1. Introduction
BhulokMaya (“BhulokMaya,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) operates this website and any associated features, content, and services that reference or are governed by this Privacy Policy (collectively, the “Service”). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, receive, use, store, disclose, retain, and otherwise process personal information in connection with the Service. It also describes the purposes of such processing, the circumstances in which information may be shared, the general principles governing its retention and protection, and the rights and choices available to individuals under applicable law. Depending on how you interact with the Service, information may be provided directly by you through story submissions, contact forms, emails, social-media messages, or other communications. We may also process technical information associated with website access and use, to the extent such information is collected through our website infrastructure, hosting providers, security systems, or other services we actually use. The categories of information processed depend on the features you access, the information you provide, and the technical systems and third-party services deployed in connection with the Service. We aim to process personal information for legitimate, specified purposes and in accordance with applicable legal requirements. We seek to apply appropriate safeguards to information within our control, taking into account the nature of the information, the purposes of processing, and relevant risks. However, no method of electronic transmission or storage can be guaranteed to be completely secure. This Privacy Policy should be read together with any additional privacy notices or disclosures provided in connection with particular features or processing activities. Where applicable law requires additional information, a specific consent mechanism, or a separate notice, we will address those requirements as applicable. Our handling of personal information is subject to the data protection and privacy laws applicable to the relevant processing and circumstances. These may include India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, together with the rules, notifications, and provisions in force under that legislation, as well as other applicable privacy laws where relevant. The applicability of particular legal requirements depends on the circumstances, the nature of the processing, and the scope and commencement of the relevant legislation. References to these laws do not, by themselves, constitute a representation that every requirement under every jurisdiction has been satisfied. We encourage you to read this Privacy Policy carefully before submitting personal information or using features that involve its processing. Where a feature is optional, you may choose not to use it or provide the information requested, although this may affect our ability to respond to your inquiry or provide the relevant feature. Where processing requires consent under applicable law, your use of the Service alone will not be treated as a substitute for any consent that must be obtained separately.
Important Notice: If you do not wish to provide personal information for an optional feature, you may refrain from using that feature or submitting the relevant information. Please review the applicable provisions of this Privacy Policy to understand our data-handling practices before proceeding. Nothing in this Privacy Policy is intended to exclude, limit, or waive any right, remedy, obligation, or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, limited, or waived under applicable law. This Privacy Policy is intended to provide transparency regarding our privacy practices. It does not override mandatory legal requirements or any additional rights that may apply to you under the laws governing the relevant processing.
2. Information You Provide
You may voluntarily provide personal information when using the Service or interacting with us. This includes, for example, your name (or alias), email address, story category, written content, and any information in messages or submissions you send. Please only submit information that is reasonably necessary for your story or inquiry. You are responsible for the content of your submissions. Ensure that what you share is accurate to the best of your knowledge and does not unlawfully infringe on the rights or privacy of others. Do not share any personal details of others without their explicit permission.
Please do not provide: Please do not submit sensitive personal information, financial details, account credentials, government-issued identification numbers, health information, or confidential material through our story submission or contact channels. Such information is not required for ordinary submissions and should not be included. If you inadvertently provide such information, we may take reasonable steps to restrict its use or delete it where appropriate and legally permissible. Nothing in this notice excludes or limits any obligation or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited under applicable law.
3. Information We Collect Automatically
When you visit or use our website, we may automatically collect technical data about your device and usage. This includes your IP address, browser type and settings, device identifiers, operating system, referring URLs, pages viewed, and timestamps. We also collect information about how you interact with our Service (for example, which pages you visit or which features you use). This data helps us operate and improve our website and services.
We may use cookies and similar technologies to collect this information. We use only non-intrusive, commonly used cookies and tracking (such as Google Analytics or equivalent tools) to analyze site usage, remember preferences, and optimize performance. You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings, but this may affect the functionality of the site. For more on cookies, see Section 6 below.
4. How We Use Information
We use the information you provide and information collected automatically for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to: operating and improving our website, providing and managing any content or services you request, communicating with you, personalizing and enhancing your experience, and protecting our rights and property. For example, we may use your email to respond to inquiries or send newsletters (if you sign up), and we may analyze usage data to improve site content and design. We do not sell your personal information to third parties.
When you submit a story or message, the content may be read and reviewed by our team to understand your submission and determine if it fits our creative projects. Sending a story or message does not guarantee any specific outcome (such as publication, adaptation, payment, or employment). If we decide to use any submitted story or content beyond our internal review, we will contact you with a separate agreement regarding use, rights, and compensation. Until then, submission of content does not transfer ownership, you retain all rights in your submissions.
5. Cookies and Tracking Technologies
We use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your activities on our site. Cookies are small files placed on your device that help us remember your preferences, facilitate secure logins, and gather analytical data. We may use third-party services (such as Google Analytics or equivalent) to collect and aggregate information about site usage to improve our Service. These analytics services may use cookies or mobile identifiers to collect data on user behavior.
You have the right to opt out of most tracking via standard browser tools. Please note that some cookies are necessary for the basic functioning of the website. If you disable cookies entirely, parts of the site may not operate properly. We do not use cookies for behavioral advertising on third-party sites or for creating profiles about your interests beyond our own services.
