Brand case study
Keraleeyam 2026: Kerala and Australia in one identity.
For Samatha Australia, I designed the identity, the poster campaign, the motion poster and the website for Keraleeyam 2026, the 70th Kerala Piravi celebration at Bunjil Place Theatre in Melbourne on 1 November 2026. One system carried it from the first teaser to the thank-you post.
- Client
- Samatha Australia
- Event
- Kerala Piravi, Sun 1 Nov 2026
- Venue
- Bunjil Place Theatre, Melbourne
- My role
- Identity, campaign, motion, website design and build
- Year
- 2026
From the event website and the campaign itself.
01
The challenge
Samatha Australia is a volunteer-led community for Malayalees in Australia, founded in 2024. Keraleeyam 2026 was its biggest night yet: the 70th anniversary of the formation of Kerala, a headline band, seven art forms and community performers on one stage at Bunjil Place Theatre in Narre Warren. The brand had to feel like home to Malayalis far from Kerala, sit naturally in Melbourne, and sell four tiers of tickets through a campaign that ran for months and was posted by volunteers.
02
Goals
Two places, one mark
Kerala and Australia held inside one emblem, with the Malayalam name first.
A system volunteers can run
Two colours, two patterns and a fixed poster footer with date, venue and a QR code, so every new post looks like the last.
Every post sells a seat
Each ticket poster does one job and ends in a QR code that opens the booking page.
One site for everything
Art forms, the venue, tickets, the community and an open call for performers on one page.
03
The identity
The emblem holds both places inside one circle: a coconut palm frond for Kerala, the sails of the Opera House for Australia, and the backwater waves beneath them. The Malayalam wordmark sits first, set in Gayathri, with the tagline Celebrating cultures that unite us. Kerala Green and Australia Yellow carry everything, and the frond and the waves become the two patterns of the system.
- Palm frond
- Opera House sails
- Backwater
04
The campaign
Tease
Before tickets went on sale, short teasers set the date and the mood: one line of type, green and yellow, nothing else.
Call for performers
An open call for community performers in three group items, led by Mega Thiruvathira, with the line-up of seven traditions behind it.
Sell
Ticket posts did one job each: the launch, tickets on sale, and a limited AFL weekend offer. Every one ends in a QR code to booking.
Count down
In the final weeks the posts turned emotional: Kerala's art forms on Melbourne streets, in English and Malayalam.
The day, and after
Kerala Piravi greetings on the day, then a thank-you to Melbourne.
05
In motion
Home, for one night
A woman waits at a Melbourne tram stop. A green tram passes, and she is a Mohiniyattam dancer. The film closes on the line of the campaign: home, for one night.
06
The website
Seven art forms, one carousel
Each art form gets its Malayalam name, its type and one line on what it is: Thiruvathira, Chenda Melam, Margam Kali, Oppana, Mohiniyattam, Kalarippayattu and Bharatanatyam.
See the theatre before you book
A 3D walkthrough of Bunjil Place Theatre loads only when someone asks for it, so the page stays light until then.
Tiers that look like tickets
VIP, Premium, Gold and Silver as ticket stubs, with a sold-out state, plus accessible booking and box office hours beside them.
Two lands, one story
A bridge section joins Kerala and Australia, then the story of Samatha Australia and what its mark means.
An open call that explains itself
Three steps: register, send a video on WhatsApp, hear back. Training is provided, so nobody needs experience to apply.
A footer that still sells
The date, the venue and a scan-to-book QR code repeat at the bottom, so a ticket is never more than a scroll away.
07
On the phone
08
Design system
- Emblem and Malayalam wordmark
- Frond pattern
- Backwater pattern
- Poster footer with date, venue and QR
- Ticket stub
- Sponsor strip
09
Outcome
Keraleeyam 2026 ran on 1 November 2026 at Bunjil Place Theatre. The Silver tier sold out during the campaign, and one identity carried every post, from the first teaser to the thank-you to Melbourne.
- Emblem and wordmark
- Two brand patterns
- 20+ campaign posters
- Motion poster
- keraleeyam.com.au, designed and built
- Ticket offer posts
- Call for performers
Event photos are not shown. Posters and screens are from the live campaign and website.