Onam ad spends rise 15–20% on the back of buoyant consumer demand

Every August, Kerala blooms in rhythm with Onam. Courtyards glow with pookalams, kitchens bustle with the sadhya, and stories of King Mahabali echo through generations. More than a festival, Onam gathers homes and hearts under one season of celebration.

With it comes a natural lift in consumer sentiment, drawing brands to the southern belt with sharpened focus. And this year, the shift is not just in scale but in how stories are told and where budgets flow.

Onam is the season that sets the pace for India’s festive economy. “We are looking at a 15-20% year-on-year increase in Onam ad spends, driven by strong retail, jewellery, and durable goods demand,” said Amita Srivastava, Vice President – West, Carat India. “What is significant is that this momentum will not stop at Onam – it is the opening act of India’s festive season. Post-Onam, brands are expected to sustain 10-12% higher spends into Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri, and Diwali.”

This surge in spending has also reshaped how brands split their money across TV, print, and digital.

Balancing mass and precision

Kerala’s unique media market still leans on its traditional pillars, yet 2025 marks the year digital takes the biggest bite of festive budgets.

“Kerala is one of the rare markets where the media mix still honours tradition while embracing digital-first strategies,” said Srivastava. “Newspapers like Malayala Manorama and Mathrubhumi remain incredibly influential.”

But this year, the real story is digital. “We’re seeing it command 40-45% of festive budgets,” she added. “Regional OTT, YouTube, and influencer ecosystems are becoming campaign anchors – complementing Malayalam GECs and news channels that still draw 30-35% of spends.”

The smartest brands, she explained, will not pit mediums against one another but use them in phases: “Teasing on digital, peaking on TV and print during Thiruvonam, and sustaining digitally through the post-festival buying period.”

For the first time, digital will be the single largest slice of Onam advertising budgets in Kerala.

-Amita Srivastava

She explained that the shift was not about replacing TV or print, but about the ability to personalise. Digital, she noted, enables brands to speak in dialect, target by location, and reach both in-state and Gulf-based Malayali audiences with equal precision. The rise of connected TV households, she added, has been a game-changer, allowing advertisers to pair rich cultural content with shoppable ads in a way that no other medium can match.

Her view aligns with data. Ratnakar Bharti, Vice President – Media, Mudramax, echoed the shift. “This Onam, in Kerala and across South India, the media mix leans heavily into digital-first thinking with a strong regional core. We’re seeing around 40-45% of budgets going to regional OTTs,” he said.

Even newer formats are accelerating. “YouTube Shorts and Reels are seeing a spike,” Bharti noted. “TV remains rock solid, particularly Malayalam and Tamil GECs, which hold about 30-35% for big-reach campaigns. Local dailies still command a loyal audience, especially in smaller towns, keeping print around 10-15%. Meanwhile, OOH is back in focus, particularly in Kochi, Chennai, and Hyderabad where high-traffic locations are gold. It’s a hybrid mix of mass reach meets precise targeting.”

He highlighted that television still refuses to be dethroned and continues to hold the single-largest share during Onam, especially across South India.

According to TAM AdEx H1 2025, TV grabs 35-38% of festive ad spends, driven by GRP-heavy GEC content and its cultural resonance. 

Bharti said, “Digital is catching up fast, not just with younger audiences but also NRI and urban Malayali segments who live on short-form content and OTT. In fast-moving categories like D2C, BFSI, and personal care, digital might even surpass TV in a year or two. It’s no longer ‘TV vs. digital’, rather it’s ‘TV and digital’ with smarter sequencing.”

Yet even as digital takes center stage, Kerala’s deep-rooted affinity for regional voices and familiar formats ensures that tradition remains a powerful anchor in the media mix.

The regional lens

Despite digital’s dominance, regional agencies and publishers stress that traditional channels still deliver unmatched recall.

“In Onam, all advertisers get at least 40% ROI of the year,” said Raju Menon, Managing Director, Maitri Advertising. “We do not spread the budget thin across all media. According to the budget, we do a planning of Print or TV exclusive or a combination of Print, TV and Outdoor. Only frequency will make the brand remembered in the advertising clutter.”

OTT players are also finding ways to integrate themselves into family viewing. Rakesh CK, Head, Sun NXT, observed, “Onam is still very much about families coming together, only now, digital has added new dimensions to the experience. The explosion seen in Connected TVs has brought back living-room viewing in high quality. This has given OTT watching an added dimension with audiences moving seamlessly between personal screens and family watching.”

From Kochi billboards to Gulf households tuning into Malayalam content online, Onam is as much about locality as it is about globality.

Consumer sentiment returns to celebration

If media choices are evolving, consumer behaviour is equally dynamic. The easing of inflation and strong NRI remittances have made Onam 2025 one of the most buoyant festive seasons in recent memory.

“With inflation easing, and a strong sense of return-to-celebration, data from both CMIE and LocalCircles indicate that over 72% of urban South Indian households plan to spend as much or more than last year,” said Bharti. “This opens up big opportunities for brands in categories like jewellery, fashion, durables, and FMCG. The key is emotionally relevant storytelling, think prosperity, nostalgia, and celebration, rather than hard-sell tactics.”

Brands echo the optimism. Amy Thomas, GM, Marketing, Orkla India, explained, “We’re seeing very buoyant consumer sentiment as Onam approaches. For households across Southern India, Onam 2025 is not just a cultural high point but also a moment of celebration and togetherness. Reflecting this positivity, we have stepped up our marketing investments to engage consumers more meaningfully during the season.”

The sentiment has translated into campaigns that blend cultural nostalgia with new-age storytelling.

Beyond stock imagery

Campaigns this year are pushing past cliché visuals of pookalam and sadhya. The focus is on depth of connection.

“Onam campaigns will always celebrate the familiar, family reunions, Mahabali’s visit, pookalam designs, the sadhya feast, and Onakkodi shopping,” said Srivastava. “But to truly stand out, brands need to move beyond stock imagery and predictable narratives. Hyper-local scripting in different Malayalam dialects, authentic casting, and media activations that bridge offline and online are key.”

For Casio India, storytelling has become the centrepiece. “Our Onam campaign is built on emotional storytelling, celebrating both tradition and the deeper spirit of togetherness,” said Shilpi Negi, Brand Manager, Casio India. 

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Casio’s brand film tells the story of a mother welcoming her daughter in law into the family during her first Onam.

“The centerpiece is a heartwarming film crafted specifically for digital and retail outlets. Rooted in cultural nuances, the film is designed for Malayalam-speaking audiences and carries the warmth of shared celebration,” Negi added.

Meanwhile, Orkla India is tying its campaign to Kerala’s iconic boat race. “Supporting the Nehru Trophy, which symbolizes unity, perseverance, and community spirit, is our way of celebrating the values that Kerala holds dear and that we, as a brand, truly cherish,” said Thomas.

From influencer-led AR hunts in malls to sambar mixes tied to cultural sporting events, the festival has become a test bed for marrying tradition with innovation.

Onam is a proving ground for how India’s advertising ecosystem balances tradition and transformation. With media spends climbing and digital claiming its biggest share yet, brands are no longer choosing between mass and precision, but weaving both into one seamless narrative. Television and print still carry cultural weight, while digital offers unmatched personalisation, global reach, and shoppability.

As courtyards fill with pookalams and living rooms with Connected TV screens, Onam shows that regional festivals are not just moments of nostalgia but engines of innovation. For marketers, the future of festive advertising lies not in replacing one medium with another, but in storytelling that honours cultural roots while embracing new-age platforms.