Masterchow flips food advertising with 12-hour Karwa Chauth “visual fast”

New Delhi: Karwa Chauth, the traditional fasting day observed by many, prompted an unusual move from Masterchow, the Asian food brand, in collaboration with creative agency tgthr. 

Recognising that food visuals can trigger cravings, the brand paused its usual appetising posts for 12 hours, introducing what it called a “visual fast” across its digital platforms. The initiative was titled #TheKarwaChauthPause.

Instead of the typical stream of food content, followers encountered humorous “unappetising food shots” and videos from Masterchow CEO Vidur Kataria explaining the initiative and encouraging those fasting to maintain their fast until moonrise. The effort was positioned as support for people observing the fast.

Vidur Kataria, Founder and Director of Masterchow, said, “Masterchow is all about good food, but today, for Karwa Chauth, we wanted to show solidarity by shifting focus from the feast to the fast. The #TheKarwaChauthPause is our way of supporting the community and creating a social movement that puts celebration of resilience ahead of appetite, even in the digital space.”

Aalap Desai, CCO and Co-founder of tgthr, added, “The idea was to flip the typical food advertising narrative. By creating the world’s first ‘visual fast’ showing purposely unappetising food shots and pausing tempting content, we helped our audience feel seen and supported in their unique journey. It’s about brands participating in ritual, not just selling products.”

The campaign ran from sunrise until moonrise on the day of Karwa Chauth, reflecting a different approach to festive digital engagement by placing cultural sensitivity and community support at the centre of the brand’s activity.

Watch the campaign films:

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