Indian mobile esports YouTuber Payal Gaming has issued a statement denying that she appears in a viral video circulating on the internet.
Payal Gaming, real-name Payal Dhare, is an Indian esports player who has built an online following by posting gameplay content for popular games like BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India), PUBG, GTA V, and more. Her YouTube account has over 4.5 million subscribers, and she is associated with S8UL Esports, one of India’s leading gaming organisations.
An adult video has been circulating on the internet this week, which appears to feature the 21-year-old gamer, but she has denied the allegations.
She posted a statement on her social media accounts, including X, stating, “I want to state this clearly and without ambiguity: the individual depicted in that video is not me, and it has no connection to my life, my choices, or my identity.”
She went on to criticize how easily fake videos can spread across social media and the internet and called the content “deeply hurtful and dehumanizing.”
Video Attempts To Trap Curious Users
With Dhare denying that the video is genuine, users have speculated that the video was AI-generated.
Cyber law expert Pavan Duggal has warned users to be cautious when seeking out the video, as links to it are frequently embedded with malicious content.
Duggal stated, “These videos are not about curiosity; they are about trapping users into malware, phishing links, or financial fraud.”
Indian Esports Gaining Popularity With Government Approval
While it is unwanted publicity for Payal Gaming, the attention the viral video has gathered indicates the growth of esports in India.
The content creator joined S8UL Esports in 2021 and has built her huge following over the past few years. She went on to win “Streamer of the Year” at the Mobies 2024, an international gaming content awards show.
The Indian government has vowed to further promote esports and passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act earlier this year.
Prime Minister Modi said the country can now “ dominate the global online gaming market.” At the same time, the legislation strictly prohibits online real-money gaming, which has caused extensive damage to India’s DFS operators and other gaming companies.
India Attracts Gaming Investment
Under the bill’s terms, the Indian government says esports will be promoted through the following means:
- Formation of guidelines and standards for the organisation and conduct of e-sports events
- Establishment of training academies, research centres and other institutions dedicated to the advancement of e-sports
- Introduction of incentive schemes, awareness campaigns and public outreach programmes to encourage innovation and establishment of new enterprises to create e-sport technology platforms
- Coordination with State Governments and recognised sporting federations for integration of e-sports within broader sporting policy initiatives;
- Such other measures which are necessary to promote the sector, as may be prescribed.
As a result of the policy, gaming companies have been attracted to the Indian market. Krafton, the developer behind BGMI, has vowed to invest $50 million per year over the next three or four years.
Payal Gaming has popularized BGMI through her YouTube content, and the game now has 200 million users in India, generating annual global sales of around $7 billion.
While the viral video was unwanted publicity, it may bring more viewers to her YouTube channel and more players to BGMI.