Social Gaming Startup Eloelo Crosses 2 Million Users In Only 1 Year

* The app has observed a 10X growth in users in the past 6 months

Eloelo, a live streaming and social gaming app, today crossed 2 million users; the app was launched in September 2020 by ex-Flipkart executives Saurabh Pandey & Akshay Dubey. Eloelo uses first of its kind technology to embed indigenous games inside a live video chat room, thus making it stand apart from other live streaming platforms. Eloelo combines Live streaming with Social games that are very local to India (Tambola, Tol Mol Ke Bol, Chidiya Udd, etc.). All the live sessions on the app are in Hindi, and creators host from the comfort of their homes, recreating a TV-like experience digitally for their fans & followers.

“Eloelo re-imagines creators as live show anchors where they host games like Tambola, Tol Mol Ke Bol, Chidiya Udd, and more & showcase their talent live. We believe the future of entertainment is Live & interactive. Indigenous entertainment combined with gaming is a great way for Creators to connect with the audiences of Bharat & we are just getting started”, says Saurabh, Founder & CEO of Eloelo.

The App also recently launched a new Multi-video feature called “Stage”, where users can request to join a Live Video and be a co-host along with the Creator. Saurabh adds, “Live multi-video takes real-time creator-fan engagement to the next level. Users can request to be a part of the Live Video call and chat, play games with their favourite Hosts. It is almost like being a part of a Live TV game show.”

As per a KPMG report, the pandemic was a tipping point for online gaming in India, with 433 million users playing games online in FY21. Also, the creators’ economy is buzzing with growth as more creators join existing influencers & discover new means of fan engagement where Eloelo has an advantage since it allows creators to host live games for their fans. Creators on the app can choose games they would like to Host, and the app adds a chat layer on top of the Livestream for them to engage live with their audience. 

Eloelo has raised $2.5 Mn to date with Waterbridge Ventures, Better Capital & Lumikai as prominent investors. The App was recently chosen as one of the 16 homegrown startups out of 700 Applications by Google as part of its Accelerator program. It has already onboarded over 20,000 Creators on the platform.

The company is strongly positioning the app as the “Bharat Metaverse”, where Creators host Live Games & experiences for their fans and is investing in AR Filters, more tools for Creators. With more than 12 Games on the App, the company believes it is quite uniquely positioned to be a leader in the Live social gaming space.

Akshaya Patra And ManipalCigna Health Insurance Partner To Address Covid-19 Food Relief Efforts Across India

* The Cigna Foundation, funded by contributions from Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI) and its subsidiaries has pledged $75,000 for COVID-19 Food Relief Efforts for the economically deprived families under its program, ‘Healthier Kids For Our Future’

ManipalCigna Health Insurance Company Limited, a joint venture between Manipal Group, an eminent player in the field of healthcare delivery and higher education and Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI), U.S. based global health service leader, has partnered with The Akshaya Patra Foundation to distribute a total of 4,550 Akshaya Patra’s Family Happiness Kits in Mumbai/Thane, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Guwahati, and Delhi along with a school painting project. 

The Cigna Foundation, funded by contributions from Cigna Corporation and its subsidiaries has pledged $75,000 to help provide dry ration kits to the economically deprived families affected by the pandemic. The distribution of Family Happiness Kits which will include rice, wheat flour, sugar, pulses, cooking oil and other grocery accompaniments will be carried out on 17th and 18th December, 2021 across the country.

The donation is part of Cigna Foundation’s $25 million ‘Healthier Kids For Our Future’ initiative to improve the health and well-being of children and support local communities. The Healthier Kids For Our Future program addresses three key areas of children’s health and welfare that align to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals – good health and well-being, zero hunger and no poverty. Cigna's over 74,000 global employees will work together to put children on a healthier path, starting with reducing childhood hunger and improving nutrition in local communities.

