JioCinema and PokerBaazi team up for India's first poker reality show on OTT

JioCinema, an OTT viewing platform in partnership with PokerBaazi, a poker platform, recently released a 6-part Poker focused reality TV series, Poker Masterclass. The 5-day learning experience is shot in a game show format. The series showcases players competing against each other in various poker games and activities, designed to promote learning and skill development while displaying a whirlwind of emotions and entertainment experienced in the Masterclass.

In the series, Abhishek Goindi is seen leading the Shark Squad, Kanishka Samant leads the Anti-Tilters, Vinod Megalmani captains the Pocket Rockets, and Shravan Chhabria spearheads the Crushers.

Commenting on the release of Poker Masterclass on JioCinema, Navkiran Singh, founder and  CEO, PokerBaazi Games shared, “We are delighted to announce that PokerBaazi has taken another step in fostering the Indian poker community with the release of one of India’s first poker reality TV shows on OTT, Poker Masterclass, in collaboration with JioCinema. Over the years, we have seen the Indian poker community grow exponentially. This sport continues to offer a lot, and we are now combining entertainment with the skills required to play poker in a unique learning gaming format for our Indian audience. The series highlights the efforts undertaken by poker players to prepare for tournaments and aims to attract a whole new audience to this skill-based sport in India.” 

Talking about the partnership, Vivek Mohan Sharma, head of branded content and youth properties sales, says, “Pushing the boundaries of content through strategic partnerships is our approach of choice, and we’re excited to collaborate on a show like Poker Masterclass. This is our first-ever poker reality show on the platform. Collaborations like this not only enhance the brand's visibility but also amplify the reach and impact through our vast platform. We’re committed to continue delivering power-packed brand experiences to our audience."

Set in India’s Poker capital, Goa, the series features 28 players who participated in a five-day Poker camp while being guided and coached by 4 Indian Poker maestros to prepare for Indian Poker Masters hosted on PokerBaazi. 

The Shark Squad, led by Abhishek Goindi, includes Subhodeep Paul(West Bengal), Mahima Walia(Karnataka), Shubham Upadhyay(Haryana), Areyann Gurbaxani(Maharashtra), Pranav Baheti(West Bengal), Siddhant Khanna(Delhi), and Tanay Kauntia(Jharkhand). 

Vinod Megalmani’s Pocket Rockets features Ramu Kushwaha(Uttar Pradesh), Riyana Rasheed(Karnataka), Pratap Maurya(Maharashtra), Unmesh Nair(Kerala), Apoorv Bhanot(Delhi), Ritesh Khatwani(Rajasthan), and Shivakumar Channappa Koudishetra(Karnataka).

Kanishka Samant’s Anti-Tilters team comprises Sachit Malik(Haryana), Vikram Jaiswal(Bihar) , Samarth Bhandari(Rajasthan), Vijay Agarwal(Goa), Niharika Bindra(Delhi), Yash Jaiswal(Uttar Pradesh), and Jyotindra Dubey(Madhya Pradesh).

Finally, the Crushers, under Shravan Chhabria’s guidance, include Radhika Shankar(Delhi), Anish Arora(Maharashtra), Dhaval Doshi (Maharashtra), Daniyal Akhtar(Jharkhand), Basant Singh(Delhi), Ganesh Durgade(Maharashtra), and Rohit Chaudhary(Haryana).

The series featured tournament winners from PokerBaazi and four additional winners from a social media contest. Participants received entry tickets to the Indian Poker Masters series on PokerBaazi. The winning team received a trophy, and an MVP was recognized for outstanding performance. The Indian Poker Masters series starts on August 4 on PokerBaazi, with a prize pool of Rs 60 Crore for Indian Poker players to compete for the title.