Creative critique from a gender lens: 18-22 July

Dr AL Sharada, director, Population First, reviews a selection of ads from last week

Jul 28, 2022 09:18:00 PM | Article | Dr AL Sharada

What worked:

Out of the three ads of naukri.com, the flop chain film shows a working woman being up to date with the new developments in her field and raring to go forward in her career. The ad projects the woman as confident, ambitious and empowered.

Gender Sensitivity Score (GSS): 4/5

Plum

The ad moves away from body image issues to focus on what could cause pimples and the remedy is promoted as the Plum care routine. It is another matter that the solution lies in avoiding late nights, work-related stress and pollution to avoid pimples!

GSS: 3.75/5

Licious

The ad shows a man being comfortable in the kitchen and attempting to cook biryani, which requires higher levels of culinary skills. It shows the woman is a matter of fact about his lack of culinary skills, which is refreshing considering the general tendency to show women being excessively obliged or thankful to a man who cooks.

GSS: 3.75/5

Times of India

A well-balanced ad that gives equal space and time to men and women from different backgrounds and abilities.

GSS: 3.75/5

What did not work:

Nivea

The ad shows the young woman being diffident, worried about what others think about her dark underarms and avoiding giving her 100 per cent to the job that she is doing because of this. Reinforces gendered body image and insecurity.

GSS: 2.5/5

Could have done better:

Himalaya

The ad looks more like an ad against the use of soaps than for Himalaya Neem Facewash! Are pimples only a problem for young women? Or is it that men do not bother about them?

GSS: 2.5/5

Other films from the week:

Maaza