Onam 2026: TV to take lion's share of AdEx, print and radio report strong momentum

Every festive season has its marquee market, and for Kerala, that market is Onam. Despite global economic uncertainty, inflationary pressures and geopolitical disruptions that affected business sentiment earlier this year, broadcasters, publishers and radio networks are reporting encouraging signs ahead of Onam 2026.

TV expected to corner 35-40% of festive media spends

Broadcasters expect television advertising to maintain its strong position this Onam, supported by festive programming, family viewing habits and sustained advertiser interest across both regional and national brands.

Mahesh Shetty, Head – Entertainment Sales, TV, JioStar, said advertiser participation is expected to remain healthy across categories, noting that "national brands continue to deepen their presence in Kerala during this period of heightened purchase intent, while regional businesses lean on television's reach and cultural relevance to connect with local audiences."

Mathrubhumi is seeing similar momentum. According to Naveen S, Head, Media Solutions (Television, Radio and Digital Business), Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing Company, although this year's festive calendar is relatively shorter, advertiser sentiment remains upbeat. "While this Onam is more compact, in terms of the number of days of festivities, we expect a growth in ad volumes and revenues. The Adex will be anchored by regional brands, while the plans from national brands also look to be in line for growth, supported by a favourable consumption driven environment," he said.

Naveen added that television is expected to account for a significant share of festive media investments. "TV continues to be a strong medium preferred by advertisers especially for a market like Kerala during the festive Season. We expect 35-40% of spending in the medium."

The advertiser mix on television also remains broadly consistent with previous Onam seasons. According to Shetty, consumer-focused sectors remain the biggest contributors, with "consumer durables, regional enterprises (local retailers), shopping & fashion e-commerce, automobiles, and other consumer categories" expected to lead festive advertising. He added that "the bigger shift this year sits less in category mix and more in approach, with brands moving from spot advertising toward integrated partnerships that make them a natural part of the festive viewing experience rather than being placed around it."

Mathrubhumi expects a similar advertiser profile while also anticipating higher participation from paints, BFSI and e-commerce. "The traditional dominant sectors including retail, consumer durables, automobiles, FMCG will continue to dominate, we will also see increased spends from categories like paints, BFSI and e-commerce," Naveen said.

General Entertainment Channels continue to be the centrepiece of Onam television viewing, with broadcasters investing heavily in festive programming to attract family audiences. Shetty believes viewing habits remain one of television's biggest strengths, saying, "Onam is one of the biggest television viewing occasions in Kerala and general entertainment continues to be the primary driver of advertiser interest, followed by movies and impact properties."

While entertainment dominates, news programming is also seeing sustained advertiser interest. Naveen noted that "We see continued growing interest from advertisers in news and is expected to continue during the festive season."

Broadcasters also point to a shift in how brands are approaching the medium. Shetty said advertisers are increasingly opting for high-impact formats and deeper integrations instead of conventional spot buys. "To drive higher visibility in an increasingly cluttered advertising environment, brands are choosing path-breaking ad formats on JioStar's TV network, such as MegaBlast and Pause and Play. Alongside these formats, advertisers are also leaning into sponsorships and customised integrations built around marquee festive properties, positioning television less as inventory to be bought and more as a platform for stronger recall and deeper engagement."

Mathrubhumi is observing a similar transition. "While standard spot buys continue to be substantial, to drive growth, premium formats and integrated proposals have been critical. These integrations encompass sponsorships, innovative formats and studio integrations and even On Ground activations."

Print set to grow as premium inventory fills up

While television is expected to anchor mass awareness, publishers believe print continues to play a decisive role in influencing high-value purchase decisions during Onam, particularly across categories that involve greater consumer consideration.

According to Devika MS, Director-Operations, Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing Company, advertiser confidence has remained intact even as brands adopt a more measured approach towards marketing investments. "Onam continues to be the single biggest advertising season in Kerala, and the early indicators this year are encouraging. While the season is still unfolding, bookings and conversations with advertisers suggest healthy growth over last year."

While marketers are evaluating returns more carefully, there has been little indication of festive budgets being scaled back. "Advertisers continue to view print as a trusted medium that offers scale, credibility and the ability to influence purchase decisions across Kerala," she added.

Malayala Manorama is reporting similar momentum. Varghese Chandy, Vice President, Marketing and Advertising Sales, said the festive season has helped reverse the slowdown witnessed earlier this year. "There was an issue in Q1 due to the war situation. But with the Onam season starting, we are seeing positive momentum and all our premium positions are already filled, with strong participation from almost all the advertising categories. Early indications suggest that Onam 2026 print advertising is likely to grow compared to last year, and we are expecting a significant increase compared to 2025 during this Onam season."

Rising newsprint costs continue to remain a challenge for publishers. However, instead of implementing broad-based price revisions, newspaper groups are focusing on premium inventory and yield optimisation to drive growth.

Devika explained that pricing continues to be driven by market demand rather than a separate festive rate structure. "Onam does not have a separate rate card in print. Pricing is based on demand, inventory and the value we create for advertisers."

She added that publishers continue to grapple with higher input costs. "Like every publisher, we have been impacted by rising input costs, particularly newsprint. In fact, the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) has recently recommended that member publications consider a newsprint surcharge in view of the sustained increase in production costs across the industry. Against this backdrop, our focus continues to be on achieving sustainable growth through the right balance of volume, value and yield. At the same time, we remain committed to delivering strong value and effective advertising solutions for our clients."

