Creative critique from a gender lens: 6-10 March

Dr AL Sharada, director, Population First, reviews ads from last week on the basis of gender sensitivity

Mar 17, 2023 08:00:00 AM | Article | Dr AL Sharada Share -

What could have worked:

It is disappointing that when women are actively participating in cricket in all roles- as players, fans, reporters and analysts, the IPL ad is so very male-centric.

Featuring a few women cricketers as well as promoting the game would have made the ad so much more inclusive.

Gender Sensitivity Score (GSS): 2.5/5

What did not work:

Ads for financial and technical products and services often tend to be gender stereotypical as the ads featured this week show.

Aditya Birla Sunlife

The ad features a couple, a husband who is stressed out due to his financial responsibilities and concerns and a wife playing a supportive role.

The ad is very stereotypical, like many ads on financial services. It reinforces the traditional gender roles of men as providers and women as supporters. It perpetuates the stereotype that men are primarily responsible for managing finances and financial planning, with the financial contributions of women and their ability to make financial decisions being ignored.

It is important to show an equitable partnership between couples with both being actively involved in making financial decisions and planning for their future. It would resonate better with the double income young couples, the target audience of the communication, who believe in gender equality.

GSS: 2.5/5

Turtlemint

The Turtlemint ad also similarly reinforces the idea that men are more likely to be the financial advisers, that men are primarily responsible for financial planning and investment, with women being almost invisible in the communication.

GSS: 2.5/5

Scaler

Like financial services ads, technology-related ads also often sideline women and focus on men as the creators, promoters and users of technology. This scaler ad is no exception.

The ad features a male protagonist who is portrayed as a tech enthusiast who wants to advance his career. He is shown using Scaler, an e-learning platform that offers various tech courses to help him achieve his goals.

Not featuring any women in the ad perpetuates the gender stereotype that technology is a male domain.

Showing women using Scaler to advance their careers in technical fields would have conveyed a strong message to the viewers that it is natural for women to aspire for careers in STEM fields.

GSS: 2.5/5

Other films from the week:

Haldirams