India's Rs 13,000 crore live events market fuelling experiential marketing push: BookMyShow–EY report
India’s Rs 13,000 crore live events industry is emerging as a major platform for brands as marketers increasingly shift toward experiential marketing to drive consumer engagement and purchase intent, according to a report by EY-Parthenon and BookMyShow.
The report, titled Beyond Attention. Into Immersion, found that 78% of Indian consumers prefer spending on experiences over products, reflecting a broader shift toward participation-led consumption that is reshaping brand strategies.
Based on post-event surveys of 7,450 attendees, the study found that 59% of live event attendees recalled brands they interacted with at events, while 55% reported higher purchase intent after engaging with brands on-ground.
Live entertainment events such as concerts, festivals, comedy tours and cultural showcases are increasingly becoming high-intent environments where brands can connect with audiences through immersive experiences rather than traditional advertising, the report said.
“As interruption-based advertising loses traction, audience participation is becoming the new currency of relevance,” said Raghav Anand, Partner and Leader, Media & Entertainment, EY-Parthenon India.
“The rising spend, the proven lifts in recall and intent, and the cultural gravitation toward experiences all point to the same conclusion: experiential marketing is now a full-funnel growth engine, not a tactical add-on.”
The report found that 63% of event attendees believed brands enhanced their overall event experience, while 29% reported improved brand perception after interacting with brands at events.
Globally, experiential marketing spends are projected to reach $130 billion by 2025, growing at 10.5%, with 74% of Fortune 1000 marketers planning to increase their experiential marketing budgets, according to the report.
In India, this momentum is being driven by a growing live entertainment ecosystem and brands seeking deeper consumer engagement.
Insights from the EY-Parthenon–BookMyShow CMO survey show that more than half of brands executed experiential activations in the past year, while 88% of brands that invested in experiential marketing in the past 12 months plan to continue doing so in a more structured manner.
Among brands that increased experiential spending over the past three years, 44% reported growth of up to 30%, the report said.
Brands are using experiential marketing to achieve multiple objectives including brand awareness (67%), product sampling and trial (56%), sales growth (56%) and brand storytelling (44%).
However, the report noted that several companies are yet to adopt experiential marketing at scale due to barriers such as lack of expertise (71%), budget pressures (57%) and measurement challenges (43%).
Samradha Tibrewala, Head of Partnerships and Revenue at BookMyShow, said brands are increasingly looking to live entertainment as a platform to create meaningful consumer connections.
“Experiential marketing in India has moved well beyond being a tactical add-on,” she said. “Brands are investing with greater intent to build memory, meaning and measurable business outcomes through experiences.”
The report highlights early adoption across sectors including BFSI, FMCG, beauty, fashion, beverages, mobility and technology, where brands are embedding themselves within cultural and entertainment environments rather than relying solely on sponsorship.
For example, RuPay and Kotak Mahindra Bank have focused on improving access and convenience during high-demand entertainment events, while brands such as H&M, Budweiser 0.0, Nivea and Vicks have activated within festival ecosystems aimed at encouraging discovery and community engagement.
Beauty platform Nykaa, in partnership with BookMyShow Live, has created Nykaaland, an experiential intellectual property designed to enable immersive brand discovery.
Other brands including Visa, Diageo and Hyundai have used experiential formats to reinforce premium and youth-focused positioning.
The report also introduces an “Experiential Impact Pyramid”, a framework aimed at helping brands move from audience insight to participation-led engagement and long-term cultural relevance.
As India’s live entertainment ecosystem expands, the report argues that brands investing consistently in experience-led engagement will be better positioned to build lasting consumer relationships.
The report, titled Beyond Attention. Into Immersion, found that 78% of Indian consumers prefer spending on experiences over products, reflecting a broader shift toward participation-led consumption that is reshaping brand strategies.
Based on post-event surveys of 7,450 attendees, the study found that 59% of live event attendees recalled brands they interacted with at events, while 55% reported higher purchase intent after engaging with brands on-ground.
Live entertainment events such as concerts, festivals, comedy tours and cultural showcases are increasingly becoming high-intent environments where brands can connect with audiences through immersive experiences rather than traditional advertising, the report said.
“As interruption-based advertising loses traction, audience participation is becoming the new currency of relevance,” said Raghav Anand, Partner and Leader, Media & Entertainment, EY-Parthenon India.
“The rising spend, the proven lifts in recall and intent, and the cultural gravitation toward experiences all point to the same conclusion: experiential marketing is now a full-funnel growth engine, not a tactical add-on.”
The report found that 63% of event attendees believed brands enhanced their overall event experience, while 29% reported improved brand perception after interacting with brands at events.
Globally, experiential marketing spends are projected to reach $130 billion by 2025, growing at 10.5%, with 74% of Fortune 1000 marketers planning to increase their experiential marketing budgets, according to the report.
In India, this momentum is being driven by a growing live entertainment ecosystem and brands seeking deeper consumer engagement.
Insights from the EY-Parthenon–BookMyShow CMO survey show that more than half of brands executed experiential activations in the past year, while 88% of brands that invested in experiential marketing in the past 12 months plan to continue doing so in a more structured manner.
Among brands that increased experiential spending over the past three years, 44% reported growth of up to 30%, the report said.
Brands are using experiential marketing to achieve multiple objectives including brand awareness (67%), product sampling and trial (56%), sales growth (56%) and brand storytelling (44%).
However, the report noted that several companies are yet to adopt experiential marketing at scale due to barriers such as lack of expertise (71%), budget pressures (57%) and measurement challenges (43%).
Samradha Tibrewala, Head of Partnerships and Revenue at BookMyShow, said brands are increasingly looking to live entertainment as a platform to create meaningful consumer connections.
“Experiential marketing in India has moved well beyond being a tactical add-on,” she said. “Brands are investing with greater intent to build memory, meaning and measurable business outcomes through experiences.”
The report highlights early adoption across sectors including BFSI, FMCG, beauty, fashion, beverages, mobility and technology, where brands are embedding themselves within cultural and entertainment environments rather than relying solely on sponsorship.
For example, RuPay and Kotak Mahindra Bank have focused on improving access and convenience during high-demand entertainment events, while brands such as H&M, Budweiser 0.0, Nivea and Vicks have activated within festival ecosystems aimed at encouraging discovery and community engagement.
Beauty platform Nykaa, in partnership with BookMyShow Live, has created Nykaaland, an experiential intellectual property designed to enable immersive brand discovery.
Other brands including Visa, Diageo and Hyundai have used experiential formats to reinforce premium and youth-focused positioning.
The report also introduces an “Experiential Impact Pyramid”, a framework aimed at helping brands move from audience insight to participation-led engagement and long-term cultural relevance.
As India’s live entertainment ecosystem expands, the report argues that brands investing consistently in experience-led engagement will be better positioned to build lasting consumer relationships.
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