How Covid-19 Has Affected Southern Asia’s Entertainments
South Asia’s entertainment industry was hit hard by Covid-19. Film companies have stopped productions on all scheduled releases. Similarly, musicians had to cancel all of their live performances as concert venues have been closed indefinitely. Other popular Indian and Pakistani in-person types of entertainment have been disrupted too. Museums and theme parks have stopped accepting visitors, while sporting events have been completely cancelled.
However, it is an unwritten rule that when one entertainment industry slows down, another one experiences a surge in popularity. For example, video streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon have seen unprecedented growth during the pandemic period. Similarly, Indian and Pakistani musicians have all migrated online and are now performing from home and uploading content on YouTube or other video platforms.
IGaming Surge
The biggest increase in popularity during this pandemic however, has been reserved for the iGaming sector. Online casinos targeting Southern Asia have seen a massive increase in traffic since the turn of the year and the largest numbers of their customers seem to be coming from India and Pakistan. This comes as a direct result of most Pakistanis staying at home and having more free time than usual.
And while accessing online casinos is easy for people who have gambling experience, there are many Pakistanis who are not sure which iGaming products are legal in their country. Fortunately for them, there are reputable sites that provide all the essential information regarding Pakistani laws related to online casinos.
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Something similar is happening in India too. There are real iGaming and gambling boom in the country right now and online casinos are going into overdrive to meet their clients’ needs. As with Pakistan, it is easy for veteran Indian gamblers to choose the right online casino establishment. However, new players often find it difficult to choose a reliable casino operator. If you are one of them, fret not. Here you can find a list of India‘s best online casinos and start your gambling adventure right away.
Sport Is On Hold
Another reason why so many Indians are turning to iGaming is that they cannot bet on sports any more. Indian betting aficionados are among the most avid sports followers and have been particularly affected by sports being completely cancelled.
There is no more horse racing, field hockey, and badminton for Indians to enjoy in. The Indian Premier League and the Indian Super League have also been put on hold and this has left sports-loving Indians without an alternative.
ESports Take Over
Well, almost. After all major sports events have been cancelled there was no other option for sports enthusiasts, but to turn to the eSports scene. It speaks volumes that even popular sportsmen, such as NBA basketball players, swapped the real ball for playing competitive basketball on their game consoles. And professional athletes weren’t the only ones who started playing online. As soon as the pandemic struck, the eSports scene realized that the demand for the content they were offering was going to rapidly increase and they started producing more.
Normal eSports events immediately transformed into online eSports tournaments. What is more, competitive games such as League of Legends, CS:GO, Dota 2 and World of Warcraft were now readily available and were taking place almost every day.
This meant that tournament organizers, streaming services, and eSports teams received cash windfall beyond their wildest dreams. This was in addition to the increase in popularity which wouldn’t have been gained under normal circumstances.
Delayed Film Releases
Bollywood wasn’t ready for the Covid-19 pandemic, but then again neither was Hollywood. Most of the film projects which were in production when the pandemic struck have been put on hold indefinitely. On the other hand, some of those who were near completion, had more options and were made available to viewers via online streaming services.
One such example was Michael Jordan’s ESPN documentary which was moved up from June to April. This came after NBA fans worldwide started a petition for ESPN to air the documentary during the pandemic and not in the summer as was originally planned.
And while major movie productions and projects are getting delayed, short films are going viral. It’s much easier to edit and produce a short film from the comfort of your own home and many small, independent filmmakers are taking full advantage of this fact.
