Gaming has become a regular feature at Indian music festivals—NH7 Weekender and Sunburn being two prominent examples—so it’s no surprise that music is also becoming a highlight of esports events in the country.
That will be the case at the grand finale of season three of College Rivals, an esports and gaming tournament run by New Delhi-based Ampverse DMI, a joint venture between Singapore-headquartered gaming marketing agency Ampverse and Indian non-financial banking company DMI Finance that’s “dedicated to bolstering India’s esports and gaming ecosystem”.
Held across more than 70 colleges in over 20 cities across the country, it will culminate in Mumbai on 22 March when alongside the esports action, there will be sets by experimental pop artist Chaar Diwaari, rapper-singers Arpit Bala and Som., and boy band Outstation.
“For today’s youth, music and esports aren’t separate worlds anymore, they’re part of pop culture that youngsters truly connect with,” says Chaar Diwaari. For artists like him, gaming is a passion for a significant chunk of their audience, and playing events such as College Rivals makes as much sense as performing at a music festival.
