IN AN ERA where your attention is the most valuable currency, St Patrick’s Day seems to tick all the boxes of what Indians are looking for—a celebration that lets you be yourself, with a message to boot.
The evolution of St Patrick’s Day (March 17) from what is essentially an observance of Ireland’s patron saint, rooted in Catholicism and Irish mythology, into a global ‘mark-your-calendar’ every spring is no accident. It was built upon by the Irish government as the country’s cultural calling card, and accepted with open arms (one of which is usually clutching a frothy mug of stout) all over the world, and now slowly and steadily in India as well.
Hemang Chandat would know. The chief commercial officer of Monika Alcobev, which retails Bushmills in India, was planning theme promotional events to promote the Irish whiskey in Indian cities, and found to his pleasant surprise that the level of engagement was particularly high.
Make merry: St Patrick’s Day celebrations at the Ireland embassy in New Delhi | instagram@irelandinindia
“I realised that every time a new menu or a theme night goes out, the first thing the consumers do is look for the story behind it,” said Chandat. “They look it up on Instagram, and explore more about it while they are at the bar. The attention span that consumers have for such activities is far more than what it used to be.”
Chandat pins it down to the post-Covid hunger for experiences and activities, which fit in nicely with the ‘let-your-hair-down’ vibes that St Patrick’s Day celebration has acquired across the world, especially in the last couple of decades.
“There is a clear shift in how urban youth is choosing to spend time today. They are seeking more experiential ways to socialise, and global cultural moments like St Patrick’s Day and Halloween are increasingly becoming part of that mix,” said Divya Aggarwal, chief growth officer at Impresario, one of India’s biggest restaurant chains, with brands like Social and Smoke House Deli. What’s driving this isn’t just exposure, she added, but a growing need for experiences that feel immersive and offer a sense of shared escape from everyday routines. “Importantly, this isn’t imitation; it is adoption with a distinctly Indian lens,” she said.
While the Ireland embassy has been observing the day since the 1960s, say much like how the French embassy does Bastille Day with an evening soiree every year in July, Paddy’s took a life of its own in Indian cities only in the last few years. Ireland’s own initiatives around the world like ‘Global Greening’, which had iconic buildings like Mumbai’s Taj Mahal hotel lit up in green (the de facto colour of St Patrick’s Day celebrations), plus major marketing push by Irish icons like Guinness and Jameson have led the way.
But what also made St Paddy’s Day a favourite around the world perhaps had to do with a certain kind of Irish image and vibe that preceded the projection. The Irish have historically been known to be rakish and fun loving, with a particular penchant for the tipple. Their celebrations, carried across the seas initially by the wave of immigrants to America a century prior, solidified over the past few decades as the pub culture of the British isles went global in a post-WTO world. In an era where gentrification is in the best interest of upwardly mobile marketing juggernauts in search of charging premium pricing (for example, the number of cocktail bars and Insta-friendly speakeasies proliferating in Indian metros in the past couple of years), the Irish pub remains the last refuge for those who want to just relax and rock the night the ol’ fashioned way.
Jerin George would agree. The Gurugram ad man says that amid the creative wing of big ad agencies in India, from Leo Burnett to Dentsu, there is an unwritten rule: before and after every ad shoot, the team assembles in a Irish-themed pub (preferably) to down a drink. “The whole woody interiors, the cask barrel-like accessory, that certain image of the Irish people drinking and celebrating and having a good time—it may be a heavy stereotype, but it attracts the crowds who go out to have a good time and not just to click pics for their social media feed,” he said.
Kevin Kelly
Ironically, this year, Paddy’s was rather muted in India, with many restaurants and bars not venturing forth with promotions. “With the LPG cylinder crisis, none of the restaurants I work with did any St Patrick’s Day this year,” said a noted restaurant consultant in Bengaluru.
That did not stop the Ireland embassy as well as the Irish whiskies in the Indian market like Bushmills to have a ball. Bushmills pushed the day into a fortnight-long promotion, stretching from March 17 to March 29, transforming many premium bars across India into hubs “celebrating Irish pub culture”. Another brand hosted a big do at Gurugram’s CyberHub, which featured music, and get this, even a pickle ball match.
The embassy itself went the whole hog, with none other than Ireland’s attorney general Rossa Fanning visiting. Programmes included receptions at the embassy, a Shamrock Cup GAA (football) match as well as a massive do in Bengaluru hosted by Ireland’s honorary consul general and business heavyweight Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.
“In India, we mark St Patrick’s Day with a more modest celebration with both Irish and Indian friends and we also use the occasion to celebrate the links between our two countries,” said Kevin Kelly, Ireland’s ambassador to India. “The best of Irish food, drink and culture is part of the celebration.”
Chandat has no doubt that St Patrick’s Day has only scratched the surface of possibilities in India. He gives the example of Halloween, how when it started getting celebrated, it was just about “painting your face white and landing up in a bar”. Today, there are special fashion websites that release Halloween clothes just before the weekend, he pointed out. “I think in a few years, we will reach a point like how Halloween is today, where consumers will put extra efforts to dress in a certain manner, wear green, have masks on, have roads blocked for St Patrick’s Day like how it is globally,” he said. A restaurateur in Mumbai said that while they have celebrated Halloween in the past, they are mighty interested in the growth of the new entrant, much like how Valentine’s Day entered the entertainment scene around the turn of this century.
Valentine’s, Halloween, St Patrick’s... what’s next? Chandat has a ready answer for the next trend bubbling under from abroad: Oktoberfest, already being celebrated by establishments in Indian metros in the last year or so, as well as ‘Day of the Dead’, a Mexican revelry that is getting big abroad.
“There are more cultural festivals that are out there, so you never know,” quipped Chandat, “you might just have the (Rio) Carnival happening here soon!”