Mortein made the Diwali diya repel mosquitoes while preserving the ritual

Diwali creates a practical conflict for an insect-control brand: homes open doors and windows to welcome Lakshmi, while the same gesture lets mosquitoes in. A warning campaign would have competed with the ritual.

Havas and Mortein made the ritual itself functional. Raksha Jyoti was a diya made with mosquito-repellent wax, so the act of lighting the lamp also released protection.

The campaign distributed packs to more than 25,000 households and used the product as education in high-risk areas. Manifest reported 51 million impressions, a 43% rise in search volume and 96% desire for the product in future Diwalis.

Kyoorius described the execution as a direct-marketing innovation: a traditional object kept its cultural role while quietly doing the job a separate repellent device normally does.

Make the ritual do the protection

It avoided a behavior-change fight during a festival.

The product made the invisible risk tangible without fear-heavy messaging.

Distribution doubled as education because people could use the object immediately.

The brand claim moved from advertising language into a physical household artifact.

When behavior is sacred or sticky, do not fight it. Put the intervention inside the behavior so compliance feels like continuity.

Raksha Jyoti was shortlisted across Abby and Kyoorius health, activation, PR and direct categories. The idea also gave Mortein a festive platform that could be repeated without asking consumers to abandon the custom that created the risk.