Malayala Manorama is adopting a similar approach. As Chandy put it, "Though we have additional expenses for the newsprint, considering the current market conditions we haven’t changed the prices yet. Instead, we are trying to extract more revenue through premium pages and extra volume. We seek to better yield this Onam through selective upward revisions in premium inventory and tighter discounting rather than broad-based increases."

Traditional festive categories continue to dominate newspaper advertising. According to Devika, "The traditional festive categories continue to lead the way. Jewellery, retail, textiles, consumer durables, automobiles and two-wheelers remain among the biggest advertisers during the Onam season."

She added that participation is also increasing across newer sectors. "We’re also seeing healthy participation from consumer electronics, financial services, home improvement brands, paints, shopping malls and lifestyle brands. Onam is one of the most important consumption periods in Kerala, so most consumer-facing sectors significantly increase their marketing activity during this time."

Malayala Manorama is seeing a similar advertiser profile while also witnessing growing adoption of integrated media plans. "With the NRI season on, Healthcare and Financial sectors are also active. Brands are also focusing on hyperlocal targeting and integrated print-plus-digital campaigns to maximize returns during the festive season," Chandy said.

Regional advertisers continue to form the backbone of Kerala's festive print market, although national brands are also contributing across key consumer categories. Chandy noted, "Local clients are dominating but national clients are also contributing substantially especially in the automobile, consumer electronics & durables, smartphones, FMCG and banking & finance sectors. Durable clients are mostly advertising through the retail giants. In Kerala, Malayalam print is a high-impact medium for reaching consumers during the festive season and hence strong demand is expected from categories that are closely tied to festive purchases and high-value consumer spending.”

Publishers are also seeing growing interest in reaching Malayalis beyond Kerala. Devika said, "While the primary objective of Onam advertising is to influence purchasing decisions within Kerala, we do see increased interest in our metro and Gulf editions during the festive season."

Chandy said Malayala Manorama is witnessing a similar trend. "Our advertisers do advertise in the Middle East edition as well as in the Metro editions of Malayala Manorama to engage Malayalis living outside the state. They also use our digital platforms to reach out to the global Malayalee community. This cross-platform strategy allows brands to extend their reach to Malayalis outside Kerala while maintaining the credibility and creative impact of print."

Radio eyes 10% festive jump through integrated campaigns

While television continues to deliver scale and print remains a trusted medium for influencing high-value purchase decisions, radio executives believe the medium is increasingly playing the role of the last-mile connector during the festive season. Its ability to adapt campaigns quickly, localise messaging and remain close to consumers throughout their shopping journey is making it an integral part of advertisers' Onam media mix.

Manoj Mathan, CEO, Radio Mango, said advertiser sentiment is stronger than last year, with the medium expected to witness healthy festive growth. "Advertiser sentiment is positive. The Onam market is tracking ahead of last year at this stage, and I expect pure radio to grow around 10% over last year."

While brands are approaching this year's festive season with greater caution amid geopolitical tensions and broader economic uncertainties, Mathan believes that has made advertisers more agile rather than less active. "Onam is too important a consumption period in Kerala for anyone to sit out. What we see instead is harder negotiation, budgets released closer to the campaign date, and some money moving between media. Uncertainty actually works in the radio's favour. A radio campaign can be changed or localised in a day, and a brand can push frequency closer to the purchase window without locking up its entire festive budget months in advance."

Nisha Narayanan, Director and COO, Red FM, echoed a similar sentiment, noting that festive advertising has remained resilient despite broader macroeconomic concerns. "Festive periods have traditionally been among the strongest quarters for media brands, particularly for radio. Last year's festive season itself saw a 12–15% year-on-year uptick, contributing nearly 20–25% of annual revenues for us. This year, we're seeing a similar trend continue. While it's still early to call the final numbers, we're comfortably looking at double-digit growth over last Onam.”

She added that the shift this year is less about budget size and more about how those budgets are being deployed. "What has changed isn't necessarily the size of the budgets, but the way they're being deployed. Advertisers today are far more outcome-oriented. The conversation has shifted from 'How many spots can I buy?' to 'How do I stay with the consumer throughout the festive journey?' Overall, festive sentiment has remained remarkably resilient, certainly stronger than what the broader macroeconomic narrative would suggest."

Much like television and print, radio continues to attract strong participation from retail-led categories during Onam. According to Mathan, the medium is particularly effective in driving footfalls and communicating offers closer to the point of sale. "Radio works well for communicating offers, new launches, exchange schemes, financing options and store-specific activity.”

Narayanan also pointed to retail as the biggest festive advertiser while noting that marketers are increasingly shifting their communication beyond discount-led messaging. At the same time, regional advertisers continue to dominate radio advertising volumes during Onam, even as national brands adopt more localised strategies.

"Local and regional advertisers continue to form the backbone of Onam advertising. At the same time, national participation is clearly increasing, and what has changed is the seriousness of it. More national brands now come with Kerala-specific plans and Malayalam-first creatives instead of simply dubbing a national advertisement," Mathan said.

Executives also point to a change in how advertisers are buying radio, with integrated campaigns increasingly replacing standalone airtime purchases. Mathan said brands are looking to connect multiple consumer touchpoints rather than simply increase ad frequency. "Advertisers want the RJ talking about the offer, social media extending the conversation, influencers creating credibility, on-ground events bringing people to stores, and digital amplifying everything. They are not buying seconds anymore; they are buying an occasion."

Narayanan said Red FM is witnessing a similar evolution. "The brands that are seeing the strongest results are those that treat radio as the centrepiece of a broader consumer engagement ecosystem rather than a standalone channel."