Gender inequality has always been an inherent element of our society for ages. The chauvinistic behaviour of men, the domination of men over women, and discrimination between men and women were innate in the patriarchal social structure of our country. We exist in the 21st century where we rejoice and celebrate when a male is born and mute or absolutely no celebration if a girl child takes birth. Since time immemorial women are being considered the weaker sex by society. It is supposed that women should be in the custody of their father then after marriage their husband and in old age the custody shifts to their son. This means women are never expected to live their life independently. She is not supposed to take her own decisions or live her life according to her own terms and conditions. Women are being discriminated against in many religious beliefs as well in the Indian context.
This biased attitude has also emerged vibrantly because women in society apparently have accepted their subordinate position to men. Instead of voicing out against it, we get to witness times when a woman herself is willing to be in that position and fight to be in that sphere. Extreme poverty and lack of education are causes of a woman's low position in society. India is a nation where educating a girl is still seen as a bad investment because she is bound to leave her parental home someday.
Thus, a woman is supposed to learn household work like cooking, washing clothes, taking care of her children, etc whereas it's okay for a man not to know any household works. UNDP's Gender Inequality Index: India's ranking is 127 out of 152 countries on the list. This ranking is above Afghanistan as far as SAARC countries are concerned. Advertisements are a reflection of the society we live in. Traditional ads used to be very sexist.
American product ads in the 50's such as:
• 'Heinz condenso' soup ad began with the tagline 'Most husbands, nowadays, have stopped beating their wives' which apparently justifies domestic the violence which is still a harsh reality in many Indian homes.
• 'Van Heusen' tie ad began with the tagline 'Show her it's a man's world'.
• 'Alcoa Aluminium' bottle ad opens with the tagline "This bottle cap opens "without a blade, a bottle opener, or even a husband. You mean a woman can open it?" which talks about women being inferior in terms of physical strength to men.
During the 60's American ads like:
• 'Silva Thins' came with a tagline 'Cigarettes are like women. The best is thin and rich' which asserts true objectification of women. Women were considered mere objects of satisfaction and pleasure by men.
Traditional Indian ads were no better. Detergent ads like Nirma where only women were shown washing clothes, and condom ads like Manforce, Kamasutra etc only talks about men's sexuality and their needs. The women in those ads are only shown as objects to fulfil men's sexual desires. In the Lotus Oil ad, a newlywed bride is shown cooking food for the family for the first time and is expected to cook good food to
keep the family happy and together. Now in the age of Millennials, society is evolving and is open to change and so are the advertisements of this time.
• In the Flipkart ad, a small girl and a boy are friends. The ad portrays that it is okay and normal for a boy to like the colour pink because apparently, it is just a colour, boys also can cry, and a girl can even love and can be good at sports. The boy is again shown helping the mother with washing clothes and other works of the house.
• All the Ariel ads "Share the load" gives a strong message that it is not only a woman's job to clean and wash clothes.
• The Tata Tea ad "Inequality gets learnt, Equality needs teaching" are some of the modern-day ads which talk about gender equality.
• The Biba ad which rebukes the dowry custom inherent in our society for ages.
• The Sabhyata ad where the dad restricts the son to go out and not her daughter, giving a lesson that if women are unsafe outside her home it is because of the men. So, the men should be kept in check and not the girl. People are heavily influenced by advertisements. Through such advertisements, we can bring out a change in people's outlook on many things. Our generation has moved over stereotypes and taboo customs. Thus, advertisements play a very vital role in reforming and changing the thought process of people and bring a tremendous impact on people's lives.
Comments