The Maha Kumbh Mela of Hindus, celebrated 144 years ago, is a religious event that is attended by millions of pilgrims from all over the world. The pilgrims are from far away to four places in India – the Holy cities of Prayagraj (Allahabad), Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik. Based on Hindu philosophy, the holy dip in the sacred rivers present at these places will purify the soul and grant deliverance from the worldly cycle of birth and death. Also linked with some stories from the ancient Hindu scripture and mythology is the age-old belief about the falling of drops of the divine nectar of immortality at any of these sacred spots.
The Kumbh Mela has references dating back to the Rigveda and the 3rd century BCE. However, this festival became very powerful in the 7th century AD when King Harsha arranged grand gatherings at Prayagraj. Today, it is one of the biggest peaceful gatherings in the world, uniting culture and spirituality. Seekers from several regions attend the festival for bath-taking activities, sage lectures, and vibrant cultural exchanges, which showcase India’s cultural repertory.
Maha Kumbh Mela offers brands an opportunity to connect with millions of people in Prayag’s mobility and shape strategies that align the campaign with the event’s inherent spiritual essence. The campaign could also provide customized add-on services, such as travel insurance, and experiential marketing. The advertising glut could be as high as INR 3,000 crores as brands fight it out in a strategic duel of brand and product choice placement and direct new customers to centers of consumption.
Let’s explore some exemplary marketing campaigns done by some popular brands.
Dettol
Eveready Industries India Limited
Uber
Coca Cola India
Dabur
Amazon India
Vodafone Idea
PhonePe
Ixigo
Park+
Dettol
Dettol Banega Swasth India
The “Dettol Banega Swasth India” (DBSI) Dettol’s campaign is capitalizing on the 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela to fight for public hygiene and health for millions of pilgrims. The program will involve deploying hundreds of thousands of soaps at the food service areas to instill the habit of washing hands before and after eating. In addition, Dettol is also assisting sanitation workers by training about 15,000 staff and providing hygiene products to ensure cleanliness across the period. Health and hygiene volunteers will be on duty to help pilgrims with their orientation promoting civic involvement and hygiene promotion at the community levels. For authentic cultural resonance, the campaign utilizes street plays and puppet shows featuring hygiene messages. Dettol is a constant presence (2016) and a trusted public health partner, in line with India’s vision of a healthier country by 2047.
Abinaya Arangarajan
Eveready Industries India Limited
Eveready Siren Maha Kumbh 2025
Eveready Industries India Limited is undertaking a focused promotional drive at the 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela, to enhance this experience for the large number of pilgrims. The program entails the mounting of 13,000 LED lights at the Mela site, which provides bright illumination and enhances safety, particularly during nighttime hours. Eveready’s energy-saving lighting promotes sustainability as well as accident reduction and provides conveyance for the attendees. In this work, the brand is bestowed with a socially equitable status focused on the public good and uses its products as vehicles to represent the spiritual and cultural heart of the festival occurring. This campaign is aimed at strengthening the relationship with consumers among Eveready, creating goodwill, and furthering its brand image as an innovative company and responsible corporation.
Uber
In collaboration with the Airports Authority of India (AAI), Uber has launched a strategic campaign to improve the transportation services during the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 at Prayagraj airport, with the potential for 40 crore believers to visit. The plan covers airport terminal collection areas, clearly posted with signs and assistance for smooth transfers. Uber is providing a 25% discount (maximum ₹200) redeemed for airport-to-airport travel to promote the travel. The campaign provides effective mobility options for attendees while also providing income-generation alternatives for local drivers. With its app, Uber delivers an easy-to-use system for ride bookings that is tailored to the specific transport needs of this large-scale event and reaffirms its support of reliable, community-driven services at large-scale events.
Chayanika Goswami
Coca Cola India
Coca-Cola India has a significant presence at the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025, where its programs revolve around hydration, sustainability, and cultural interaction. The brand will provide access to beverages such as Coca-Cola, Thums Up, Sprite, Maaza, and Fanta every 400 meters along the event site, to retain the participant’s hydration. Special Maha Kumbh edition packaging is a semblance of India’s heritage. Hydration carts and food activations will add to the culinary experience of visitors. Coca-Cola’s Maidaan Saaf campaign fosters sustainability through the distribution of 21,500 recycled PET jackets to sanitation workers, the installation of recyclate plastic playrooms, and the use of Reverse Vending Machines for waste recycling. With immersive experiences and recycling consciousness, Coca-Cola enhances festivities and provides sustainability and community support.
Dabur
Dabur is utilizing diverse innovative marketing techniques for Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 to access pilgrims and visitors. The activity consists of product sampling in streetside dhabas and food joints in Prayagraj, where, for example, popular brands like Hajmola are being promoted to induce trial and knowledge of the brand. The company is fitting out oral hygiene stations with automatic toothpaste dispensers and highlighted that health and hygiene are of paramount concern for the company. Family-friendly amenities, including female baby rooms and baby care rooms with Dabur products, are incorporated to add value to the delegates’ experience. In addition, Dabur is investing in brand activation, to foster deeper cultural bonds between the brand and customers, and attempt to access the market of a growing rural population where demand for healthy and wellness products is exploding.
