Trigger warning: the following article contains references to suicide; please avoid reading if you are disturbed by the subject.
Tears brim in Edire Laxmi’s bloodshot eyes as she stands outside the gate of the house where her son took his last breath. “I cannot open the door and see inside. It is too traumatic,” murmurs the frail 39-year-old from Pochamma Basti, Maheswaram, about an hour’s drive from Hyderabad. Unable to return home, she now stays at her mother’s house in a maze of narrow lanes lined with small dwellings in the prosperous village.
Inside a cluttered room filled with rice sacks, utensils and a faded calendar, Laxmi squats beside her mother, staring blankly at her phone. Memories flood in — of her quiet, brooding son, Sai Kiran, juggling three mobile phones, worrying constantly about money, and rarely meeting friends.
December 19 had started like any other day. That morning, her 21-year-old son skipped college and stayed home. “I made him breakfast and left for the farm around 9 a.m.,” she says. Then came the call. Her son had set himself on fire.
When she reached home, she found thick grey smoke pouring from the house, the acrid stench of burning flesh and petrol filling the air. Neighbours threw water, but inside, Sai Kiran sat still — legs stretched out, hands slightly raised, body burnt beyond recognition. Against the soot-stained wall, he remained unmoving.
Laxmi’s mother trembles as she recalls his final words: “I have a lot of debt. I can’t take it anymore,” he had whispered through scorched lips.
The day before, he was seen with a friend. He later stepped out to buy petrol for his motorcycle, but instead he doused himself in it and set himself ablaze.
Financial struggles weighed heavily on him. His father, a groundskeeper in Shankarpally, couldn’t afford medical college, so he switched from engineering to a commerce degree in Hyderabad’s Narayanguda. But money woes followed him.
He persuaded his family to buy him a ₹2-lakh motorcycle, promising to handle the payments. What they didn’t know was that he had taken loans against it, leading to relentless calls from lenders. “I assumed it was just ₹16,000 in monthly installments,” Laxmi says, adding, “But later, I found out he had taken a ₹1-lakh loan on it. He borrowed another ₹40,000 from a friend. He never told me the full story.”
The debts kept piling up. Sai Kiran had borrowed ₹50,000, ₹20,000, ₹30,000 and ₹15,000 from different sources to buy an iPhone and other devices. When the pressure mounted, he admitted he couldn’t go on. Laxmi borrowed ₹2 lakh from a village elder to clear his debts, thinking it would end there. “I told him to stop taking loans, to focus on studies, that we would get him married at the right time. But he wanted to earn. Money came and went. What was the point?”
The last time his father saw him, he gave him ₹200. It was their final conversation. Moments before his death, Sai Kiran told his grandmother he was drowning in debt.
Police linked his suicide to online betting, but Laxmi isn’t convinced. “At the morgue, police said his friends mentioned gaming and betting. That’s what went into the report, but no one ever told me. If he had, I would have done anything to save him.”
Sai Kiran wasn’t alone. Since 2020, Telangana has recorded 42 gambling-related deaths, eight in 2025 alone. Illegal betting spikes during IPL season, indicating a surge in market activity.
Just days before Sai Kiran’s death, Chenamoni Shivalingam, 28, of Thulekalan village in Telangana’s Ranga Reddy district met a similar fate. On December 15 last year, he stepped out of home, doused himself in diesel, and set himself ablaze. His family managed to put out the flames and rushed him to Osmania General Hospital, but he succumbed after three days. His brother later revealed Shivalingam had been trapped in online betting, buried under debt he couldn’t escape.
Like Sai Kiran, Shivalingam showed no signs of struggle until it was too late. Lured by the promise of quick money, both fell into a system designed to keep players chasing losses. What seems like chance is, in reality, a rigged game where the house always wins. Illegal betting platforms use sophisticated algorithms to create an illusion of near-wins, keeping players hooked while pushing them deeper into debt.
With instant loans just a click away, many don’t realise the trap until they are drowning in losses.
For families like Laxmi’s and Ramalingam’s, the realisation came too late. Their sons, once full of promise, are now just statistics in a growing crisis. As illegal betting thrives, fuelled by aggressive ads and an unchecked digital ecosystem, one question lingers: How many more lives will it claim before action is taken?
Hooked to the high
Gambling addiction among Telangana’s youth is rising, driven by easy access to online platforms. Once confined to matka dens, betting now requires nothing more than a smartphone, making it dangerously convenient.
Diana Monteiro, a Hyderabad-based counseling psychologist who has seen a surge in young clients struggling with gambling-related debt, says: “More people are coming in with major financial stress, and it’s only going to grow. The lure of fast money makes gambling seem like an easy solution.”
She links the problem to a digital upbringing that fosters instant gratification. “From birth, they have been exposed to quick rewards — games, social media, entertainment. Gambling operates on the same principle: thrill, anticipation, and the rush of winning. Their brains are wired to seek these highs, making addiction almost inevitable.”
Academic, professional and social pressures add to the problem. Many struggle to keep up — chasing the latest gadgets, social status or even family expectations to earn early. Purnima Nagaraja, a psychiatrist in Hyderabad, says, “This pushes them toward quick money-making methods, and gambling becomes an easy escape.”
Dr. Monteiro warns of another alarming trend: “Young people are bombarded with offers of instant loans — no paperwork, no questions asked. This ease of access to both gambling and quick money is a dangerous mix.”
The warning signs are often clear. Addicts may withdraw socially, take loans, steal money or sell valuables. “If someone constantly talks about quick money, borrows frequently or has extreme mood swings, they might be struggling. Lying to family, risking jobs or relationships, and chasing losses — these are all red flags,” she says.
