DesiDabba - Boss, Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jaye

It is shocking to see the number of advertisements floating around these days which portray women as desired objects and man as consumer, directly or in-directly. According to these advertisements the Man is the hunter, woman the hunted. Man the voyeur, woman the victim. At times some of these women advertisements are so over the top, that it makes it hard for the whole family to sit together and watch television. And sadly, there is no one to question the present market-and-media ethics that turns women’s bodies into consumer objects?

Consumerism talks about manipulating people’s desires. It’s basic and founding ideology is that one should be able to acquire all one wants. In other words, desired objects become commodities - available to the highest bidder. Bodies (commodities) are for sale, in “representation” and in “reality”. Modelling, be it nude or semi-nude is not considered a big deal in today’s society. It is considered as one of the few ways for women qua women to make money. Male desire is aroused by this display of titillating female bodies. This results in passive viewing to active buying. And this is where Consumerism meets Sexism. This however is not where the relationship ends; it at times further leads to “Sexual Violence”.

Continue reading ‘Consumerism And Sex’

I’m quite offended by this new Sprite ad. A lot of ads seem to be offending me these days…no, it isn’t because ads have suddenly become offensive, it’s because I’m watching more TV. And being increasingly appalled by what popular culture is shoving down our gullets.

But to come back to the baki-sab-bakwaas drink, the ad features a guy telling his lady love that he must leave. When she asks Juliet-like why he has to go so early, he replies,

I’ve a date with my other girlfriend.

*Giggle giggle at boyfriend’s mischieviousness*

Cut to boyfriend sliding into seat facing girlfriend no.2 who inquires pettishly, why he’s late. And he drawls,

Had a date with my other girlfriend.

*Giggle giggle at boyfriend’s mischieviousness*

Underline the “At least I’m honest!!” line along with the standard all-else-is-crap funda. Ting tong.

Continue reading ‘The Cad Fad’

I’m practically de-sensitized to the trash overload from the television set. After all..

Got thirteen channels of shit on the TV to choose from…

But every now and then there comes along something that makes me sit up and take notice.

It would have been a normal, frenzied rush-hour day just like another. And a TV schedule of saans-bahu soaps jostling with fudge-eality shows, squeezed in between commercials for insurance policies, shampoos and perfume-smelling detergents. And then it happened.

60% of women call in sick from work on a bad hair day!

…the colourful screen proudly proclaimed to me. Followed by a flood of digi-enhanced, branded-director-signature-style glossy images before you could say SEXIST!!

Continue reading ‘Hair-Raising On The Tube’

We Indians take our religion, region, state, caste, sub-caste, sub-sub-caste very seriously. We like to think that our religion/region/caste is superior to others. Why blame the Indians? The world is divided into such groups based on region/country/state/language/religion and any damn thing we can find to differentiate us from others.

The new ad from Idea telecom featuring Abhishek Bachchan is a good solution to this discrimination. Whoever thought of the concept has thought quite deep about the groupism we deal in. The ad feature Abhishek Bachchan as the sarpanch of a village. To avoid the infighting between the people of the village based on caste, the sarpanch (head man) orders not to call anybody by their name. They will be known by their mobile numbers.

Watch it to get an idea about idea. The ad is simple in concept and effectively focuses on the “IDEA” brand too.

Continue reading ‘Kya IDEA Hai?’

What with the inflation and collapsing economies, we increasingly find it hard to live our life without advertisements and sponsorships. Product placements seem to have penetrated every aspect of our visible life¹.

But the product placements we see in everyday life can go two ways (like songs in Indian movies) : subliminal messages blending the ads with the content seamlessly, or in your face marketing. Recently I came across these two different approaches in two TV serials:

Scenario 1: Eureka is a township housing the best of the best scientific minds in US, working to push the boundaries of science, in a military contracts company. In one episode, the head of the company is in a video conference. When he finishes the conference, the screen shifts to the logo of the phone manufacturing company².

Continue reading ‘In Your Face’