The paradigm shift of storytelling in Indian

advertisements with special reference to country's

feminine archetype.
Jyotirmay Deb1, 2, 3

1
Research Scholar at Techno India University, 2Guest Faculty of Add-on certificate course,
Department of Journalism at Vijaygar Jyotish Ray College, 3 Faculty of BFA Digital Film Making and
VFX at Techno India University

Abstract:
, “Advertising is a form of Communication, intended to promote sale of product/services, to
influence public opinion, to gain public support or to advance a particular cause.” According to the
new Encyclopaedia Britanica1

Every single individual on this globe, regardless of his or her age, sex, class, social and economic
standing, encounters advertising, albeit in different forms. It doesn’t matter if they like it or hate it,
the fact is almost none can remain indifferent to advertising and its luring content.

It’s next to impossible to find an aspect of daily life devoid of the existence of advertising and its
modes and motives are commended as well as frowned upon. Some interpret advertising as both
the looking glass and the creator of culture.

The Indian consumer market opened up to a gamut of multi-national companies as a result of the
changes in the Indian economy around the beginning of the 1990’s thanks to the widespread
Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization (LPG).

One obvious after-effect of this economic liberalisation was the increase in advertising content,
often referred to as the “Advertisement Boom”.

Moreover, the range and reach of advertisements magnified manifold once the electronic media
gave people the option of multiple channels and the world wide web became a reality because of a
boom in information technology around the end of the 1990’s.

If we look at the pre and post-economic liberalization era through an analytical prism, we can
perceive the changes that came through in the concepts of advertisement and a simultaneous build-
up of myths regarding the women in India (the archetype of Indian woman). In my paper, I am going
to analyse how the feminine archetypal myth has been changed over the time.
Key words : Indian Advertisement, storytelling .feminine archetype .

Usha Sewing Machine Ad from 1970s:

The punch line was
"Train her to be an ideal housewife. Buy her an Usha sewing machine." The concept
of ideal house wife in India is about perfectly trained homemaker .Just after 25 years
of independence (1970s), women models in advertisement were treated as either
exhibitors of flesh or the ideal Indian home maker .

Surf AD Lalita ji 1970s,

When the detergent world stood on the cusp of a change, Indian consumers first learnt
the difference between 'Sasti cheez aur acchi cheez' (a cheap product and a good
product) from the sparkling white saree-clad, Lalita ji. The commercial created for HUL's
flagship detergent brand, Surf, by Alyque Padamse expounded the virtues of buying
'expensive' Surf. The campaign was a reaction to the launch of 'cheaper'
Nirma in 1969 and the increasing popularity of 'Hema, Rekha, Jaya aur Sushma'. Thus
was 'Lalita ji, a no-nonsense, smart, independent, prudent homemaker, conscious of her
budget and yet, uncompromising with the quality of products that she buys' born.

The Liril Girl showed how to target a state of mind

Ariel Washing Powder( # Share the load )2015

Ariel Washing Powder put out an ad questioning the ingrained belief in a lot of
Indian households that women should be the ones doing the laundry. It starts with a
guy asking his wife (?) why she didn't wash his clothes, and then proceeds to show
a bunch of dudes having a ball while washing their clothes. The ad really brings
out the fact that doing the laundry is a normal thing regardless of gender, and the
tune playing in the background gets stuck in your head as well (don't know
whether that's a good thing though).

Taking a small thought that echoed through the minds of people in a way, making it

relevant on a very social level- “Can’t men do laundry?” A contemplation that was
pondered upon a globe level after the campaign reached that level after it was launched

in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, but the thought leaped further as it went

viral in 22 countries in 16 languages.3(social samosa Mar 23 2017)

Havells coffee maker (2014) ( https://bestmediainfo.com/2014/05/havells-

reminder-to-respect-women-she-isnt-a-kitchen-appliance/)

This one takes a dig not just at the insitituion of arranged marriage, but also at the
reasons why people indulge in it. A mother who wants her son to get married
complains about not having anyone to make coffee around at home, to which the
prospctive wife promptly gives her a Havells coffee maker and proclaims that she's
not a kitchen appliance. Yes! Stick it to the man (or woman)!

Shriram Iyer, Executive Creative Director, Lowe Lintas and Partners, said, “It's
almost taken for granted that the woman in the house will do the job of a home
appliance. So, we thought of doing a tongue-in-cheek campaign to show that
there are appliances to do that job. The campaign almost pokes fun at the
society which expects women to do work which can be done by anyone using a
home appliance.”
Titan Raga's Garden of
Eden(https://fabityofficial.wordpress.com/2015/05/20/when-is-the-right-time-to-get-
married-herlifeherchoices/)

Another one by Titan following the 'Her life her choice' hashtag, this ad features
Katrina Kaif explaining, in no unclear terms, when the right time is to get married.
It talks about brushing off loneliness and not succumbing to social pressures. Most
importantly, it tells you to follow your own heart, no matter the circumstances.

Conceptualized by Ogilvy & Mather, Titan Raga’s #HerLifeHerChoices

campaign successfully provokes people to think and acknowledged the
rights of a new women, who is independent, confident and deserves the
best. With this campaign, the luxury watch brand has successfully targeted
the woman of today and, needless to say, the campaign proved to be a hit
amongst the masses

Conclusion:

References

1. C.B.Mamoria and R.L.Joshi (1968), “Principles and Practices of Marketing in India”, Kitab
Mahal, Allahabad, P. 391.
2. Devoe, Merill, “Effective advertising copy”, McMillan Publication Co: 1956, pp. 88-89.
3. Jerome D. Scott (1943), “Advertising When Buying is Restricted”, Harvard Business Review,
Vol. XXI (4) (summer, 1943), pp.443-454.
4. Ogilvy, David. ‘Ogilvy on advertising’, London: Prion Books Limited; 1995: p. 14.
5. Reeves Roose (1961), “Reality in Advertising”, Alfred Knopf Inc., New York, (1961)