Charting WWE's India Growth Story

Even in 2022, the WWE phenomenon continues to take giant strides in the world of entertainment as its TV-PG programming can be seen in more than 900 million homes worldwide, including India. An important part of the global entertainment behemoth’s India growth story since 2017 has been Chandni Davda, who leads the digital Strategy for South Asia for WWE. In her role, she has helped WWE get a firm grip on the pulse of the Indian audience.

Davda has been able to guide WWE on what resonates with each demographic in the areas of branded storytelling, social media marketing and web and video content across India. She has been WWE’s quintessential trusted source of knowledge, helping bridge the cultural gap and localise the product in the country.

Growing The India Proposition

WWE has evolved in its India journey. But it has been a particular challenge for the company to create strategic shifts in perception to enable the Indian audience to see the brand as their own. While WWE exudes remarkable energy, it wanted to build on that momentum to spread the love for the brand across the region and create an everlasting ripple effect. This is where Davda’s presence has helped the entertainment juggernaut.

She played a key role in marrying the distinct Indian element and ethos with the international WWE branding through shows like WWE Now India, which has appealed to the Indian diaspora. Under her leadership, the company was able to localise its wrestling content by creating campaigns in regional languages such as Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi and Bengali that truly spoke to their core audience in every corner of India.

The Next Level

“I want to bring our fans in India closer together, to create a strong sense of camaraderie with the brand, our larger-than-life superstars and with one another, to create a robust ecosystem that revolves around WWE,” says Chandni Davda.

Under her leadership, WWE Now India has published 535 episodes across digital platforms, generating over 100 million views and five million engagements. Moreover, WWE India’s Instagram account observed a 40 per cent growth in followers in the past nine months.

Looking ahead, Davda wants to see more technology being deployed in the future to leverage WWE’s brand reach and enhance the sensory experience for fans. “That’s where cutting-edge technology like blockchain or Web3 can elevate the brand to the next level of understanding, acceptance, and adoption,” she says.