What Kyoorius does

Kyoorius Communications Private Limited, founded in 2006 and headquartered in Mumbai, operates India's most established creative industry awards and events platform under the tagline 'Make Boring Obsolete.' The company runs four core awards programs: the Kyoorius Creative Awards (KCA, since 2014) for advertising and communications, the Kyoorius Design Awards (KDA, since 2013) for design, the Kyoorius Marketing Awards (KMA, launched 2025) for marketing effectiveness and strategy, and the Kyoorius Young Blood Awards for emerging talent aged 26 and below. All awards use a non-hierarchical recognition system structured around Elephant tiers (Baby, Blue, Purple, Grey, Black), with the Black Elephant having been awarded to only 23 works since 2014, signaling extreme selectivity. Kyoorius also produces two flagship conferences — Designyatra (design) and ZeeMelt (marketing, presented by Zee) — and operates Kyoorius Kollege for talent development and The Shortlist, an audit service advising agencies on likely winners at global awards shows. In 2025, Kyoorius entered a strategic partnership with The Clio Awards under which it sponsors 50% of 2026 Clio entry fees for 2025 KCA and KDA entrants.

Revenue is generated primarily through unit-priced award entry fees (e.g., INR 13,000-14,500 + GST per KCA entry; INR 20,000-25,000 + GST per KMA entry; INR 7,000-8,500 + GST per regional KCA entry), tiered between First Chance and Last Chance deadlines. Secondary revenue streams include curation and advisory services delivered to enterprise clients (Deloitte, Times Group, STAR/Disney Star, Skoda India), event partnerships and sponsorships (Zee, Pidilite, Colours, ABP News), bespoke co-branded award programs (Times Power of Print, Star Re.Imagine Awards), and premium awards-night attendance at venues such as the Jio World Convention Centre, BKC. Distribution runs through a self-serve digital entry platform (entries.kyoorius.com), direct outreach via zonal representatives (Pinky Ballal for South & East; Manan Nangalia and Parag Tawte for West & North), and in-person awards nights and conferences.

Kyoorius is founder-led by Rajesh Kejriwal (Founder and CEO), privately held with no disclosed external funding, parent company, or subsidiaries, and operates as an independent private limited company with a 11-50 employee base serving the South Asia region (India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka). The technology stack is not a product platform: the core operational asset is the entries portal and the institutional brand/IP built around the Elephant trophy system, the Clio co-branding, and 18+ years of curated events and publications connecting India's advertising, design, and marketing communities.

Name

Kyoorius

Legal name

Kyoorius Communications Private Limited

Website

https://kyoorius.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kyoorius is a Mumbai-based, founder-led creative industry platform operating awards programs (KCA, KDA, KMA, Young Blood), conferences (Designyatra, ZeeMelt), and curation services for advertising, design, and marketing professionals across South Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Creative Industry Awards & Events

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Virtual/Hybrid Conference Production & Platform Management (THAHACAM), Virtual Awards Ceremonies & Competitions (Judging, Voting) (MPAGAOAN), Conference & Trade Show Registration Platforms (THAHAFAB)

Keywords

• Creative industry awards
• Advertising awards programs
• Design conferences
• Marketing industry events
• Creative community platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Mumbai

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Awards Entry Fees: Kyoorius charges entry fees for submissions to its award programs. Fees vary by program and deadline phase (First Chance vs Last Chance). The company also generates revenue through event partnerships, sponsorships, and premium awards night attendance.
2. Curation & Advisory Services: Kyoorius offers deep-dive curation and advisory services to brands and organisations seeking to build communities, engage audiences, or create IP. Past clients include Deloitte, Times Group, Skoda, and STAR.
3. Event Partnerships: Kyoorius generates revenue through meticulous event partnerships including workshops, expositions, and competitions, with past collaborations with Zee, Pidilite, Colours, and ABP News.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kyoorius runs multiple curated awards programs (KCA, KMA, KDA, and Young Blood Awards) that recognize creative, marketing, and design excellence across South Asia, using a distinctive non-hierarchical Elephant-tier system. The company also produces large-scale industry conferences — Designyatra for designers and ZeeMelt for marketers — and offers bespoke curation and advisory services to brands and organizations (including Deloitte, Times Group, Skoda, and STAR) seeking to build creative communities. All programs feed off a self-serve digital entries platform and culminate in annual awards night events.

