The archive · Content & Film · Marketing decision · 2025
Astro's Raya film celebrates the imperfect, chaotic 'lain macam' festive season
Against a sea of nostalgic Raya ads, Astro made a multi-genre film about how every Malaysian family celebrates differently — and swept Kancil 2025.
Astro Malaysia
What it had to solve
Every Hari Raya, sentimental ads repeat the same formula of nostalgia, family reunions and slow-motion rendang shots. Astro needed to stay emotionally resonant yet break through the lookalike festive advertising — and give Malay audiences a story they would see themselves in.
How it works
For Raya 2025, Astro faced a familiar problem: every festive ad told the same sentimental story of reunion and nostalgia. Its answer was 'Lain Macamnya Raya', built on the insight that Raya today is loud, diverse and beautifully chaotic — and that every Malaysian family celebrates it differently.
The creative idea, 'Meriahnya Lain Macam', became a multi-genre brand film blending comedy, drama and warmth. Instead of idealising the season, Astro featured its celebrity icons in scenes of real, evolving Malaysian celebration — from unique state cuisines to modern traditions — and told the story across many formats.
The gamble paid off in Malaysia's most established creative benchmark. At the Kancil Awards 2025 the film took a Silver in Entertainment and a run of Bronzes for branded content, direction, music and Malay scriptwriting, confirming that audiences wanted the messy, authentic version of Raya over the polished cliché.
Why it lands
- Rejecting the polished Raya cliché made the film feel fresh in a season crowded with identical ads.
- Celebrating regional cuisines and modern traditions let diverse Malaysian audiences see themselves on screen.
- Astro's celebrity icons gave the film personal familiarity without making it a conventional star vehicle.
- Telling one story across many formats let the same idea travel from cinema to social feeds intact.
What it did
The campaign won a Silver Kancil 2025 in Entertainment (Fiction & Non-fiction Film) plus Bronzes for branded content on broadcast and online, film direction, music and Malay copywriting — recognition that the storytelling resonated wherever it played.
What you can take
Culture beats formula in festive advertising: instead of showing an ideal Raya everyone has seen, Astro showed many real Rayas, and audiences recognised themselves in the difference.
Since then
Astro continued to push cultural authenticity in its festive storytelling after the Kancil wins, describing the campaign as proof that Malaysian content can move beyond technical polish into shared cultural memory. The Silver and Bronze run at Kancil 2025 became part of Astro's broader showcase of brand work built on local cultural insight, including its Merdeka and horror-comedy activations.
Sources
- Lain Macamnya Raya (Kancil Awards entry)
- Astro Shines at Kancil Awards for Creative Storytelling and Cultural Impact
- Astro Memancar Aura Di Pentas Kancil Awards 2025
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