PKL co-promoter Anand Mahindra makes hilarious tweet about Disney-Fox deal

What's the story?

Media giant Disney announced on Thursday that they would be taking over most of 21st Century Fox for a whopping $52.4 billion. Disney as a part of this deal takes over Star India which is owned by Fox Entertainment.

Star India enjoys broadcasting rights over a number of sports in India such as cricket, football, badminton and kabaddi, with the last one being garnering popularity at an extremely rapid pace.

Many people have wondered how this acquisition will affect broadcasting of sport in the country. But Anand Mahindra, who was one of the early promoters of the Pro Kabaddi League, thinks that the deal with help take the sport to foreign shores!

Here's what he said:

So that would make Mickey Mouse a partner with us in @ProKabaddiWell then the next time you visit Disney World, make sure the world's most famous mouse is muttering 'kabaddikabaddikabaddikabaddikabaddi..' under his breath! ? https://t.co/ybJ6TDXSTZ

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) December 15, 2017

In case you didn't know

The Pro Kabaddi League, after five successful seasons, is the biggest franchise-based league in the country in terms of the number of teams and geographical coverage. The latest edition ended in October this year, with Patna Pirates winning their third title in a row.

The heart of the matter

Mahindra joked that the Pro Kabaddi League will now be partnered by Mickey Mouse, the global icon of Disney. He also stated that fans must make sure that they see whether the world's most famous mouse is chanting 'kabaddi kabaddi' under his breath.

What's next?

It remains to be seen if the deal can be fully completed by the time the next season of The Pro Kabaddi League starts. However, kabaddi fans across the country will be eagerly waiting for December 31, which is when the Senior National Championships begin.

Author's take

This move by Disney is certainly a welcome move not only for fans of Kabaddi but also for Indian sports fans in general. If Disney can extract the massive potential that's hidden in this sports crazy country, the benefits will be mutual.

Kabaddi can be India's next big thing, The Pro Kabaddi League was launched in 2014 and has seen a massive soar in TRP's over the last 2 seasons. With this acquisition, I can see these numbers only going up.