NODWIN Gaming has bolstered its “lifestyle and festival” vertical by appointing Sonal Varma as Global Director of Live Initiatives. Varma, a 15-year veteran of the experiential industry, joins the Indian gaming giant following a long tenure at Comic Con India, where she most recently served as Vice President.

According to her public profile, at Comic Con India, Varma was helped driving a 15% year-on-year growth in footfall across eight cities and securing marquee alliances with global giants such as Disney, Warner Bros., Crunchyroll, and Prime Video, while Comic Con Mumbai reported record attendance for its 2025 edition. She also led strategic national projects with India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting to revive legacy comic IPs.

“This new role is a step into something bigger and broader with new IPs, new audiences, and new formats,” Varma stated via LinkedIn. “What excites me most isn’t scale for the sake of scale, it’s the chance to apply everything I’ve learnt about culture, fandom, teams, and storytelling across a much wider canvas.”

Varma’s arrival coincides with a period of rapid institutional restructuring for NODWIN Gaming as it evolves into a global diversified media entity. NODWIN’s 2025 acquisition of StarLadder has already yielded high-level results. The StarLadder Budapest Major was recently named “Best Event of the Year” at the HLTV.org Awards.

Also, in a portfolio adjustment, NODWIN recently departed from its ownership stake in the Evolution Championship Series (Evo). RTS, the esports organisation owned by Qiddiya City, purchased NODWIN’s share to take sole control of the world’s premier fighting game tournament. NODWIN had purchased Sony‘s stake in the event in August 2025, just months before reselling it.

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