Planning a festive campaign in India, from Diwali to the IPL
The Indian year is punctuated by moments — Diwali, the wedding season, the IPL, regional festivals — where attention, spending and competition all surge at once. These windows reward preparation and punish improvisation.
Book the window backwards
Talent, production and media inventory around a big festival are constrained and expensive close in. Lock faces and shoot dates months ahead; the brands scrambling in the final weeks pay more for less.
Cut through, don't blend in
Every brand goes warm and family-first at Diwali, which is exactly why sameness is the risk. A distinct point of view — or an unexpected face — travels further than another montage of diyas.
Plan the whole arc
A festive push is a build, a peak and a tail, not a single burst. Sequence teaser, peak and follow-up so the spend compounds instead of spiking once and vanishing.
