Real-money gaming is a rapidly rising industry in India. There’s no denying the sheer thrill of wagering money and winning more than what you bet. Gambling has been a favorite pastime for us Indians, even though it’s considered taboo. From mythology (Mahabharata) to real life (Diwali card games), betting and gambling are pretty much woven into the fabric of our lives.
Nowadays, online casinos and sports betting are not the only ways to wager real money. There are many different avenues where you can bet money, strictly for entertainment and responsibly of course. Apart from casino and sports betting, there’s also fantasy gaming, horse race betting, Rummy, Poker, and e-gaming.
The main question revolving in the minds of people who are looking to start real money gaming is this – out of so many things, what is legal and what is not?
To put it in simple terms, games of skill are legal and allowed as per Indian law while games of chance are not legal. Now games of skill are any and all games in which you can somewhat control the result by practising and increasing your skill level. Like e-gaming (video games) you can become better at, with enough practise. Same is the case with Rummy and Poker.
Horse race betting and fantasy gaming is also allowed legally since both of them require players to have extensive knowledge of the game and people who are betting need to make informed decisions in order to wager money. That means they have some sort of control over the results of the wager.
However, online casino games such as roulette and slots, and betting on sporting events, are all considered games of chance because you cannot control the outcome. Betting money on games of chance is called gambling. As per the law, gambling is illegal in India.
But international companies use a legal loophole to operate legitimately in India. The loophole is that the law doesn’t say that “online gambling” is not allowed. So, while playing casino games on an Indian site is illegal, playing those same games on a casino site owned by an offshore company is totally legal. Just not in a few states (like Tamil Nadu) that have specifically banned online gambling.
If you’re confused about which casino sites you can safely play on, you can check out review sites like MyOnlineCasinos.com that recommend online casinos that operate legitimately in India.
If you’re looking to start playing games of skill, you can begin by increasing your technical know-how about games such as rummy and poker, along with fantasy gaming and real money video games. The important thing to remember is to always play real money games responsibly and recreationally. One should not depend on these to generate income.