Gaming portals to the rescue of pandemic-hit rummy and bridge players

The big rollers who put down serious money have reduced their action. Free online games - like Ludo - have gained more from the lockdown.

Like any good marketer, Bhavin Pandya profiles his target audiences: “Some play it for the social aspect. Others to get an intellectual thrill from solving puzzles, and winning. And some because they think they can make large sums (of money) quickly.”

“It” is online rummy, the card game where players build running sequences (melds) and trios. Pandya is the CEO of Games 24x7 that runs the platform RummyCircle. He says while the number of casual players coming for free social games has increased in a big way during the pandemic, revenues have flattened or declined, with players responding to insecurity