Speaking on the partnership, Sapna Desai, Head of Marketing and Digital Sales, ManipalCigna Health Insurance, said “Lack of quality nutrition can significantly affect people’s physical health and may lead to preventable chronic conditions. Through our partnership with Akshaya Patra Foundation’s Family Happiness Kits program, we at ManipalCigna Health Insurance and the Cigna Foundation are providing the capacity to support the underprivileged families of our society with the nutritious groceries they need for healthy lives”

Acknowledging the support, Mr. Sundeep Talwar, CMO, The Akshaya Patra Foundation said, “It is our responsibility to ensure that nutritious meals are served to children in schools and that no child goes hungry. We're pleased to be working with ManipalCigna Health Insurance, and we're appreciative of the Cigna Foundation’s support in sponsoring our Family Happiness Kits. Such collaborations assist us in serving over 1.8 million children every school day across the country. This was our first collaboration and we hope to strengthen our partnership over time.” 

The Akshaya Patra Foundation aims to address malnutrition and support the right to education of socio-economically disadvantaged children of the nation and beyond with the support of the Government of India, various State Governments, and generous supporters. With this vision, the organization has been concerting all its efforts towards serving children and humanity for the last 21 years with the spread of 58 kitchens across 12 states & 2 Union territories of India. 

About The Akshaya Patra Foundation

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that strives to address classroom hunger and malnutrition in India. By implementing the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in Government and Government-aided schools, Akshaya Patra aims to fight hunger and, at the same time, bring children to school. Since 2000, Akshaya Patra has worked towards reaching out to children with wholesome food every single school day. The Foundation is continuously leveraging technology to cater to millions of children. Its state-of-the-art kitchens have become a subject of study and attract curious visitors from around the world.

In partnership with the Government of India and various State Governments and the inestimable support of many philanthropic donors and well-wishers, Akshaya Patra has grown from humble beginnings serving just 1,500 school children across five schools to becoming the world’s largest (not- for-profit run) mid-day meal programme, serving wholesome food to over 1.8 million children from 19,039 schools [as of March 2020] across 13 states and one union territory in India.

Mahindra First Choice Wheels Adds Two More Outlets In Bengaluru

* Outlets in high demand areas like Sarjapur Road and MSR Layout on Tumkur Road

Mahindra First Choice Wheels Ltd (MFCWL), India’s leading multi-brand pre-owned cars retailer, introduced two new stores in Bengaluru city. The two new outlets namely Zippy Automart and Renew 4 u Automobiles are located in MSR Layout, Tumkur road and Sarjapur road, respectively. With the addition of these stores, MFCWL now offers more physical touchpoints in the city to buy and sell used cars. With a total of 67 stores in the state, MFCWL further strengthens its position as a market leader in organized used car segment.

On the new store inauguration, Mr. Ashutosh Pandey, CEO & MD, Mahindra First Choice Wheels Ltd. said, “We are happy to expand our network in Bengaluru as well as in neighboring region. The new store launches are aligned with our mission to offer a hassle free ownership experience to customers via our phygital model between carandbike.com, our online used car booking portal and our physical outlets of Mahindra First Choice. We are certain that both the dealerships will add many customers to the Mahindra First Choice family and bring the brand closer to consumers.”

The new Mahindra First Choice stores will offer all the facilities and services that the MFCWL brand represents including certified used-car sales, warranty on Mahindra Certified used cars, easy finance, hassle-free RTO transfer and superlative customer experience.

Over the years, MFCWL has built an organized eco-system in the highly unorganized pre-owned cars sector, creating a circle of trust and transparency among franchisees, customers, dealers and institutional clients. All franchise owners have access to technology, training, software, branding and marketing. MFCWL has the largest collection of 5000+ certified vehicles sold through an omnichannel model to customers across the length and breadth of the country.

Mahindra First Choice is an industry leader in the used car segment with 1100+ retail stores in 350+ cities has sold over 2 million cars in the country.

For associating with Mahindra First Choice Wheels, log on to: https://www.mahindrafirstchoice.com/

About Mahindra First Choice Wheels

Mahindra First Choice Wheels is a dominant player in the Indian used vehicle eco system providing products and services to cater to the needs of retail and wholesale customers utilizing its “on-the ground” and “in-the-cloud” capabilities. The company has raised funding from Silicon Valley based Hedge Fund, Valiant Capital and Cox Automotive, a $17 Billion US based enterprise.