Financial stress from gambling can spiral into severe mental health issues, including depression, anxiety and suicidal tendencies. Many fall into massive debt, even selling family valuables. “I have seen cases where people sold their sister’s wedding jewellery. Some turn to nerve-calming drugs, making recovery even harder,” points out Dr.Nagaraja.
Certain personality traits such as impulsivity, thrill-seeking and low self-esteem heighten vulnerability. Those with anxiety, depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or a history of substance abuse are at greater risk. “It is not just about willpower; some people are wired to be more susceptible,” Dr.Monteiro explains.
Regulating online betting remains tough. “I don’t think it can truly be controlled. Like porn sites, people will always find a way around restrictions. We have strong cyber laws, but enforcement is a challenge,” she says even as she stresses the need for early intervention. “Certain habits must be monitored from childhood. Parents can use site-blocking tools, but more importantly, children must be taught the value of money and the dangers of easy wealth.”
An illegal betting boom
India’s online skill-gaming sector is worth $3 billion, but the illegal offshore betting market dwarfs it at $20-30 billion annually with some estimates even putting it at $100 billion.
UNICEF estimates that children in India collectively spend over $1,000 daily on online gambling, while a study in south India found 19.5% of college students gamble, with 7.4% showing signs of addiction.
Weak enforcement has made India a hotspot for offshore betting, costing the economy billions. These platforms attract users with ‘No GST’ claims and higher payouts, exploiting the 28% tax on domestic gaming firms while evading regulations like KYC and responsible gaming.
Technology lawyer Dhruv Garg says the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology amended intermediary rules in 2023 to regulate skill gaming, but poor enforcement has blurred the lines between legal and illegal platforms. “Without clear regulations, users can’t tell the difference between legitimate skill-gaming apps and offshore betting sites,” he says.
A major enabler of illegal betting is its offshore setup. “These operators run from jurisdictions like Curaçao, Malta, Cyprus, China and Dubai, making them nearly impossible to track — just like cybercriminals,” Garg explains.
The October 2023 GST mandate requiring offshore betting platforms to register with Indian tax authorities has been ignored. By December 2024, none had complied, prompting probe into 658 non-complaint entities for tax evasion.
Illegal operators launder money through ‘mules’ with RBI data showing ₹2,500 crore (~$300 million) in illicit transactions processed monthly; only 10% is recovered. These networks exploit India’s digital payment systems, using UPI, international e-wallets and cryptocurrencies to obscure fund flows.
Deceptive ads, costly bets
Aggressive digital marketing fuels illegal betting. In 2024, Advertising Standards Council of India flagged 890 illegal betting ads, with 831 Instagram posts redirecting users to offshore sites disguised as sports or news pages.
Betting platforms spend up to 50% of their revenue on influencer partnerships and digital ads, often using celebrities for credibility. A Think Change Forum report found celebrities like Ranbir Kapoor, Kiara Advani and Mithali Raj promoting betting platforms disguised as sports blogs.
These ads flood YouTube and social media, leading users to APK downloads and mirror sites via Telegram, WhatsApp and Discord, making regulation difficult.
As of March 25 this year, Telangana police have filed cases against 39 celebrities and influencers, including actors Rana Daggubati, Prakash Raj, Vijay Deverakonda and Prabhas, for endorsing an online betting app.
Betting is no longer about skill — it is a rigged system where the house always wins, says advocate Rama Ram Imeneni, who filed a complaint with I4C against celebrities promoting betting apps. “They create an illusion of near-wins to keep people hooked, but in the end, you are only going to lose money.”
The Telangana Gaming (Amendment) Act, 2017, was aimed at curbing betting, but companies found a way to exploit loopholes, he says.
“They shake hands with small clubs under bigger associations, just like cricket has clubs under the Hyderabad Cricket Association, kabaddi has its own network with Delhi Kabaddi Association (Dabang). One such club got into an agreement, and suddenly, you have these apps being promoted on OTT platforms like AHA, with celebrities like actor Prabhas and badminton star Pullela Gopichand endorsing them. They can’t even be downloaded from Play Store, yet actors are pushing people to install them via Chrome,” adds the advocate.
Digital platforms policies
A March 2025 Digital India Foundation report found over 1,000 gambling-related ads on Meta’s platforms, violating India’s IT Rules, 2021. The decentralised nature of digital advertising makes tracking and removal difficult.
User-generated content makes enforcement even harder, as influencers and affiliates disguise gambling promotions as personal content to evade detection. While the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Consumer Protection Authority have issued multiple advisories, they remain ineffective. Unlike television and print media, where regulations are stricter, digital enforcement is weak.
Telangana Cyber Security Bureau director Shikha Goel says blocking betting platforms is a temporary fix — new ones keep emerging. The issue extends beyond gambling to fraudulent loan apps, many operating discreetly via closed groups.
“Since January, Telangana has issued notices to 131 Indian-registered betting platforms, but unregulated operators continue to exploit loopholes. Even if authorities shut down a gambling site, new URLs emerge within seconds through domain farming,” says Garg.
He argues Telangana’s blanket ban on even skill gaming has backfired, allowing illegal gambling platforms to thrive in the absence of regulated Indian companies.
Experts urge stricter digital ad oversight, financial regulation and accountability for influencers. “India needs clear laws distinguishing legal skill gaming from illegal gambling,” Garg insists.
Officer Goel agrees: “Without coordinated national and global enforcement, these platforms will continue to evade regulation.”
For families like Laxmi’s, the damage is already done. “I only wish I knew sooner. I would have done anything to save my son,” she says.
(Roshni suicide prevention helpline: 8142020033/44 and 040-66202000/ 2001)
Published – March 28, 2025 06:52 am IST
