Hike Pvt. Ltd. has appointed Manav Arya as head of its online gaming platform Rush, as the Kavin Bharti Mittal-led company bolsters teams across its social apps in the aftermath of Hike Messenger’s shutdown earlier this year.

Arya, who was previously director of product management at Hike, brings with him 13 years of experience in developing mobile games. He had earlier worked with brands such as Junglee Games, Paytm First Games, Octro, and The Walt Disney Co. He will be reporting directly to Mittal.

“At Rush, we’re pushing the boundaries of what skill-based RMG (real money gaming) could mean for users and the ecosystem. Hike is here to change the game, quite literally, and I’m glad to be part of it,” Arya stated in a statement.

With Rush, Hike is curating both a AAA quality gaming platform as well as a community of players. Every player on Rush has a HikeMoji-led identity that not just ensures safety and privacy, but also adds to the fun of gameplay through innovative self-expression.