Shalini Rath
Amazon India
In a new proposal, the footprint of Amazon India could be in Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 and one of its contributions is meant to provide relief to the pilgrims there. The company is distributing free upcycled cardboard beds in the prescribed locations of the festival (i.e., Kumbh Police and hospital staff). This sustainability-based work reuses the cardboard packaging boards from an environmentally resistant bed. Amazon collaborated with Ogilvy and specialist fabricators to provide robustness. After the event, Amazon will responsibly recycle beds unsalvageable items and donate salvageable beds to local NGOs. Director of Marketing, Pragya Sharma, pointed out this program is a part of the larger vision of Amazon India to empower communities and offer ease during mega events such as the Maha Kumbh Mela.
Vodafone Idea
Vodafone Idea (Vi) is launching a comprehensive campaign for the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025, aiming to enhance connectivity and user experience. The 5G company services will be rolled out to consumers by 2025 in 17 priority circles, beginning with major cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, to cater to high data needs for events. To ensure reliable connectivity Vodafone Idea is setting up more than 46,000 new network sites and modernising 58,000 existing sites. The company will offer affordable 5G plans to attract customers away from competitors. Second, Vodafone Idea is planning to expand its 4G coverage to 90% of the Indian population by June 2025. Strategic partnership and participation of the community will result in deeper penetration of the platform at the Mela.
PhonePe
PhonePe enhance the digital payment experience during the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 such that they are not interrupted in their ability to use the service to access transportation, food, and lodging. With almost 47% of the UPI market, PhonePe will handle a massive volume of transactions that will ensure speed and stability. The platform also offers a cross-border payment function, which can be used to settle transactions by international tourists. Through a range of community engagement activities, PhonePe will promote digital inclusion and financial literacy. Novel abilities such as voice-enabled point-of-sale payment and artificial intelligence (AI)-based fraud prevention will add to convenience and security even more. Collaborations with local merchants ensure widespread service accessibility. Carrying out this heavy traffic scenario, PhonePe aims at enhancing the degree of the interaction among the user and the marketspace while positively supporting the financialization of India.
Purbalee Dutta
Ixigo
Ixigo is customizing the trip for the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 participants with a series of facilities, tools, etc. On the platform, there has been a 187% rise in train reservations for Prayagraj, which reflects an escalating demand for travel to the Mela. In particular, 57% of bookings are from single travelers, of whom 39% are female, indicating changing travel patterns. Ixigo provides functionality for comparing train schedules, making tickets, and getting actual travel information. Ixigo, partnering with Indian Railways, provides special trains or services during the Mela. On the other hand, the platform may also provide combined trip and lodging packages. Ixigo nurtures its users with safety-related travel advice and the details of the local culture, making it the traveler of choice for Mela-bound travelers.
Rishabh Rathi
Park+
Park+ is leveraging advanced parking solutions to enhance the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 and is the official parking partner. The platform will provide the city of Prayagraj’s first smart parking system based on artificial intelligence (AI), offering the pilgrims an easy method of reserving and prepaying for parking spaces through the Park+ application. Coupled with FASTag payments, the system offers a fast and cashless payment system. The app will be used to offer navigation at more than 30 parking lots that are government-approved and have a total of 500,000 parking locations. Park+ will also offer 24-hour security, electric vehicle charging, medical assistance, food and drink service, and bathroom facilities. Using predictive AI, the architecture will enhance parking space allocation. By working together with Indian Oil, users will be offered fuel-price discounts, thus providing a stress-free and easy-flow parking experience.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 provides a novel chance for a wide array of brands and service providers to improve the lives of millions of pilgrims. Companies such as Dettol, Coca-Cola, Amazon India, Vodafone Idea, PhonePe, Ixigo, and Park+ are adopting new ideas and projects around health and connectivity, ease, and sustainability in life. Using technology and community involvement, these companies not only aim to address the possible challenges of logistics but also to add new value to the cultural and religious meaning attached to the congregation. In line with these plans becoming a reality, these methods are intended to guarantee a seamless and meaningful journey for the participants, which is a natural consequence of the importance of cross-communication and innovation in the planning of large-scale events.
FAQs
Why is 2025 Kumbh special?
This special Maha Kumbh Mela marks the completion of 12 Kumbh Mela cycles, making it a once-in-144-years event. It is set to span 44 days and is estimated to draw approximately 400 million visitors.
What are Maha Kumbh 2025 dates?
The dates for Maha Kumbh 2025 are Mon, 13 Jan 2025 – Wed, 26 Feb 2025.
How often is Maha Kumbh Mela?
Maha Kumbh Mela is approximately every 6 and 12 years.
