Battlegrounds Mobile India — universally known as BGMI — is the most significant and widely played mobile battle royale game in India, developed and published by South Korean gaming giant Krafton as an India-specific version of PUBG Mobile. Released in July 2021 for Android and August 2021 for iOS, BGMI became a cultural phenomenon among India’s young gaming community almost immediately — before being banned by the Indian government in July 2022 over data security concerns. Following Krafton’s successful demonstration of compliance with Indian data localisation requirements, the ban was lifted in May 2023 and the game relaunched to an even more enthusiastic reception. BGMI in 2026 stands as the centrepiece of India’s mobile esports ecosystem, with a community of 240 million registered members and a flagship esports tournament BGIS 2026 featuring a prize pool of ₹2 crore. The brand’s ambassador strategy has been central to building this community — using Bollywood and cricket celebrities to bridge the gap between mainstream Indian popular culture and the gaming community that mainstream media had historically underserved.
BGMI Brand Ambassador History — Complete Timeline
| Ambassador | Domain | Period | Campaign / Feature |
| Tiger Shroff | Bollywood — Action Star | October 2025 — present | BGMI 4.0 Update — White tiger-themed clothing, voice pack |
| Deepika Padukone | Bollywood — Global Icon | 2024 — one year | Playable character — two distinct skins |
| Ranveer Singh | Bollywood — Actor | 2023 relaunch | Play Pure campaign — voice pack |
| Hardik Pandya | Cricket | Prior to Ranveer | Cricket community engagement |
| Team Mumbai Indians | IPL Cricket Franchise | Ongoing association | Cricket-gaming crossover |
| Alan Walker | International Music | 2024 | Be A Hero campaign — lobby music |
Tiger Shroff — BGMI’s Current Brand Ambassador
Krafton India announced Tiger Shroff as BGMI’s official brand ambassador in October 2025 — launching the partnership with the BGMI 4.0 Update and creating what Krafton described as one of the game’s most extensive celebrity collaborations to date. The Tiger Shroff partnership introduced a suite of exclusive in-game content themed around the actor’s signature identity — the white tiger motif from his film work, his fitness-forward aesthetic, and his electrifying action performance persona.
The BGMI 4.0 Tiger Shroff content package is remarkably comprehensive — including the Tiger Set, a sleek luminous army-style costume; the CyberFang costume, a futuristic white tiger-themed outfit; an Exclusive Tiger Shroff Voice Pack featuring voice lines recorded personally by the actor; the Jungle Core Backpack; Sky Striker Parachute; Chrome Claw P90 weapon skin; and the Claw Burst Grenade — all designed in premium gold, white, and grey colour schemes that mirror Tiger Shroff’s visual identity. This depth of in-game integration transforms the ambassador relationship from external celebrity endorsement into embedded game content — players are not merely seeing Tiger Shroff in advertisements but actively playing with and as characters and equipment that carry his identity into the battlefield.
Tiger Shroff’s ambassador rationale is genuinely aligned with BGMI’s target audience and game identity. His action film persona — defined by extraordinary physical capabilities, martial arts precision, high-energy performances, and a youth-oriented appeal — resonates directly with the 16-25 year old male gaming demographic that forms BGMI’s core player community. His statement upon appointment captured the alignment authentically — noting that gaming is about action, adrenaline, and energy, which is exactly how he approaches his films and performances. With 240 million BGMI members, Krafton’s vision of bringing together the intensity of cinema and the thrill of gaming through Tiger Shroff’s in-game persona creates a cultural bridge that both entertainment industries benefit from.
Seddharth Merrotra, Head of Business Development and Partnerships at Krafton India, articulated BGMI’s broader ambassador philosophy in describing the Tiger Shroff collaboration — stating that BGMI’s vision has always been to create moments that are not just played but remembered, and that this partnership brings together the intensity of cinema and the thrill of gaming in a way that speaks directly to India’s youth.
The Ambassador Evolution — From Ranveer to Deepika to Tiger
BGMI’s ambassador history reveals a deliberate strategy of escalating cultural ambition across each successive appointment — each choice building on the previous one to deepen the game’s integration with Indian popular culture.
Ranveer Singh’s 2023 relaunch appointment was the foundation — establishing that BGMI would use mainstream Bollywood celebrity rather than gaming influencers alone to communicate its return and cultural positioning. The Play Pure campaign — celebrating authentic individual playstyle within the game — used Ranveer’s known unconventional personal style as the cultural mirror for gaming authenticity. His voice pack, purchasable by players, extended the commercial value of the partnership beyond campaign awareness into ongoing in-game monetisation.
Deepika Padukone’s 2024 appointment as a global cinema icon represented a deliberate choice to attract female gamers and normalise gaming as an activity for India’s broader demographic rather than exclusively its young male core audience. Deepika’s playable character with two distinct skins — and her global fan following spanning audiences who might not normally engage with gaming content — introduced BGMI to communities outside its established player base, potentially driving new registrations from her massive female fan following.
Tiger Shroff’s 2025-2026 appointment consolidates and deepens the action cinema connection that BGMI’s identity as a battle royale game most naturally aligns with — and the unprecedented depth of in-game content created for the partnership signals Krafton’s confidence that cinema-gaming integration is BGMI’s most sustainable cultural positioning.
BGMI’s Ambassador Strategy — Key Principles
| Principle | Execution | Outcome |
| Cinema-gaming cultural bridge | Bollywood stars as primary ambassadors | Mainstream legitimacy for gaming culture |
| In-game integration beyond advertising | Playable characters, voice packs, exclusive skins | Revenue generation from ambassador partnerships |
| Progressive representation | Ranveer (bold individuality), Deepika (female inclusion), Tiger (action identity) | Evolving audience demographic expansion |
| Cricket crossover | Hardik Pandya, Mumbai Indians | Engaging India’s dominant sport audience |
| International music collaboration | Alan Walker Be A Hero campaign | Global music culture integration |
| Community of 240 million | All ambassador content drives platform stickiness | India’s largest mobile gaming community |
BGMI’s brand ambassador programme in 2026 stands as one of India’s most strategically sophisticated celebrity gaming partnership models — demonstrating that the most effective way to build India’s gaming culture is not through gaming-insider communication alone but through the bold embrace of every element of India’s broader entertainment culture, from action cinema to international music, as part of the gaming experience itself.