Religion of Sports Acquires Jiva Maya Expanding Global Reach and Increasing Content Development Efforts with Transcendent International Stories

Jiva Maya, Led by Acclaimed Director Manish Pandey, joins Main Event Media Under ROS

LOS ANGELES, April 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Religion of Sports, the Emmy Award-winning sports media company founded by director and producer Gotham Chopra, American football legend and Hall of Famer Michael Strahan, and seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, has acquired Jiva Maya, an UK-based production company formed in 2020 by writer and director Manish Pandey (Senna, Grand Prix Driver, Lucky!). The deal marks the second company that was brought underneath the ROS umbrella, both of which have come in 2023 (Main Event Media).

With the acquisition, ROS and Jiva Maya will be able to continue to tell stories that transcend sports and have an impact on millions of audiences across the globe who have a deep love for impactful storytelling. Through a shared passion for storytelling and appreciation of the transcendent power of sports, the combined company plans to significantly expand its work in global football, cricket, and motorsport (especially, Formula 1 for which Pandey is known) and beyond.

"Jiva Maya allows us to plant a flag in Europe for ROS, engaging a new cadre of creators, producers and distribution networks," said Ameeth Sankaran, CEO of Religion of Sports. "Manish and his team have enabled us to do that in a distinct and unique way that will allow us to grow with the same DNA of ultra premium content which transcends and inspires. Gotham, and our creative team couldn't be more excited."

Established in 2020, Jiva Maya's talented group has worked to create an unrivaled library of compelling sports content, such as Lucky! - A TV series on one of the greatest sporting phenomena of the last 70 years, Formula 1, featuring interviews with and narrated by former F1 Chief Executive Officer, Bernie Ecclestone. Along with creating and directing Lucky!, Pandey is an award-winning writer for his work on other F1-related work such as Senna, based on the life of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna, Grand Prix Driver for Amazon, and Heroes for The Motorsport Network.

"We are incredibly excited to be joining forces with Ameeth, Gotham and the entire team at Religion of Sports," said Manish Pandey, founder Jiva Maya. "Together, our joint company will continue to epitomize best-in-class storytelling, helping viewers appreciate the human condition and, in the process, learn more about themselves."

Also joining Religion of Sports from the Jiva Maya team are:

• Chris Sharp, who has over 35 years of media experience producing over 100 nonfiction programs including two AVOD entertainment services in the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria and Switzerland
• William Campbell, brings 30 years of production and distribution experience across more than 100 global entertainment and sports programs
• Mark Harvey, who has over 20 years of experience in live sports production, sports documentaries and films, and was a member of the BAFTA winning Sky Sports cricket production teams in 2013 and 2015
• John Miller, who worked in programming at Sky Sports and brings more than 15 years of experience in live and sports documentary production.
• Christopher Armstrong, an award-winning editor and director has over 20 years of industry experience in sports, features and shorts with a special interest in cricket and motorsport.

With the acquisition, Jiva Maya will become ROS' European-based production arm and lead on developing global stories across football, motorsport, cricket and beyond.

About Religion of Sports

Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Religion of Sports is an award-winning media company founded by Tom Brady, Michael Strahan, and Gotham Chopra. To believe in the power of sports is to experience religion, and the company's work is defined by thoughtful, elevated stories that explore a range of themes and uncover why sports matter.

Through scripted and unscripted video, podcasts, feature films and social content Religion of Sports distills the spirituality, science and humanity that unites elite performers and people of all kinds. Since its inception, the company has built an impressive array of work in collaboration with the world's most elite athletes, distributed across big- and small-screens for digital broadcast/streaming platforms Facebook Watch, Apple TV+, ESPN, Showtime, Fox Sports, NBC Sports and many more. "Tom vs Time'' and "Greatness Code" went on to win Sports Emmy awards. In 2021, Religion of Sports experienced a banner year, having grown the company exponentially and expanding its production capabilities. In addition, three highly anticipated documentary projects were launched back-to-back in the 3rd and 4th Quarters of 2021, featuring Simone Biles ("Simone vs. Herself"), Russell Westbrook ("Passion Play") and Tom Brady ("Man In The Arena"). On the audio front, the company produced a companion podcast to run alongside the "Man In The Arena" docuseries, and debuted three original, investigative podcasts — "Lost in Sports", "Crushed", and "False Idol" — the latter two of which have been Ambies-nominated for 2022 Best Sports Podcast.

About Jiva Maya

Jiva Maya was created in 2020 to tell stories, largely in the worlds of Formula One, Cricket and Football, that transcend the norms of sports' documentaries with an emphasis on character driven, archive rich and historically resonant storytelling.

Media Contact: 
Kristen Marion
623-308-2638
[email protected]

SOURCE Religion of Sports