About Mahindra

 The Mahindra Group enjoys a leadership position in utility vehicles, information technology, financial services and vacation ownership in India and is the world’s largest tractor company by volume It also enjoys a strong presence in renewable energy, agribusiness, logistics and real estate development. Headquartered in India, Mahindra employs over 2,56,000 people across 100 countries.

53 Companies In 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 Hails From Karnataka

 

Key Highlights: -

* The cumulative value of companies from Karnataka stands at INR 23 lakh crore

* Big 3: With a value of INR 7.5 lakh crore, Infosys is Karnataka’s most valuable company, followed by Wipro with INR 3.7 lakh crore and BYJU’s with INR 1.4 lakh crore

* 29 companies doubled in value and 2 companies rose by INR 1 lakh crore from Karnataka in 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 List

* Software & Services and Financial Services led the way with 9 companies each, followed by Healthcare and Real Estate with 6 companies each.

* Total sales of companies from Karnataka in the 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 List cumulated to INR 5.2 lakh crore, equivalent to 31% of state’s GSDP

* The 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 companies from Karnataka employ 10.1 lakh people in total, with an average of 19,096 employees

* The average age of companies from Karnataka in this list is 17 years, i.e., founded in 2004

Burgundy Private, Axis Bank’s Private Banking Business and Hurun India launched the first edition of the ‘2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500’, a list of the 500 most valuable companies in India. These companies are ranked according to their value, defined as market capitalization for listed companies and valuations for non-listed companies. Hurun Report India and Burgundy Private launched a further analysis of most valuable non-state-controlled companies from Karnataka in the 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 List. The cut-off date to arrive at this list was 30th October 2021. This list refers to companies headquartered in India only; state-owned companies and subsidiaries of foreign companies are not included.

Amitabh Chaudhry, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Axis Bank said: “Burgundy Private is delighted to partner with Hurun India in celebrating India’s 500 most valuable companies. We salute the leadership of these companies who have ably steered their businesses through the ravages of the pandemic, adopting new ways of serving their customers and emerging as winners. As India’s leading wealth management franchise, Burgundy Private has witnessed this value creation from close quarters.

The total value of the 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 companies is close to INR 228 lakh crore (US$3tn), which is higher than India’s GDP for FY21. The top line of these 500 companies is equivalent to 29% of India’s GDP and they employ up to 1.5% of the total workforce of the country. What is most heartening is that nearly 10% of these companies are younger than 10 years, representing India’s vibrant tech ecosystem. We believe that India’s new economy companies will witness greater representation in this list in the times to come. Axis Bank has been a partner to many names that find a mention in this report, and through our integrated ‘One Axis’ approach, we look forward to working closely with them as they achieve greater milestones in their journey ahead.”

Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and Chief Researcher, Hurun India said: “Hurun India is delighted to partner with Burgundy Private, Axis Bank’s Private Banking Business to release the 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500. The first edition of Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 comprises of notable names ranging from startups such as InMobi, Zerodha, BYJU’S, Swiggy, Meesho, Ola Electric to veterans such as Infosys, Wipro and Mindtree. The report reflects the entrepreneurship spirit that the city harbors while positioning India as a preferred destination attracting investments for high-decibel growth.”

Methodology

The 2021 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 is a list of the 500 most valuable companies that are headquartered in India. Government/ State-owned companies and subsidiaries of foreign companies are excluded. Although the cut-off date for the list is 30th October 2021, we have taken an exception for Paytm, Nykaa, Policybazaar, Sapphire Foods India, Latent View Analytics and Go Fashion for which we have considered the closing market cap of the listing day. The aforementioned companies were in the process of going public/ getting listed during the cut-off date.

Valuing private companies is as much an art as it is a science. Surely, Hurun India may have missed some companies, but our endeavor is to develop the most comprehensive report of its kind with an objective to identify and acknowledge India’s top businesses. Hurun Report’s team of researchers have traveled the length and breadth of the country, cross-checking information with entrepreneurs, industry experts, journalists, bankers and other sources of publicly available data.

For unlisted companies, Hurun Research’s valuation is based on a comparison with their listed equivalents using prevailing industry multiples such as Price to Earnings, Price to Sales, EV to sales, EV to EBITDA. Other methodologies such as Discounted Cash Flow and Tobin’s Q are also used. In certain cases of early- stage companies, Hurun used the First Chicago Method for valuation. Financial information used is from the latest available annual reports or audited financial statements.

