Magh Mela is now a serious marketing battleground for brands

New Delhi: For centuries, Magh Mela had been one of India’s most significant spiritual gatherings, held annually on the banks of the Sangam in Prayagraj. Rooted in faith, ritual and tradition, the Mela was historically viewed as a regional and largely rural congregation, with limited attention from national advertisers or brand planners.

That perception had shifted decisively in recent years. Post-COVID, Magh Mela evolved into a high-impact congregation with growing relevance for brands, marketers and media planners. With rising footfalls, heightened digital visibility and increased government emphasis on spiritual tourism, the Mela had begun to feature in mainstream advertising and activation strategies

According to Rajesh Radhakrishnan, Co-founder and CMO, Mindwave Media, the renewed relevance of Magh Mela is closely linked to a broader transformation in how spirituality is perceived across age groups.

“Spiritual tourism has taken off post-COVID. People have realised spirituality is a way of life, and this is not just a 50-plus thought process anymore. Today, it is across generations. The government is promoting this like tourism. The entire ecosystem—government, social media, tourism companies, travel companies, everybody has risen to the occasion.”

This shift expanded the demographic profile of Magh Mela beyond its traditional base, drawing younger audiences, urban visitors and digitally connected consumers, thereby increasing its brand engagement platform.

One of the most notable developments at recent editions of Magh Mela had been the scale of attendance, which many brands had underestimated.

“Brands did not expect that post-Covid again this kind of crowd would come, so the budgeting was missing. This year, brands did not spend that much money, but the crowd is unbelievable, 25–30 lakhs on the first day itself. People who have missed Kthe umbh Mela are coming to Magh. It’s a FOMO effect,” he added.

Among all categories, FMCG brands had emerged as the most active participants, leveraging the Mela for both visibility and transactions.

“FMCG continues to hold focus. FMCGs are the ones spending generously this time. For them, every Mela is an opportunity to showcase and actually transact. Dabur this year has made a phenomenal investment,” Radhakrishnan underscored.

Brand participation at Magh Mela had gone well beyond conventional advertising.

“Almost every brand related to rural India comes here, food industry, agriculture, fertiliser, solar companies, banking and insurance. The target group is rural India. It is not 100% rural, but the percentage is mostly rural and faith-led,” said Sarabjit Singh Puri, Chairman, Fateh Rural.

“Melas are not only religious activities. They are economic activities in a big way. Some companies are already known, and they come as a follow-up. Some brands do social activities and subtle advertising to show that we care for you. Startups and brands that have launched new products also come so that people can have a first-hand experience,” he added.

He attributed the Mela’s growing prominence to increased digital consumption and connectivity.

“Magh Mela has been a success for many, many years. The only thing is that after Corona and with the internet surge, especially after 5G, these religious Melas, which were regional, have come into the limelight. People have started consuming too much content after COVID-19. So, Melas like Kumbh, Magh Mela, Makar Sankranti, which were regional, have now come into the eyes of people,” said Puri.

Social media, video content and continuous coverage had extended the Mela’s reach far beyond Prayagraj, placing it firmly on national marketing radars.

However, the choice of activation formats varied based on marketing intent.

“It is not that one format is good or bad. It depends on what kind of brand you are and what level of marketing activity you expect. FMCG brands that are already well known may only want presence, like gates or direction boards. Brands wanting experience go for sampling or stalls,” said Puri.

Both experts emphasised that localisation remained central to effective engagement at Magh Mela.

“You have to think local and act local. If there is no regional touchpoint, activations fail. The product has to be highly regionalised, availability, awareness, and promotion and in the way consumers perceive it,”  Radhakrishnan emphasised.

“Language is the key. Regionalisation has to be there. Not only language, but dialect is also very, very important. If we are not following that, we are not part of our prospects,” Puri added.

Experience-driven marketing is not new to rural India, as Puri pointed out.

“Experiential marketing is a new name for the old bottle. Experiential marketing was always there. In the 1960s, during the Green Revolution, government officers threw urea in fields at night and showed farmers the results after two days. Old-school people never bought anything without experience.”

“Rural people first look at whether the product serves their basic needs. Premiumisation is discretionary, but if you serve value, people are willing to pay. Affordability is not geography. It depends on earning capacity. You have disposable income in rural areas also,” said Radhakrishnan.

Brands increasingly view returns from Magh Mela through a broader lens.

“Brands today have two objectives: either brand awareness or ROI through product sales. ROI depends on the objective. For banking, it can be lead generation. For food companies, it can be a distributor search. ROI is calculated based on what you want to do. It is not always direct sales,” Puri explained.

As Magh Mela continued to evolve, it increasingly stood at the intersection of faith, economy and marketing, transitioning from a regional spiritual gathering into a strategic marketplace that brands had begun to actively plan for.

This year, Magh Mela Prayagraj 2026, is taking place between Wednesday, January 3, 2026 and February 15, 2026, at the Triveni Sangam.