From Puja Pandal To Brand Activation: How Festivals Are Creating New Stages For Musicians

India’s festive calendar is becoming more than a period of cultural celebration. From Navratri anthems and Durga Puja campaigns to Diwali advertisements and music-led digital activations, brands are increasingly using music to build emotional connections with consumers.

For musicians, this shift is opening up opportunities beyond live performances, creating avenues in brand collaborations, sync licensing, original compositions and potentially longer-term commercial partnerships.

The opportunity, however, extends beyond securing a festive gig or having a song featured in an advertisement. As brands move from seasonal jingles to music-led campaigns, the larger question is whether these partnerships can translate into sustained income and visibility for artists after the festive rush ends.

For Nancy Gupta, Assistant General Manager, Lead Music Publishing – Brand Alliances and Sync, Times Music, the shift reflects a change in how brands approach festive marketing.

“Festivals are when a brand’s audience is most emotionally receptive. Brands want to own a cultural movement, not just buy media around it,” she says.

According to Gupta, the brief has evolved from commissioning a festive jingle to creating a sonic identity for the season—one that builds recall, resonates with communities and works across films, digital platforms, in-store experiences and activations.

Brands are commissioning original tracks, reimagining familiar folk and devotional sounds, collaborating with artists and launching hook-step challenges on digital platforms. Music is increasingly becoming the central creative idea, encouraging audiences to participate rather than simply consume an advertisement.

For musicians, this creates opportunities to become part of a brand’s festive narrative, reaching audiences beyond traditional performance spaces such as puja pandals and concert stages.

From seasonal sponsorships to cultural partnerships

The growing use of music in festive campaigns is also prompting a broader conversation about how brands engage with artists and cultural traditions.

K G Ramnarayan, Founder and Creative Head, Wobble Creative & Content, believes the opportunity lies in moving beyond conventional sponsorships and one-off performances towards meaningful cultural experiences.

“Festivals have always been an integral part of India’s cultural and musical landscape. What is changing is how brands are beginning to engage with these platforms,” he says.

Festive campaigns can give regional, folk, classical and independent musicians access to new audiences while helping brands establish cultural relevance. However, Ramnarayan cautions against equating performance opportunities with sustainable career growth.

“A performance opportunity does not automatically translate into a sustainable career opportunity,” he says.

The distinction matters in a market where seasonal demand can create a surge in bookings but does not necessarily guarantee work throughout the year. A festival appearance may offer immediate earnings and exposure, but its longer-term value depends on whether it leads to further collaborations, new intellectual property, touring opportunities or placements across advertising and digital content.

Ramnarayan argues that brands must view musicians as creative partners rather than merely entertainment providers.

“Festivals can give musicians a stage for a day. Thoughtfully designed partnerships can give them opportunities for years,” he says, adding that treating musicians as seasonal vendors overlooks the potential to build a wider creative economy around festivals.

Can festive campaigns create a longer revenue cycle?

For independent artists, the commercial value of festive collaborations often extends beyond the initial fee. A track featured in a campaign can introduce an artist to new listeners, create opportunities for licensing and strengthen relationships with brands and agencies.

Singer & Songwriter Malvika Seth sees India’s festive season as an important period for both creative and commercial growth, spanning live performances, brand collaborations and sync licensing.

Her own experience offers an example. Seth’s song Ear Candy was picked up for an Amazon India festive campaign featuring Ananya Panday, an opportunity she describes as an unexpected but welcome development.

“My background in fashion and digital media taught me early on how important the festive marketing calendar is,” she says, noting that understanding where music fits into the wider creative ecosystem can help artists identify opportunities beyond conventional releases and performances.

For independent musicians, such placements can bring their work to audiences who may not otherwise discover them through streaming platforms alone. Yet the impact depends on the nature of the agreement, the reach of the campaign and whether the collaboration generates further work.

Seth believes relationships are central to making these opportunities sustainable.

“I’ve always believed in building long-term relationships, whether with brands or creative collaborators, rather than treating opportunities as one-off transactions,” she says.

She adds that even a festive sync placement can lead to future collaborations, depending on an artist’s goals. Understanding the business of music and investing in professional relationships, she believes, can be just as important as the immediate income.

The business beyond the festive moment

While festive campaigns can create visibility and commercial opportunities, converting that momentum into sustained earnings requires planning from both brands and artists.

Gupta points to the potential for successful musical identities to continue beyond the season through product launches, wedding campaigns and always-on content. For artists, this could mean developing organised catalogues, pursuing placements across advertisements, films, series and digital platforms, and building relationships with brands, production houses and music supervisors.

Such continuity is not automatic. A campaign may deliver reach without generating repeat bookings, while a successful collaboration may have limited financial value if the artist’s rights, usage terms and compensation are not clearly established. The commercial structure of each partnership therefore matters alongside its creative impact.

Brands, meanwhile, have an opportunity to build on the cultural relevance of festive music instead of treating it as a short-term marketing asset. Collaborations that respect regional traditions and give artists meaningful creative involvement could create value for both sides, provided the arrangements offer clear commercial benefits.

The larger opportunity is to make festivals a starting point for year-round music partnerships rather than isolated bursts of activity. For musicians, that means approaching festive campaigns not just as performance slots or promotional moments, but as potential entry points into the wider music and advertising ecosystem.

As Ramnarayan puts it, the challenge is to bring music’s cultural, creative and commercial value together. The festive season may open the door, but sustained income will depend on what follows: repeat commissions, licensing opportunities, rights management and relationships that continue after the celebrations end.