Product overview

Kyoorius is a creative industry platform operating primarily as an awards organization and event producer in India. Its core offerings include three major awards programs: Kyoorius Creative Awards (KCA), Kyoorius Marketing Awards (KMA), and Kyoorius Design Awards (KDA), all featuring a non-hierarchical Elephant-tier recognition system. The company also runs the Kyoorius Young Blood Awards for emerging talent, and produces events including Designyatra (design conference) and ZeeMelt (marketing conference). A strategic partnership with The Clio Awards provides pathways for Indian creatives to global recognition. The company operates an online entries platform (entries.kyoorius.com) for award submissions and manages various niche award collaborations like Times Power of Print and Star Re.Imagine Awards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kyoorius Creative Awards (KCA) The flagship advertising awards program in India that honors creative excellence across advertising, marketing, and communications work, using a non-hierarchical Elephant-tier system (Baby, Blue, Purple, Grey, Black) instead of traditional Gold/Silver/Bronde medals. Open to agencies and brands across South Asia.
• Kyoorius Marketing Awards (KMA) Awards recognizing marketing that delivers measurable results and is grounded in strong strategic thinking, with Marketing Effectiveness and Marketing Strategy tracks. Presented by Zee and powered by The Clio Awards, with entry fees of INR 20,000 (First Chance) or INR 25,000 (Last Chance) plus GST per entry.
• Kyoorius Design Awards (KDA) Awards program celebrating great design work throughout the year, judged by impartial Indian and international jurors across design disciplines. Open to design studios, graphic designers, product designers, and UX/UI professionals across India.
• Kyoorius Young Blood Awards Awards program recognizing outstanding creative work from young creative talent aged 26 and below, addressing real brand briefs. Open to full-time design students and young working professionals seeking portfolio building, peer recognition, and connection to potential employers and mentors.
• Designyatra A 3-day premium design conference organized by Kyoorius featuring presentations from design luminaries and networking opportunities for the Indian design community.
• ZeeMelt A 2-day premium marketing conference presented by Zee and organized by Kyoorius, bringing C-suite executives and media industry legends together for insights and networking.
• The Shortlist An audit service that helps agencies and individuals assess which of their entries are likely to win at major global award shows, providing pre-submission evaluation and feedback.
• Curation & Advisory Services A bespoke deep-dive service in which Kyoorius helps brands and organisations identify creative communities, audiences, or niches and builds IP that delivers return-on-relationships over multiple years. Past engagements include Deloitte, Times Group, Skoda, and STAR.
• Star Re.Imagine Awards An awards program curated by Kyoorius for STAR (Disney Star) that recognises creativity and integrated media in advertising campaigns aired during VIVO IPL on Star Sports and Disney+ Hotstar.
• Times Power of Print A print-only competition created and curated by Kyoorius in partnership with the Times Group to showcase and revive creativity and influence in print collaterals.

Quantifiable outcome

• 984 entries received for KCA 2026
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Clio AwardscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLandmark strategic partnership announced to elevate Indian creativity to the global stage. Kyoorius sponsors 50% of Clio Awards entry fees for all 2025 KCA and 2025 KDA entrants. The collaboration extends beyond awards to include learning, talent development, thought leadership, and global exchange initiatives.
• ZeecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerZee serves as the presenting partner for both Kyoorius Creative Awards and Kyoorius Marketing Awards. Zee is also the presenting partner for ZeeMelt, India's most premium marketing conference organized by Kyoorius.
• Indian Creative Women (ICW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Indian Creative Women (ICW) to present the Equality discipline under the Creativity For Good track. ICW also collaborates on the Purple Elephant award and flags regressive work in all entries submitted to Kyoorius awards.
• D&ADminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerD&AD partnered with Kyoorius for the Kyoorius Student Awards (2013-2016), bringing their high standards of judging process and expertise in student creative recognition.
• DeloitteminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKyoorius performed deep-dive curation and advisory services for Deloitte to build and connect with creative communities.
• Times GroupminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKyoorius partnered with Times Group to create Times Power of Print, a print-only competition to showcase and bring back creativity and influence to print collaterals.
• STAR (Disney Star)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerKyoorius provided curation and advisory services to STAR (Disney Star) to help build creative community engagement.
• Skoda IndiaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKyoorius performed deep-dive curation and advisory services for Skoda India to help connect with niche creative communities.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kyoorius
• Facebookfacebook.com/Kyoorius

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kyoorius