Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
She is
shown sacrificing and selfless, the epitome of care and the manager of the family,
but in this entire scene where does she come as a single entity. Everywhere the
point of reference is the womans relationship with her husband, children and many
others. The advertisement shows what a woman needs to be in the modern age,
how like an extraordinary individual she has to be complete with all the delirious
traits in her, and education is also necessary to make her a good wife, mother or a
daughter. She is not seen in isolation, or devoid of these relationships with her
significant others.
The extent to which the advertisements have gone is very high. The advertisements
of stationary items are also full of such content that sustains patriarchy. In a very
popular advertisement of Camlin permanent marker, the women of the house are
mourning the death of a man. They are trying to rub off the vermillion mark Bindi
from the forehead of the dead mans wife. The ad begins with the note about what
Bindi stands for and how a widow is not supposed to put Bindi. The mourning
women are not able to rub the Bindi, because it was put up using Camlin permanent
marker, because of which the dead man comes alive. The ad shows that either the
Bindi and the man both had to go , or both had to be present , so the man comes
alive. Though the ad seems humorous, but it reinforces the idea that a woman has
no right to embellish herself if her husband dies and how she needs to carry the
symbols of her marriage until the husband lives and has to maintain and make it
visible to the society of her marital status even after the death of the husband, by
not embellishing herself, following a certain code of dress she has to wear, the tag
of a widow throughout her life. The advertisement of any stationary item is usually
meant for children, and advertisements like these are reimbursing the concepts of
suhaag , widowhood, that are suppressive to women into childrens minds and
leading to their socialization imbibed with patriarchal stereotypes.
After the victimization of women, it is also important to note that show men also
suffer the burden of patriarchy and how ads are contributing to these stereotypes.
The market has now started producing cosmetic products for men as well. There are
separate fairness creams for men in the market. An advertisement of Emami Fair
and Handsome cream features famous Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan. The shows
a boy using womens fairness cream, and the song in the background says, chup
chup k kahe , tu ladkiyo ki cream lagaaye?, then an answer comes chee . The
guy is ridiculed and mocked by all others including Shah Rukh Khan because he
uses womens fairness cream. The d reflects the scenario in our society, that has
defined different roles and products for men and women. If a man wants to use a
cream for himself and has no side effects, still he has to use separate products
meant for him. He is ridiculed if he deviates from the norms and uses some
products that are used by women. His masculinity is questioned, and in the mockery
he is feminized. The ad presents a very problematic situation wherein the concept
of feminity is taken as a tool to ridicule somebody, the ad shows that men are
different and it is shameful if they show any feminine traits, or desires. ladkiyo ki
cream lagaye , this sent5ence does not focus on the fact that the boy is using
some cream for fairness that is not fir for him , rather the fact5 that he is using a
womens fairness cream becomes an issue here. The whole basis of mockery in
this advertisement is that it is a womens fairness cream. This ad seems a
highlighting of the differences between both the sexes and creating watertight
compartments across which any kind of movement leads to being mocked and
victim of sarcasm. This is how advertisements are making bus run behind an ideal
of flawless image almost like an illusion and they are also making us hate our own
real selves.
Another advertisement of liquor brand which indirectly legitimizes mens
prerogative over drinking and flirting with any woman. The advertisement shows
two men in a lift who squeeze their stomachs inside to look slim an attractive and
impress the woman standing inside the lift. The ad ends with a voice over that says
men will be men, thus giving a justification of whatever they do. The concluding
line shows that how it is natural for men to flirt with any woman, and how they
cannot stop doing that. The line men will be men has become almost a jargon and
is being used by many viewers for justification of any act regardless of the fact
whether it is right or wrong. In a way this ad also shows that flirting and drinking are
a mans cup of tea. The phrase men will be men is used in such a glorifying and
tempting way that one doesnt find anything wrong in it. But it is like an iceberg, it
is just the surface that has ice, when you break it and go deeper, it consists of
completely different forms, it has layers of latent messages.
The recent advertisement of a matrimonial website, that of Bharat Matrimonial
Website, that of Bharat Matrimony app shows a very problematic situation. Arrange
marriages are the carrier of patriarchal norms and the ad reinforces these even
more. In the marriage market men and women, both are reduced to commodities
that have to sell themselves to get married. The girl wants a man who is one in one
lakh men, she wants a wide range of options to choose a husband for he , she
scrolls down the list of men in her phone ruthlessly , just like the way we scroll down
a fashion website to choose clothes for nus. Mean are reduced to mere objects, like
food item or some furniture. Also this ad creates an illusion of empowering women,
that now they have the liberty to choose a husband for themselves, but it is just a
raw deal. She still has to dress up herself, wear a traditional saree so that she can
get through the selection process and win a husband and win a husband through
her elegant looks. She has to submit herself to the patriarchal system of arrange
marriages and the rituals associated with it. Also men are being victimized too, if
not in terms of beauty, but in terms of financial assets and stability they need to
compete with one lakh men who have registered themselves on the matrimonial
website.
But things are gradually changing now and there are a few advertisements that are
trying to break through the stereotypes. for example, the latest advertisement of
Ariel , a detergent washing powder, the ad named share the load, wherein an old
father feels sorry for not teaching his kids that a game of kitchen-kitchen or playing
with the dolls isnt just a game of girls, but boys can also play the same. He feels
sorry for such socialization that every parent contributes, because of which the
children internalize various gender roles and stereotypes. Another ad that features
Madhuri Dixit, shows that since childhood bots are taught, boys dont cry and this