Astro showed Raya as gloriously imperfect and won Malaysia's Kancil Silver

Every Hari Raya, Malaysian festive ads re-run the same sentimental film: nostalgia, family reunions and slow-motion rendang shots. Astro's challenge was to stay emotionally resonant while breaking out of a sea of lookalike festive commercials.

The agency NAGA DDB embraced the truth that Raya today is loud, diverse and beautifully chaotic — every family celebrates differently, from state cuisines to evolving fashion and modern-day traditions. Instead of idealising Raya, Astro celebrated the real thing with 'Meriahnya Lain Macam', following Jumaah, a single mother navigating the clash between old customs and the new ones her children and spouses bring home.

The idea was executed as a multi-genre brand film blending comedy, drama and warmth, starring Astro's own celebrity icons, then told across formats: a 7-minute film, summary clips, scroll-ready shorts, bumpers and audio ads.

Results: 177 million total impressions, 7.5 million minutes watched on YouTube and a 24% average view-through rate. It won Best of Malaysia and Multiformat Storytelling at the YouTube Works Awards 2025, plus a Silver and five Bronzes at the Kancil Awards 2025, and represented Malaysia at YouTube Works APAC.

Show the real, chaotic Raya instead of the ideal one

Idealised Raya was everyone's territory; the real, imperfect Raya belonged to Astro.

A single mother's story made changing traditions emotionally specific instead of generic.

Multiformat distribution let one story travel through film, shorts and audio at once.

Astro's own celebrity faces added familiarity and a personal connection.

Festive ads compete on sameness; Astro's imperfect, funny truth, stretched across formats, made Malaysians see themselves in the brand.

After winning YouTube Works 2025 in September, the campaign took a Silver Entertainment Kancil and five Bronzes at the December 2025 Kancil Awards. Astro represented Malaysia at the YouTube Works APAC Awards in October 2025 and served as official media partner of the Kancil festival, where its broader slate also won Bronzes for the Merdeka film and Klinik Pontianak.