MAM
Dhanteras sparks a gold rush of campaigns ahead of Diwali 2021
MUMBAI: The festive revelry of Diwali has kicked off with Dhanteras, the first day of Diwali. The occasion is an anticipated affair for both brands and consumers alike, considered auspicious for buying gold and silver in some form, apart from other big-ticket purchases. Keeping that in mind, brands across categories are leaving no stone unturned in going all out to woo the masses with special campaigns and attractive offers to ring in the festivities with an added sparkle.
This Dhanteras, the demand surge for precious metals witnessed a significant QoQ 20 per cent jump, with demand for gold remaining high, almost three times of silver during this festive season, according to the latest Just Dial Consumer Insights study. The hyper-local search engine reported higher demand for the precious metals in Tier-II cities vis-à-vis Tier-I cities.
Gold prices have fallen since reaching the peak in August 2020 and this festive season it remained the most searched precious metal on the search engine, as per its latest report. Silver too saw the highest QoQ growth in demand of 30 per cent while demand for both gold and diamond saw a growth of 18 per cent.
Just Dial CMO, Prasun Kumar said, “Correction in gold prices and strong demand triggered by the festive season across the country, have made the yellow metal the most sought after. On Just Dial, demand for gold in Tier-1 cities remained high but it was also interesting to witness faster growth in demand in Tier-II cities led by Lucknow, Jaipur, and Coimbatore. With volatility in the market, we will see more and more consumers investing in gold for security reasons. Besides, the rise in demand for other precious metals such as silver and diamond is also encouraging.”
This year on Dhanteras, jewelry brand Reliance Jewels paid homage to India’s rich heritage by launching Kaasyam, a collection inspired by Banaras. The collection is inspired by the architectural marvels of the holy city and seeks to represent the confluence of rich Indian culture and the charisma of modern India. Keeping this in mind, the entire campaign, conceptualised by Scarecrow M&C Saatchi is strategised around the central theme of ‘Dive into divinity’.
The film has been shot by Shamik Sengupta and is produced by Tandem Media.
During Dhanteras, digital gold and investment through Exchange Traded Funds have also gained momentum.
To leverage the auspicious occasion, Digital payment platform Paytm has announced the launch of its #YehDiwaliGoldWali offer ahead of Dhanteras, through which users will be able to win Goldback or additional gold worth up to ₹5,000 for the digital gold that they buy on the platform.
Paytm Gold enables users to create their own gold saving plans by opting for weekly or monthly auto payments, while also offering the option to redeem the digital gold into coins or bars, the brand stated.
Amazon Pay has also announced offers of cashback on digital gold to all its customers ahead of Dhanteras. The e-commerce giant announced its ‘Dhanteras Store’ for a wide selection of specially curated products ranging from gold and silver coins, festive jewelry, electronics, pooja items, home décor, large appliances, smartphones, accessories, Amazon Devices, digital gold, and much more.
Italian confectionery company Ferrero Rocher celebrated the onset of festivities with #MakeDiwaliGolden campaign highlighting ‘golden moments of togetherness.’ The campaign builds on the idea of connecting with your precious ones, coming together, and creating golden memories, further emphasised through digital and on-ground activations.
Gold loan company Muthoot Finance has launched its ‘Diwali Dhamaka Campaign’ offering ‘one of the best ever gold loan schemes offered by the brand’ in recent times.
The purpose of this campaign, the brand stated, was to get maximum first-time loan seekers to avail gold loans and help them meet their objectives. The campaign aims to encourage everyone, particularly hesitant first-time loan seekers to avail gold loans convincingly.
The Muthoot Group general manager, marketing & strategy, Abhinav Iyer said, “In these resurgent times post-Covid, when individuals, families, and businesses are picking up speed to regain their lost momentum, we at Muthoot Finance strongly believe that we can be the harbingers of change and a great festive offering like ‘Muthoot Finance Diwali Dhamaka’ can hugely help fellow Indians realise their dreams and become self-reliant.”
“With +25000 tons of Gold stocked in Indian households and less than five per cent of this being monetised by way of gold loans; I feel there is tremendous opportunity to unlock the latent potential of this emotional currency to turbocharge economic growth and realise our Government’s vision of making an Atmanirbhar Bharat,” Iyer further added.
There is optimism about rising consumer confidence this festive season, said the brand. With gradual improvement in the economic situation, much can be attributed to pent-up demand after almost 18 months of the pandemic-led lull.
MAM
Ad:tech honours 2026: Full list of winners announced
Expanded awards spotlight winners across 22 categories as industry doubles down on intelligent automation
NEW DELHI: Marketing’s tech elite took the spotlight as the ad:tech honours 2026 returned with a sharper focus on AI, data and immersive media, signalling how deeply technology now underpins brand strategy. Held at Yashobhoomi on March 17, the second edition drew industry leaders to celebrate innovation that is reshaping engagement and performance.
Presented with the International Advertising Association India chapter and new partner Huella, the awards expanded from 8 to 22 categories, tracking the rapid convergence of creativity, automation and analytics.
The winners’ list reads like a snapshot of marketing’s future. In affiliate and partner marketing, Lyxel & Flamingo – Boat and Paytm Ads – Giva took silver. Mobavenue Media Private Limited struck gold in AI-driven dynamic creative optimisation, alongside a silver for Laqshya Media Limited.
Creative AI collaboration saw Rediffusion Brand Solutions Private Limited win gold, with Saltinc Consulting Private Limited securing silver. Laqshya Media Limited continued its strong run, taking gold in AI conversation agents and adding multiple wins across categories, including silver in GenAI-led creative and both gold and silver in interactive DOOH campaigns for Tanishq and Tata Coffee.
Predictive AI honours went to Strong Metrics and Tyroo, both silver, while Orient Bell Limited picked up silver in immersive retail tech. In GenAI-led creative, Laqshya Media Limited, Salt – Kotak and Sumimoto each secured silver, reflecting the crowded race in generative creativity.
Publicis bagged silver in influencer management and gold in performance marketing, where it shared the stage with Arm Worldwide and The Trade Desk, both silver. Glad U Came Private Limited stood out with gold in influencer measurement and analytics.
Marketing automation saw CereOne Media Pvt. Ltd. and Globale Media win silver, while ADMOTT Private Limited claimed silver in OTT innovation.
Programmatic media categories highlighted the shift to advanced targeting and connected screens. Mobavenue Media Private Limited clinched gold in connected TV advertising, with Animmoov Digital Media Pvt Ltd – Asus and Lyxel and Flamingo taking silver. Cheggout Services Private Limited won silver in retail media advertising, while Paytm Ads – Versuni secured gold.
On social platforms, Vayner Media India took gold in community and UGC engagement, with Under 25 – Oppo winning silver. Segumento rounded off the list with silver in the innovation category.
Jaswant Singh, country managing director at ad:tech India, underscored the momentum, saying generative AI and data-driven decision-making are now central to marketing impact. Neena Dasgupta, IAA mancom member and chief executive and founder at The Salt Inc Consulting, added that the awards celebrate not just technology, but “the people, the creativity, and the relentless effort behind it.”
Backed by Comexposium Group, ad:tech New Delhi has long tracked digital disruption. Now, with the honours, it is rewarding those who are not just adapting to change but engineering it.
In an industry racing towards automation, the message from 2026 is unmistakable. The future of marketing will be written not just in ideas, but in algorithms.
