it Sachin Saga or WWE, what is the thought process behind such partnership and are there any more that are planned for the future?

Rajan Navani: I think we have always taken a stand in wanting to be the best and wanting to work with the best, no matter which space we enter. So having a good IP to work with not only strengthens the value of both the product that we create digitally, but also the sector that we are looking at entering.

When it comes to cricket, Sachin Tendulkar is considered a God, and being able to enable cricketers and players to relive his journey and play his journey is something that we felt to be uncharted territory.

With Sachin, we were able to motion capture every single shot of his. Hence, all the shots that you see in the game is actually a stroke that was played by Sachin. This helps the player get into the feeling of being him.

Over a period of time, this has now grown into a full-fledged cricket game, and we will continue to see how Sachin’s thoughts and leadership are reflected through it. This will also help engage newer players and continue to build not only the virtual version of the game but can also help the actual game of cricket in the long run.

On the other hand, when we look at WWE, there also we were trying to do something in the gaming space. With the wrestling moves, we felt that there was no other brand which is as big as WWE, and India is the second-largest market in terms of fans after the US.

So for us, again we got to work with a very strong IP, and this also means that we are using these games to set ourselves up to take a commanding position in whichever sector we are trying to enter.

I feel that these partnerships work in both ways. Good IPs want to be associated with great companies that can make world-class products. Both our partners, whether it's WWE or Sachin, strongly gratify the efforts that the company puts into ensuring that whatever JetSynthesys is creating is world-class and is the best product out there.

Hence, partnerships like these only work when the best meets the best. JetSynthesys is committed to becoming the best that it can be.

As for “what’s in store for the future?” We will have an update on that very soon.

Q. During the COVID lockdown, mobile esports consumption was at its peak in India, with an upward surge in viewership. However, the recent ban of PUBG Mobile has seen a decline in viewership once again. What are your thoughts on the future of mobile esports in India, especially with PUBG Mobile returning and the arrival of Wild Rift beta in the spring of 2021?

Rajan Navani: I am a very strong believer in mobile esports, and I am quite optimistic about its growth in the near future. I feel that there are very few opportunities in entertainment where one has the ability to not only view something but also be able to engage with the activity.

Hence, we look at it as a “funnel effect” and believe that it will be the casual gamers who will come into mobile-first, and then go on to become professional gamers. If you look at the entire channel of movement from casual gaming to professional gaming, you will see that it’s a journey in itself.

I feel that there are many young Indians today who want to make that journey, as esports personalities in the nation are slowly gaining recognition and also making a fair amount of money.

Champions are getting endorsements, and we see professional players globally are getting more and more established. We see this also happening in mobile esports and even during tournaments and leagues that are organized at local levels.

I think there is a huge opportunity for companies to strengthen both viewership as well as be the necessary source of inspiration to help players consider a future in professional gaming. Now, while a casual gamer is trying to learn a new game, watching professional esports will be one of the best ways for him/her to learn the various core mechanics of the game.

Cricket is just a great example, right? A lot of people playing cricket in India watch a lot of cricket as well and this reminds me of my nephew who is just obsessed with the game.

My nephew is 10 years old and has wanted to only play cricket since the age of 6. I even introduced him to basketball and three to four other games and I found that he will go and play those sports for a few days and then eventually come back to cricket.

I see this trend everywhere, and when there are matches being played or a game of Sachin Saga or Real Cricket is being played, I see my nephew completely hooked on those as well.

It’s a very interesting opportunity when we look at video games which are also real-life sports. Esports now doesn’t really need to have a physical version of it to even be considered for the Olympics.

So, I am going to see a lot of people watching to entertain themselves and watching to learn and watching to be inspired by others who have made it to the very top of their respective games.

In a young population like ours which is so mobile-based, I feel that the future for handheld esports is very strong. However, the challenge that is being created by the PUBG Mobile ban is that it creates a gap, but it’s a gap which I feel will be filled in by other titles even after PUBG Mobile eventually returns.

The other mobile esports I feel will rise even higher than PUBG as the underlying current for the growth of all of this is very strong.

Q. The recent acquisition of Nautilus Mobile means JetSynthesys now boasts the most downloaded cricket mobile game ever. What were the thoughts behind this acquisition and what future plans are there for the synergy between Nautilus, JetSynthesys, and of course Real Cricket?

Rajan Navani: You know for us, cricket has been a very strong area which we have outlined pretty early on in the journey of JetSynthesys. You are right with the Nautilus acquisitions, as we do have market leadership in this space right now.

We are very clear on the fact that we are a company that will continue to grow and lead this market. I think what we also find is that there are still are different versions of cricket that we still need to discover and unlock. We will be using both of our titles to continue doing that.

Our Sachin Saga VR game is something which we want to grow in scale and not just make it a title for individual players, but also create arcade formats where players can come together and have fun. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a lull over the arcade expansion. But with physical activity opening up in the near future, I think a lot of these places will ultimately continue to grow.

Also when it comes to the synergies, I think that both at a team level and at the level of what these products can do (being able to cover a 360-degree experience) I feel both these titles complement each other rather well.

With the Sachin Saga, having a “Master Blaster” explaining what is cricket and how cricket is played, and being part of the larger tournaments when it happens provides a heightened level of immersion.

Now, visual experience and gaming experiences have become second-screen to the live matches that are being played. This will all combine and continue to enhance the Indian story as well as certain stories like the ones which involve the Lanka Premier League, which is one of the more important tournaments in the game.

We are looking at many aspects which will continue to strengthen us both in India and in other countries where cricket is a popular sport. So, we are quite excited to see just what the 100% acquisition of Nautilus Mobile does for JetSynthesys in the future.