IIID Bengaluru Chapter To Host 'DesignUru 3.0' To Promote Local Artisans

 

- The grand 8- day design festival to be held from Dec 15- 22

 - The theme of DesignUru 3.0 is ' Vocal for Local' & ’Save the Artisans'

The Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID), a non-profit organization focused on promoting architecture and design, will be hosting the third edition of DesignUru 3.0, which will be held from 15th December to 22 December 2021 at the Rangoli Centre, M G Road, Bengaluru.

DesignUru 3.0 is an 8- day grand design festival focused on the Government of India initiative 'vocal for local' by promoting local artisans and handcrafted work. The various themes of this design fest are ' Vocal for Local', 'Save the Artisans' & ' Sustainable Architecture'

Announcing this at a press conference, Architect Kavita Sastry, Chairperson of IIID BRC said, “This Design Fest is organized to promote Make In India Initiative by using locally available materials and helping and promoting local artisans from across the states. We have tied up with organisations working at ground level with artisans. At IIID BRC, we encourage local artisans to collaborate with Architects and Industry to make their network strong and promote their products," she added. 

Each of the 4 participating organisations are from Karnataka and will be hosting a two day participatory workshops / demonstrations involving the traditional artisans during the Design festival week. The week long design festival will also host a crafts bazaar by Naisargik Santhe, supporting the works of artisans. The design festival will have three, week-long exhibitions; one is an exhibition hosted by IUDI on urban design. Second is an exhibition of restoration works done by INTACH. The third is the exhibition of a competition hosted by IGBC curated by team Mistry.

“The design festival will also have 2 installations-one made from waste, which will serve as an area to host workshops, interactions, presentations. This is erected by ASSOCHAM GEM Karnataka Chapter. The second installation is an experimental stone structure created using interlocking technique without cement by Architect Senthil Kumar,” apprised Kavita Sastry.

The 8- day fest promises to be an educative series for architecture and design students. 

The keynote speaker of Design Uru 3.0 Architect Anupama Kundoo ,the RIBA Charles Jencks award winner.

Dinesh Verma, Immediate Past Chairperson , IIID and Gayathri Shetty, National Joint Secretary also addressed the press conference.

About IIID:

The Institute of Indian Interior Designers, popularly called I.I.I.D; was founded in 1972 to establish good professional & trade practices and ethics amongst its members and to highlight and enhance the image of the Interior Design Profession and exchange know?how with similar organizations within the country & abroad. IIID is a member of APSDA: Asia Pacific Space Designers Alliance.

Today, with over 8,000 members in 31 chapters & centres across India, IIID is true representative of the Interior Design fraternity within the country as well as globally. IIID has well defined aims and objectives towards fulfillment of its duties towards the fraternity & profession and society at large. 

AXISCADES Technologies Ltd Appoints Arun Krishnamurthi As Managing Director And CEO

AXISCADES Technologies Ltd. [AXISCADES (BSE: 532395 | NSE: AXISCADES], a leading end to end engineering and technology solutions catering to the aerospace, defence, heavy engineering, automotive, energy, medical & healthcare sectors, today announced that appointment of Arun Krishnamurthi as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer effective 22nd November 2021. Arun joins AXISCADES from Tata Technologies(TTL), London, where he was the president for the Europe region and responsible for sales of the Europe business besides sitting on the board of TTL UK, Romania and Sweden.

Arun’s appointment comes at a time when AXISCADES’ investments in digital space is rewarding the business while its innovation and research capabilities are driving factors for profitability. The company is strengthening its position through strategic partnerships and believes that Arun’s leadership will augment the bouquet of services.

Welcoming Arun on board, Mr David Bradley, Chairman, Board of Directors said, “We are glad to have Arun on board who joins us at this crucial juncture of taking the organisation to the next level. His rich experience will augur well with the goal of consolidating our presence and market share in important sectors such as Aerospace, Heavy Engineering, Energy, Auto,, and Medical Devices.”

