Kurkure launches Rs 10 Ribbon Pakoda in South India

Kurkure is taking a sharper regional turn. The PepsiCo India snack brand has launched Kurkure Ribbon Pakoda, a packaged version of the South Indian classic, aimed squarely at Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

The product is made with rice flour, urad, chana and moong dals, sesame seeds and black pepper, with Guntur chilli adding a spicier heat. It is cooked in rice bran oil and, in a nod to cleaner snacking, contains no palm oil, artificial colours or artificial flavours.

01 · The regional play behind the pack

For Kurkure, this is not a one-off flavour drop. The launch sits within its regional product portfolio, a signal that India’s diverse food culture is becoming a product strategy rather than a campaign theme.

Ankit Agarwal, marketing director, Kurkure, PepsiCo India, described Ribbon Pakoda as a snack that “evokes familiarity, nostalgia and joy”. He added that the brand is “reimagining it through the distinctive Kurkure experience” to bring regional tastes that feel “exciting and authentically local”.

That positioning matters. Regional snacks carry deep memory and pride; a brand that tries to own the format has to respect those associations while adding something its own.

02 · A language-first campaign

The launch film doesn’t just borrow a regional flavour; it borrows a regional cinematic grammar. The campaign uses a South Indian cinema-style cop setting to tell the product story, playing on the familiarity of traditional snacks and the memories of recipes made at home.

Media planning is also local-first: Kannada across television and digital, and Tamil and Telugu across digital platforms.

For CMOs, that is a useful reminder that localisation means more than dubbing a national ad. It means choosing the right language-market mix for each screen and speaking in the entertainment codes the audience already loves.

03 · Why the price ladder matters

The product will be sold through neighbourhood kirana stores in the three southern states.

• 28g pack: Rs 10, a low-risk trial price
• 56g pack: Rs 20, a natural step-up purchase

Combining an impulse-friendly entry pack with a larger repeat pack is a classic FMCG move, but it is especially relevant for an unfamiliar branded regional snack. The Rs 10 pack lowers the barrier to first taste; the Rs 20 pack gives the brand room to build consumption.

04 · What brand leaders should watch

The launch is a compact case study in regionalisation: product truth, local language, trade channel and price ladder all aligned. If it works, expect Kurkure and its rivals to mine more state-level snack formats rather than pushing one national taste.

The marketing take: Regional authenticity, told in the region’s language, at a trial-friendly price, is becoming a scalable growth play.

Source: Afaqs!

Mad About Marketing Desk The strategists and writers at Mad About Marketing, writing up what we see in the work every week.