Breaking into yet another male-dominated turf, 23-year-old Neelam Sahani and 18-year-old Neha Thakur from Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh respectively, have been sweeping the world of online gaming, breaking the stereotype of women within the gaming community.
Neelam and Neha have been identified as ‘women gamers on the rise’ on Mobile Premier League (MPL), a fast-growing mobile gaming platform. Neelam has earned close to Rs.4 lakh by competing in online digital sports tournaments hosted by MPL, while Neha has earned cash prizes worth Rs.25,000 on the platform.
MPL has seen a rise in women ‘Digital Sports Enthusiasts’, with more women participating and dominating the leader boards. “Building a diverse gaming community has been a part of our core mission at MPL. We are incredibly excited about the emergence of women gamers on our platform. This reaffirms our commitment to building products that speak to audiences beyond the stereotypical male, adolescent gamers”, said Sai Srinivas Kiran G, Co-founder, and CEO, MPL.
Neelam and Neha have been identified as ‘Rising Stars’ as both have just begun their journey in online gaming, and have shown tremendous acumen and skill in a short span of time. They play with the skill-set and efficiency of seasoned gamers, and their examples have aspired and encouraged other women to join the world of mobile gaming.
Neelam has an in-app following of almost of 73,000 on MPL and she has been a regular user of the app since September 2018. She has been able to connect with fellow gamers through MPL to share tips on how to win. She has been able to utilize her winnings to financially support her family and also save money for her future.
Neha, one of the youngest female gamers on the platform, and has been competing in tournaments since November 2018. She believes that regular practice and her love for challenges motivates her to participate in the various in-app tournaments available on MPL.
MPL has been instrumental in creating an inclusive gaming space in India. It has encouraged ‘digital athletes’, like Neha and Neelam, to showcase their gaming skills and become an inspiration to budding female gamers. It has been successful in tapping into potential female gamers, especially from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, and has helped build a platform for them to gain widespread recognition within the gaming community.