Nasi Berempah, Not Gold — Marrybrown’s P. Ramlee Tribute

In a festive season crowded with glossy Raya films, saturated colours and cinematic melodrama, P. Ramlee has returned not through an archive reel, but through a bucket of fried chicken and a plate of nasi berempah.

That, in essence, is the playful premise behind Marrybrown’s new Ramadan campaign, Santapan Ramadan, created by Dentsu Creative Malaysia.

Instead of chasing spectacle, the brand leans into something far more powerful: collective memory.

Mining nostalgia instead of budgets

The campaign’s centrepiece is a digital film titled, Ali Baba Bujang Rangop.

Shot deliberately in grainy black-and-white, it recreates the visual language of the 1960s Malay cinema era — instantly recognisable to generations raised on weekend reruns of P. Ramlee classics.

The creative reference point is Ali Baba Bujang Lapok, the legendary musical comedy in which a bumbling protagonist stumbles upon a cave of treasure belonging to forty thieves.

Marrybrown’s version keeps the cave but swaps the gold.

Instead, the treasure is a golden platter of MB Nasi Berempah — the brand’s new Ramadan menu item.

In the film, Ali Baba cracks open the cave not with “Open Sesame” but with a gleefully absurd chant:

“Niat makan ayam rangup, nasi sedap… aku ngap!”

It is exactly the kind of playful lyric P. Ramlee himself might have written.

The result is a parody that feels affectionate rather than opportunistic.

Cultural Shorthand Malaysians Instantly Understand

For marketers, the genius lies in how efficiently the campaign communicates.

Mention P. Ramlee and Malaysians instantly fill in the blanks: slapstick humour, catchy songs, moral lessons delivered with a wink, and characters who are flawed but lovable.

Marrybrown taps into that cultural shorthand.

Instead of building a new story world from scratch, the campaign borrows a familiar narrative rhythm.

Ali Baba discovers the “treasure,” steals the nasi berempah, and inevitably gets caught — only for the thieves themselves to repent and join him for berbukapuasa at a modern-day Marrybrown outlet.

The payoff is simple: good food is meant to be shared.

And in Ramadan storytelling, that message never grows old.

When Nostalgia Becomes Brand Equity

According to Marrybrown’s chief marketing officer Lynn Low, invoking P. Ramlee was a deliberate cultural strategy.

Few figures, she notes, occupy such a deep space in Malaysia’s national imagination.

His films are quoted at family gatherings, replayed on television during festive seasons and referenced across generations.

For a homegrown brand like Marrybrown, the connection feels natural.

It reinforces something the chain has long positioned itself as: a Malaysian fast-food brand speaking in a Malaysian voice.

That authenticity matters in a category increasingly crowded with international players.

A Modern Twist to An Old Formula

The campaign also recognises how nostalgia travels today.

While the visual language nods to 1960s cinema, the distribution is thoroughly contemporary.

Santapan Ramadan is rolling out across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, where younger audiences are discovering — or rediscovering — the charm of old-school Malaysian comedy.

The cast includes popular content creators known for parodying classic film tropes, helping bridge the generational gap between those who grew up with P. Ramlee and those encountering the style for the first time on social media.

Why This Works

In a festive advertising landscape that often tries to outdo itself with bigger productions each year, Marrybrown’s approach feels refreshingly restrained.

The campaign does not rely on sweeping emotional monologues or elaborate cinematic spectacle.

Instead, it leans on something far rarer in modern advertising: shared cultural humour.

And in doing so, it reminds marketers of a simple truth.

Sometimes the fastest way to Malaysians’ hearts is not through a tear-jerking story.

It is through a familiar laugh — and perhaps a plate of nasi berempah that tastes like treasure.