With OpraahFx, I wanted to build a community of influencers and brands who work together by creating compelling stories for audiences to consume: Pranav Panpalia, Founder, OpraahFx and OP Gaming

Q. Wrist sprains, Carpal Tunnel syndromes, and mental fatigue have often been some of the more widespread health problems that professional esports talents face today. Especially in India, health and wellness for professional players is not exactly a priority among esports organizations. Can you share some of your thoughts on the matter and elaborate on the importance that both physical and mental health hold for any esport athlete?

Pranav: With gamers playing from the comfort of their homes, many people generally assume that esports is the safest sport to play. However, constantly playing for longer hours eventually affects their wrists, necks, backs, and mental peace in the long run. None of this is new or shocking, as it is meant to be if gamers don’t play responsibly and follow a fit gaming schedule.

Also, with the esports industry growing exponentially in India, especially after the COVID-19 lockdown last year, more and more aspiring gamers are choosing esports as their career. I believe now is the perfect time for esports organizations and federations to come together and create awareness about a fit gaming lifestyle before we lose many great gamers because of their physical and mental injuries.

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Q. You have been a big propagator of the idea that professional gamers should also dab into a bit of streaming and content creation themselves. How would you suggest an esports professional manages his/her time to balance out both these aspects?

Pranav: I have always believed that there needs to be a balance in the type/variety of content that creators put across because that is how one can grow and attract more audiences. Gamers who play professionally have a great opportunity to build a whole new fan base if they foray into gaming content creation alongside playing professionally.

This way, they can increase both engagement and revenue. More than time, it is about managing the process of content creation well. One can create a variety of content by playing one game only if he/she has planned, strategized, and played well.

Q. What kind of importance do you feel regional gamers hold in the Indian video games industry? In what way would you, or even OpraahFX, for that matter, channel the in-house talent to make the industry more lucrative for all the stakeholders?

Pranav: It is really interesting to see how regional gamers are growing in India. They have positioned themselves so strongly amongst their audiences. Few even enjoy better reach and engagement than national creators.

Also, we are currently in talks with a few regional gamers and are soon planning to collaborate with YouTube to help them grow wider.

Q. Can you please throw some light on the latest charity event — Mask On India — by OP Gaming?

Pranav: Mask On India was a non-profit initiative by OpraahFx and OP Gaming in collaboration with YouTubers Slayy Point and Mythpat. We raised INR 50+ lakhs for COVID relief by bringing together India’s most significant gamers and influencers who played games like Minecraft and Skribbl to engage with the audiences. 35+ Indian influencers joined a 7.5-hour YouTube live stream on April 25 and raised funds for oxygen supply in the country.

Scheduled on the day of an IPL match, this charity stream withstood the true test of their “influence” as we received an overwhelming response from the audiences with 10M+ total views.

Q. Before we conclude our session, can you provide our readers with some advice as to how the gamers of tomorrow should choose brands to partner with?

Pranav: The best way to create engaging branded video content is by deeply understanding the needs and wants of your audiences. Show, promote, and sell them only what they want and resonate with, and not what gets you more revenue.

Choosing the latter will only increase your un-subscription numbers. So, the best way to decide over brands is to interact with your audiences and learn what they want.