For a few charged months every year, gold isn't just a metal; it is a mood. Even during the recent wedding season, the air was thick with marigold and mehndi, and Google searches for ‘Kundan set’ and ‘diamond engagement rings’ spiked in perfect harmony. India’s festive rush has often collided with the wedding boom, turning showrooms (and malls) into glittering battlegrounds of sentiment and style. And jewellery brands, from legacy houses to digital natives, have left no stone—precious or lab-grown—unturned in catching this golden wave.
According to TAM Media Research, jewellery ad spends have surged by 20–40%, with media volumes swelling to match. This hasn’t just been a shopping season; it has become a nationwide celebration of sparkle, with brands weaving together festive radiance and bridal dreams through campaigns that have been more experiential, aspirational, and hyper-local than ever before.
During this period, walking into Phoenix Marketcity, Mumbai, has often meant being greeted not just by fairy lights but by façades of glittering showcases, each reflecting India’s evolving jewellery story. Mayank Lalpuria, Director, Marketing (North, Central & West), The Phoenix Mills Limited, says, “We’ve been proud to feature one of the largest clusters of jewellery brands under one roof—ranging from traditional to contemporary designs. From customer favourites like Tanishq to traditional maestros like Waman Hari Pethe and Kalyan Jewellers, shoppers have been spoilt for choice.”
Phoenix Marketcity has steadily evolved into what Lalpuria describes as a gold souk in the making. With brands like Bluestone, CaratLane, Gargi, and Solitario joining the mix, the mall has become a one-stop destination for both festive shoppers and brides-to-be. To sweeten the deal, the mall has also run a special campaign offering assured rewards for shoppers spending ₹20,000 or more, along with a chance to win a holiday to Europe.
But beneath the glitter has lain a silent strategy. Phoenix has curated its mix of jewellery brands with precision, balancing aspiration and accessibility. “We’ve curated our jewellery portfolio by balancing aspiration with accessibility—blending luxury prestige with everyday relevance through strategic brand selection, thoughtful zoning, and integrated marketing initiatives,” Lalpuria says.
The results have been telling. Despite gold prices touching record highs, the mall has recorded double-digit growth in consumption, signalling that sentiment has remained firmly upbeat. “It has truly been a period where celebration has met meaningful shopping,” Lalpuria adds.
Beyond discounts and displays, Phoenix Marketcity has demonstrated that jewellery buying has become as much about experience as it is about investment. Lavish décor, family-friendly activities, and experiential rewards have turned jewellery shopping into a full-blown event. As Lalpuria puts it, “Beyond being a shopping destination, we’ve become a lifestyle and experience hub where consumers come to explore, engage, and celebrate.”
While malls like Phoenix Marketcity have created environments where sparkle meets spectacle, newer-age brands like Réia Diamonds have brought subtlety and modernity to the same festive-bridal equation. Founder and CEO Prapanjj S.K. Kota believes that jewellery is less about statement and more about self. “As a lab-grown diamond jewellery brand specialising in everyday wear and engagement rings, we’ve balanced festive and bridal themes by incorporating designs that don’t overpower the wearer’s attire,” he says. “Our campaigns have been positioned to show that jewellery is part of one’s lifestyle, not just meant for an occasion.”
Réia’s approach has remained rooted in accessibility and authenticity. In a market where consumers still want to ‘see and touch’ before they buy, the brand has strategically shifted focus from digital ads to OOH marketing and on-ground experiences. “Our media spend has shifted drastically towards OOH instead of the traditional performance marketing route,” Kota explains. “Many people want to see Réia’s lab-grown diamond jewellery before making the final purchase, and the best way to reach them has been to be as close to them as possible.”
This proximity-driven approach has extended to jewellery and apartment exhibitions, where the brand has built trust through transparency and personal engagement. To drive conversion, Réia’s creatives have focused heavily on price and value, a crucial lever amid rising gold rates. Kota says, “Price-based creatives have been the biggest breadwinners during the festive period… through Réia’s Carat Club offering, where zero making charges and zero wastage apply, many consumers have wanted to understand how this works and have enquired accordingly.”
Digital platforms and influencers have continued to play an important role, but largely as amplifiers rather than anchors. “Digital platforms have helped with awareness, and influencers have promoted the brand to niche audiences,” he notes. Réia has leveraged creators as the “first real users” of its jewellery, bridging aspiration with attainability.
For Kota, the most powerful performance metric hasn’t been impressions, but trust. “The biggest metric for Réia has been Net Promoter Score, which shows how consumers perceive us and whether they will refer us to close family members,” he says. “Since jewellery is based on trust, word-of-mouth has remained the strongest validation.”
While some brands have found freshness in subtlety, others have leaned into boldness. For Angara, the U.S.-born fine jewellery player that entered India just last year, the objective has been clear: bring colour back into fine jewellery. Founder and CEO Ankur Daga sees the festive-wedding season as an opportunity to unify storytelling around joy, meaning, and milestones.
“As India has stepped into its biggest consumption wave, jewellery brands have learned to speak to both festive and bridal moments through one unified narrative of joy and meaning,” Daga says. “At Angara, we’ve viewed these occasions as two expressions of the same emotion: celebration and connection.”
That philosophy has resonated strongly. During the festive period, coloured gemstones such as pink sapphires, aquamarines, and rubies have accounted for nearly a quarter of Angara’s overall sales. Its new bridal capsule has carried the same design sensibility into heirloom-worthy pieces that feel both modern and symbolic.
Angara’s data has also revealed that while Tier 1 cities like Mumbai, Delhi NCR, and Bengaluru have led in volume, Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns—including Kashipur, Puppalguda, and Saharanpur—have recorded the highest average order values, exceeding ₹1.6 lakh. “This has reflected growing purchasing power and digital confidence beyond metros,” Daga notes.
Even as gold prices have surged, 18K gold jewellery has dominated sales, contributing over 60%. Meanwhile, lab-grown diamonds have accounted for nearly 60% of Angara’s festive-period revenue. “It has shown that modern consumers are embracing luxury that is both beautiful and responsible,” Daga says.
What has tied these narratives together is a shared understanding: jewellery in India hasn’t merely been purchased; it has been performed. Whether through Phoenix Marketcity’s experiential rewards, Réia’s trust-driven local engagement, or Angara’s gemstone revival, brands have redefined what sparkle means in 2025.
The new consumer has emerged as curious, digitally aware, and sentimentally driven. They have compared carat weights and cashback offers with equal enthusiasm. They have sought jewellery versatile enough for a pooja, party, and proposal—all in one piece.
As one marketing head has observed, the season hasn’t been about who has the shiniest diamonds, but who has told the brightest story. And in a market that has celebrated both the gold of tradition and the shimmer of innovation, that story has continued to dazzle.
After all, during India’s festive-wedding season, even the air has felt a little 18-karat.
