Till two decades back, India’s competitive gaming industry had few sponsors, no established leagues and limited opportunities for professional players. Tournaments were sporadic, and participants often had to finance their own travel and accommodation. For many aspiring gamers, a lack of money made sustaining a career difficult.
Santanu Basu experienced these challenges firsthand when he travelled to Mumbai that year to compete in the World Cyber Games India qualifiers. With barely enough money to cover his journey, he travelled part of the way in a train’s toilet compartment and slept on the streets because he could not afford a hotel room.
Despite the hardships, Basu finished third in the competition. The result earned him a job and sponsorship with a gaming company, a rare achievement for an Indian gamer at the time.
That breakthrough marked the beginning of a competitive gaming career spanning nearly two decades.
Over the following decade, Basu established himself as one of India’s long-serving competitive football gamers. He represented the country at international FIFA tournaments, securing third-place finishes in China, France and Malaysia.
He subsequently joined US-based organisation Tempo Storm as its only Indian player, remaining with the organisation for seven years. AMD named him its first gaming brand ambassador in India, while Sony PlayStation produced a documentary about his life.
Alongside his competitive career, Basu began creating opportunities for other gamers. He organised or participated in more than 500 college gaming events across India, from Mizoram to Chennai.
In 2013, he launched the Asian Football Gaming Championship (AFGC), which has since enabled more than 27 Indian players to compete internationally.
He founded LetsGameNow (LGN) in 2018. Initially focused on football gaming events, the company gradually expanded into other gaming titles and began developing its own mini-games.
From player to entrepreneur
Basu’s transition from competitor to organiser brought a fundamental change in his responsibilities. Rather than concentrating solely on his own performance, he began building teams, organising tournaments and establishing partnerships.
His experience as a professional gamer shaped his approach to developing the industry. He identified access to competition, greater exposure, regular tournaments and credible pathways to international events as key requirements for aspiring players.
These priorities have informed his efforts to build a more structured competitive gaming ecosystem in India.
Basu’s latest venture is the Indian Super Gaming League (ISGL), launched in 2026 as a franchise-based national esports competition.
The league features eight teams competing across five titles: FC 26, Cricket 26, Call of Duty: Mobile, chess and table tennis.
Its participating franchises include Indian Super League football clubs Mumbai City FC, Kerala Blasters FC, Chennaiyin FC and FC Goa, alongside Pro Kabaddi League team Puneri Paltan.
The league also conducts city-level qualifiers to identify emerging players, creating an entry point for talent beyond established competitive gaming circles. It has additionally attracted investment from Anand Mahindra’s family office.
According to a report by Times of India, Santanu Basu said: The league “gives them consistency, and a real scope for long-term career development. Players get to build teams and work as teams. Regular competitive matches mean regular practice, so skills keep improving. Most of all, it creates a structured ecosystem. Players can develop professional skills and build a reputation, which is what a sustainable career in competitive gaming needs.”
The league has already produced an early success story. Saransh, who represented Mumbai City FC during ISGL’s inaugural season, subsequently went on to represent India at the Esports World Cup in Paris.
For Basu, the development reflects the broader objective behind his work: creating opportunities for Indian gamers to progress from domestic competition to the international stage.
Basu also said: “Saransh’s journey shows the opportunity the league creates for Indian talent: visibility, and access to bigger competitive platforms. Every player will have a different journey. But the league aims to create international opportunities for all its players.”
“ISGL intends to build an ecosystem that identifies talent, nurtures it and gives it exposure to compete at the highest level. LetsGameNow has also built a game, Bharat Run,” he added.