Arun brings with him two and a half decades of pedigree global technology experience and business acumen across sales and technology. Speaking at his appointment, Arun said, “I am honoured to join AXISCADES at a time when businesses are challenged to reinvent strategies given the impact of the pandemic. I believe AXISCADES Technologies to be a resilient platform that has the capabilities to become a leader in engineering and technology solutions. Going forward, our strategy will be to strengthen and increase wallet share with major customers while diversifying the sector mix, increase client portfolio and bring in new logos that will become key and strategic clients to the organisation. Digital and embedded are disrupting the engineering space and this will be a focus for our business growth and solutions going foward”

His prior stints also include managing large P&L’s, major transformation projects and M&As in Wipro and Patni Computer Services. Arun has lived in the US and UK and has recently relocated to India after eight year in London. He has first-hand experience of business in the US, Europe and APAC.

About AXISCADES Technologies Ltd.

AXISCADES (listed on the BSE and NSE) is a leading, end to end engineering and technology solutions company creating innovative, sustainable and safer products worldwide. Headquartered in Bangalore with office across India, AXISCADES has subsidiaries in USA, UK, Canada, Germany, India and China; and offices in Germany, France, Denmark, USA and Canada.

AXISCADES has a diverse team of over 2000 engineers working across 16 futuristic Global Engineering Centres across North America, Europe, UK and Asia-Pacific, striving to reduce the program risk and time to market.  The company offers Product Engineering Solutions across Mechanical Engineering, Embedded Software and Hardware, Digitisation and Automation, System Integration, Tech Solutions, Manufacturing Engineering, Technical Publications and Aftermarket Solutions.

The engineering solution portfolio covers the complete product development lifecycle from concept evaluation to manufacturing support and certification for Fortune 500 Companies in the Aerospace, Defense, Heavy Engineering, Automotive, Medical Devices & Industrial Product industries. The company is known for its robust system of certifications and best practices that address customer requirements and domain expertise.

For more information visit www.axiscades.com

IMDb Announces Top 10 Indian Films And Web Series Of 2021

* Based on IMDbPro data of page views in India,

* Jai Bhim is the top movie of 2021; Aspirants secures the top spot for web series

IMDb (www.imdb.com), the world’s most popular and authoritative source for information on movies, TV shows, and celebrities, today unveiled the 10 movies and TV shows that were most popular with IMDb users in India this year. Rather than base its annual rankings on small statistical samplings or reviews from professional critics, this exclusive and definitive data is derived from the IMDbPro movie and TV rankings, which are based on the actual page views of IMDb users and updated weekly throughout the year.

IMDb Top 10 Indian Films of 2021*

Jai Bhim

Shershaah

Sooryavanshi

Master

Sardar Udham

Mimi

Karnan

Shiddat

Drishyam 2

Haseen Dillruba

*Of all the movies released theatrically or digitally in India between January 1 and November 29, 2021 and have an average IMDb user rating of 6.5 or higher, these 10 titles generated the most IMDb page views in India within a six-week post-release window, based on IMDbPro data. IMDb users can add these and other titles to their IMDb Watchlist.

IMDb Top 10 Indian Web Series of 2021*

Aspirants

Dhindora

The Family Man

The Last Hour

Sunflower

Candy

Ray

Grahan

November Story

Mumbai Diaries 26/11

*Of all the web series released in India between January 1 and November 29, 2021 and have an average IMDb user rating of 6.5 or higher, these 10 series generated the most IMDb page views in India within a six-week post-release window, based on IMDbPro data. IMDb users can add these and other titles to their IMDb Watchlist.

“Entertainment fans around the world rely on IMDb to learn who and what is trending, discover new content, and decide what and where to watch,” said Yaminie Patodia, head of India, IMDb. “This year’s list of the top movies and streaming series reflects the diversity of popular content in India, including titles across Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam. Additionally, demonstrating content consumption patterns in India, for the first time ever, two of this year’s Top 10 Web Series—Aspirants and Dhindora—are available to stream for free on YouTube, while the others are available on subscription-based channels.”

To learn more about this year’s most popular Indian web series, watch this video: https://www.imdb.com/list/ls576684852/

The IMDb Best of 2021 section features a variety of additional year-end Top 10 lists as well as retrospective photo galleries, trailers, original videos (including an upcoming In Memoriam video), and other coverage at https://www.imdb.com/best-of.