Indian Valorant caster reveals problems women face in industry, alleges lower pay and different clothing regulation than male colleagues

Professional Valorant Caster Kaavya "Zahk" Karthikeyan has detailed her list of grievances regarding how tournament organizers deal with casters, especially when they are female, in India.

In a Twitlonger posted on her Twitter, Kaavya shared her experience of casting in Indian Valorant tournaments. She chronicled several problems where tournament organizers fail to adequately compensate for the work, exhibit double standards against women, and choose friends over merit while selecting streamers and casters.

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"I was told to just stfu and obey": Valorant Caster Kaavya 'Zahk' details misogyny faced while working for tournament organizers in India

The esporting scene in India can still be considered in its early stages and not as popular as other sporting events. So problems with funding and underpaying casters, analysts, and commentators can be explained, but the issues listed in the post indicate a much more sinister problem.

So much so that Kaavya began her Twitlonger by talking about getting a fresh start now that she was leaving the country. In fact, she also notes her experience with foreign tournament organizers such as the Indonesian OneUP, Singaporean FSL, and other orgs such as Galorants, which focus on women and non-binary people in Valorant. She stated:

"I've also worked with some fantastic folks such as the people at FSL, OneUp, and Galorants, which really opened my eyes to how talent should be treated at a fundamental level."

In her one-and-a-half years working in the South Asian Valorant scene, particularly India, her biggest concerns with the tournament organizers were divided into two major categories.

One was how the organizers fairly compensate casters, but exploit those starting out by underpaying them. The other was how women in the industry had to put up with sexist attitudes, including lower pay and stricter dress codes than men in the same role.

Kaavya shared that tournament organizers at her first gig expected her to cast six games daily for a salary of 12K per month:

"People told me I should be grateful to get what I got seeing they started working for free but that doesn't make it fair."

Then came the problem of getting paid on time. She explained:

"I had several caster friends who suffered because their payment did not come through for months. Again, casters are also employees, please pay them on time."

The most egregious problem that Valorant Caster addressed is the misogyny inherent in the industry. Kaavya wrote about how she endured strict dress codes while her male co-casters could get away without much consequence:

"My male cocaster was wearing a casual t shirt, without even a collar. I was told to wear something more formal/button up until the collar. My cocaster did not get any comments or similar feedback. When I pointed it out, I was told to just stfu and obey."

She also wrote that her male colleagues got considerably more pay for the same job. The caster further alleged that tournament organizers would give a lot of preferential treatment to friends:

"My male cocasters have consistently gotten 2 to 3x times what I've gotten if not more. People with less experience casting Valorant who merely read the killfeed get more cause they're friends with the TOs."

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Twitter reacts to the revelations

The Indian Valorant community had many reactions to the Twitlonger by the caster. Many subsequently came forward to corroborate the allegations.

Many commended Kaavya for coming forward with her experience and wished her all the best in her future endeavors.

Kaavya 'Zahk' is an established English commentator for Valorant tournaments and a writer and analyst associated with VLR.gg. VCT 2022: Game Changers North America was the last big event she commented on back in October.