6. Third-Party Services and Sharing
We use certain third-party vendors and partners to help provide and support our Service. For example, we may use third-party providers for web hosting, analytics, email delivery, content management, and payment processing (if applicable). These providers may have access to your personal data but only to perform tasks on our behalf and under confidentiality obligations. We do not authorize them to use your data for their own purposes.
We may also share personal information when legally required, such as to comply with a court order, government regulation, or law enforcement request. We may disclose information to protect our rights, investigate fraud, or respond to security incidents. Any such sharing is done in accordance with applicable law.
For clarity: if you make any payments (for example, to purchase games or merchandise), your payment information (credit card or bank details) is handled by our secure payment processor (such as Stripe or PayPal) and is not stored by us. We will only receive confirmation of payment and basic transaction details (amount, date) needed for billing and record-keeping.
Important: We do not sell or rent your personal information to advertising networks or data brokers. We do not share your email or identity with advertisers for marketing without your explicit consent. Any third-party social media, analytics, or other services on our site are used in accordance with their own privacy policies.
7. Email Story Submissions
When you use the story submission form, your device will open a draft email in your mail app. The website itself does not transmit your story to our servers. If you choose to send the email, it will be sent via your email provider to the designated BhulokMaya address. Therefore, the privacy of that email transmission is governed by your email provider’s policies. Do not include information in the email that you consider sensitive or private beyond the story content itself.
If you have concerns about sending an email, you may instead contact us via our other channels (see Contact, below). If you do send a story by email, we will only use it for internal review unless we explicitly contact you to discuss broader use, adaptation, or any form of partnership.
8. Social Media Direct Messages
If you contact BhulokMaya through social media (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram direct messages), those messages are handled by the social platform under its own privacy policy. We do not control the platform’s data practices or retain your message beyond what the platform provides. For your privacy, you may use an alias or limited personal detail when messaging us, and keep your message focused on the story or topic. Remember that social media is not a fully private channel.
Any response, if provided, will generally be communicated through the channel used to contact us or through another channel mutually agreed upon, where appropriate. BhulokMaya reserves the discretion not to respond to every message or submission, including where a submission has been received, reviewed internally, or determined not to align with our current requirements, interests, or creative direction. Receipt or internal review of a message or submission does not create an obligation to respond, provide feedback, explain a decision, enter into further discussions, or take any action in relation to the material submitted.
For your privacy and security, please do not include passwords, financial or payment details, government-issued identification numbers, sensitive personal information, confidential material, or unnecessary personal information about yourself or others in social-media messages or other informal communications. Information transmitted through third-party platforms may be subject to those platforms’ own privacy policies, security practices, and retention procedures, which are outside our direct control. Nothing in this notice limits any rights or obligations that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted under applicable law.
9. Data Retention and Security
We will retain your personal information only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy or as required by law. For example, if you submit a story, we may keep it as long as needed to consider it for creative projects. Records of transactions or communications may be kept for a reasonable period for record-keeping and compliance. When we no longer need data, we will securely delete or anonymize it.
We employ industry-standard technical and organizational measures to protect your data from unauthorized access, disclosure, or alteration (such as encryption, access controls, and secure servers). However, no internet or electronic system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. We cannot guarantee the security of data transmitted to us or stored by third-party providers. If there is a data breach affecting your information, we will comply with any applicable breach notification requirements under the law.
10. Children’s Privacy
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children without parental consent. If you are under the age at which consent is permitted by applicable law (for example, under 18 in many jurisdictions), please obtain permission from a parent or guardian before providing any personal data to us. We urge parents and guardians to monitor their children's online activities and to help enforce these terms.
If we learn that we have collected personal information from a minor without verification of parental consent, we will take steps to delete that information as required by law. If you believe your child has provided us with personal data without your consent, please contact us immediately.
11. Your Rights and Choices
You have certain rights regarding your personal data. Where applicable, you may have the right to access, correct, update, or delete your personal information. You may also have the right to withdraw consent to processing at any time, object to or restrict certain processing, or request data portability. If you have an account or registered with us, you may have tools in your account settings to manage your data (e.g. updating your profile information). If not, you can exercise your rights by contacting us (see below).
You can choose not to provide certain information, though this may limit the services we can offer you. You can also opt out of promotional communications by following unsubscribe instructions in our emails. If you opt out, we may still send you non-promotional, transactional messages (for example, responses to your inquiries).
To exercise any of your rights (access, correction, deletion, etc.) or for any privacy-related inquiries, please email contact@bhulokmaya.com. For identity verification, we may require proof of identity before processing such requests. Please do not include sensitive personal information in your request beyond what is needed to identify your account or inquiry.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time as our services, technology, or legal requirements change. When we make material changes, we will revise the “Last updated” date at the top and may provide additional notice (such as a banner on the site or an email notification) if appropriate. We encourage you to review this page periodically. Your continued use of the Service after we post changes means you accept the updated policy.
13. Contact
If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us by email at contact@bhulokmaya.com.