Q. Real Cricket 2020 has been applauded by players for its realistic nature, are there any new aspects we can see for the next edition that the team is working on?

Rajan Navani: Absolutely! I think you are going to see a lot more action in Real Cricket too. There are a lot of product innovations that are underway and while we did have one sort of update recently, there will also be a major branding next year. Prior to IPL, there will be another big update as well.

We are on track with both Sachin Saga and Real Cricket. We will continue to grow on new ground and acquire new territories to continue to engage with gamers and provide them with a unique experience.

I feel what we thoroughly value is gamer support. I would like to take this opportunity to compliment the players and thank them for investing their time in Sachin Saga and Real Cricket.

The players helped us immensely by providing inputs, by playing our game, and for just being there as an extended arm and part of the community.

It enabled us to create experiences for them that they would like to see in the game. We at JetSynthesys invest heavily in our community building and as a matter of fact, we have a whole vertical business that leverages technology and content to the communities.

For cricket of course we have the 100MB community, and for Mindfulness, we have the ThinkRight.me community. So we believe in building communities and valuing communities for brands and for spaces we want to grow in.

Q. What was the thought process behind the creation of Sachin Saga? It was unique in its concept of being the country's first cricket VR game. What are your plans for the VR market in the future?

Rajan Navani: Sachin Saga started with a journey right? It is the journey of one of the greatest cricketers that the planet has ever seen.

So while it started with a journey of Sachin, or the journey of cricket, which both go hand in hand, it will continue to also provide the future of what cricket or what Sachin now personally wants to see in technology.

Our joint venture with Sachin and Sachin Saga clearly represents for us the second innings of the “Master Blaster." So it was only natural that JetSynthesys developed the first game in the world that actually represented VR in a cricket game.

Now, walking out with a bat from the dressing room as Sachin Tendulkar to the chant of “Sachin! Sachin! Sachin!” is an exhilarating feeling that an Indian gamer will be able to experience through the game.

There have been many players who told us that this particular moment of walking out of the dugout and onto the field as Sachin has given them goosebumps. You can actually see that on their bodies when they experience this in VR as it creates a completely different level of immersion.

So I think that VR was a very natural choice for us as we moved forward. AR, VR, and MR are all areas in which we are continuing to invest both in India and from our offices in Silicon Valley.

We are building capabilities and technologies to be able to strengthen the entire immersive experience through AR, VR, and MR. We will definitely continue to see how we can grow and share these experiences in India.

However, the fact that physical movement has been impacted in India because of the pandemic will probably delay our plans of rolling out VR by a year from what we had originally planned.

Besides this minor hiccup, we have decided to stay committed to this entire project.

Q. Can you give us an idea as to what the role of the Indian Digital Gaming Society is? What will your scope of work as its President be in the near future?

Rajan Navani: It’s interesting that you raise this question because, as I have been telling you right through, I am a firm believer in how India can become a key player in the global gaming ecosystem.

Video gaming is a 115-159 billion dollar industry that is still growing rapidly. India is sub-par in terms of the value that the nation has in that industry when compared to the rest of the world.

So I feel that the opportunity for India to grow in the gaming industry is immense. The entire thought process that went into the formation of the Indian Digital Gaming Society, which is anchored by the Confederation of the Indian Industry and its Secretariat, stems from this very thought.

The Indian government now is also very keen to work on and strengthen the role of gaming so more people can get employed, and we can create an industry that is significant.

See, gaming as an industry is any way larger than the film industry and the music industry combined. So how India sees that opportunity moving forward is something that the Indian Digital Gaming Society decided to work upon. This requires multiple things. One, it needs to define gaming correctly in India.

If you see esports, mobile, console, and PC gaming, you will see that they are very different from money gaming in India, the Cash Tournaments, and fantasy sports.

There are many different genres of gaming, and one strong aspect is to define what gaming is and how it will shape up in India compared to the rest of the world. To define esports accurately, more as a sport rather than solely as a tournament which can be played for any game.

Moreover, I think also being able to see how more stakeholders can derive livelihoods out of this industry is important. Esports gives opportunities to casters, streamers, content creators, graphic designers, analysts, tournament organizers, and the list goes on.

With the gaming industry, it would be essential to see how we can get a large number of Indian workforce into the field, and not just for the nation, but for the rest of the world as well. So this is another aspect that the Digital Gaming Society is working on.

We are working with game developers, hardware manufacturers, the academies that have come in to train people, and with the entire ecosystem.

The last point that I want to say is that JetSynthesys is very different from any other gaming body of any society in any part of the world. Since we are also including gamers as a part of our community, we have players coming in and saying what they expect from the gaming industry. These are not only professional players but average gamers as well.

We want representatives from every fold of the ecosystem to come in and help shape this industry in a manner that will also benefit what gamers will like to see.

So it’s a large vision, it’s something that we are excited about, and I am very privileged to be the founding president of this institution. I feel this institution will, over the years, become the bedrock of what the future of gaming in India will be and through India for the rest of the world.

Q. One final question, What are your and JetSynthesys' goals for the next five years?

Rajan Navani: Not only do we want to be India’s largest gaming and entertainment company, but we are also pushing ourselves to play the leadership role globally. We understand the role of responsibility in digital, and our goal is to strengthen the trust that we build between JetSynthesys, our consumers, and our gamers.

We try and go through all of our products and figure out what is “Gaming for Good” and what is “Digital for Good.” How we can shape and define that in the future is something that excites me.

So besides the economic and financial good of the company, building a great company on the right values in an emerging sector, particularly for India, is something that takes greater precedence.

Figuring out a way to do this excites us at JetSynthesys and unites us as a team. I am personally looking forward to seeing what the next 5 years for us hold.