Challenging stereotypes and promoting social change through feminine power

Feminine power has been a recurring theme in Indian branded content, reflecting the country's cultural values and the evolving role of women in society. Indian brands have been leveraging the power of feminine imagery to promote their products and services while also attempting to challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes.

In recent years, there has been a noticeable shift in the portrayal of women in Indian branded content. Rather than being shown as passive objects of desire, women are increasingly being portrayed as strong, independent, and empowered individuals. This has been reflected in the use of female-centric narratives that focus on the struggles and triumphs of women in different spheres of life.

​​Let’s take a look at some examples of how brands are leveraging feminine power in their communications:

Shabd - A Women's Day Initiative from Truecaller - #ItsNotOK

Truecaller’s women’s day initiative ‘Shabd’ features a working woman living in the national capital. She goes on about her daily life following a set routine until a stalker starts following her everywhere on her social media accounts and even starts chasing her as she rides to her office.

He somehow even manages to get her number and tries to call her multiple times, even after she repeatedly cuts the calls. She ultimately blocks him using Truecaller but still consistently receives the notification that he tried to call. The constant stalking starts taking a toll on her emotionally as she looks stressed and depressed and even starts missing her office due to the pressure of being stalked. 

She ultimately decides to raise a voice against this harassment and decides to go and lodge a complaint against the harasser at a police station. That is when we find out that she is speech impaired. The police is portrayed as accommodating, and they arrange a translator to mediate messages between the woman and the police. The video ends with a note on the right-hand corner of the screen thanking Abhinaya Anand, the speech-impaired actor, for playing the lead character in the film. 

The messaging of the video is quite progressive. It shows the everyday struggles of women living alone in a big city and the unwarranted harassment that they can go through by simply existing. The added angle of showing the woman having a speech impairment is a nice touch, it adds an extra layer of surprise and hardship to the story and builds a more interesting narrative. Women can regain their sense of power by reporting the harassment is good messaging by Truecaller.

The integration of Truecaller in the narrative is quite seamless as well. The note thanking the actor who played the part shows Truecaller’s initiative of promoting inclusivity. Truecaller wants to position itself as an agent of change promoting inclusivity and furthering the cause of women's safety by protecting them through the app. It succeeds in doing so through this campaign.

The Superwoman | Tanishq

Tanishq’s ‘The Superwoman’ campaign is a really nice and thoughtful piece of content on the valorisation of working women in popular culture. It narrates the story of women who manage both home and work environments are often valorised in popular culture as being superhumans. They are portrayed as altruistic, thoughtful, and hard-working. They are also expected to look flawless at the same time.

Tanishq implores the audience to be more thoughtful of women, and instead of valorising them as superhumans, be more supportive towards them and help them in their times of need. Instead of tokenistic worshipping of women, actual accommodating actions would be more meaningful.

The ad’s message is that it is essential to remember that women are humans too. The tag ‘Superwoman’ is not a compliment but an unrealistic expectation at times.

Sindhutai | From being homeless, to a mother to the homeless - Hindi

Colgate India collaborated with Sindhutai Sapkal for its #SmileKaroAurShuruHoJao campaign. The intention of the campaign with Sindhutai is to put forward the stories of selfless Indians such as Sindhutai.

Sindhutai’s story is a heart-wrenching one. It is a story of a woman who was kicked out her husband’s home and even her parents chose to not accept her back after it. Sindhutai thus had to live with the homeless beggars, she eventually started giving them food and in return they gave Sindhutai protection from the world.

She eventually chose to give a home to countless others and became their foster mother. Sindhutai’s story is a very beautiful example of feminine power. It shows how women who are often deemed as weak and fragile in popular culture can rise up to the challenge, and empower others as well. With Sindhutai’s story, Colgate puts forward the idea that resilient women are very much needed in society. It shows that when a woman is strong, she can support much more than her family; she can support an entire plethora of people by being resilient and altruistic.

Vicks - Generations of Care #TouchOfCare

Vicks seamlessly weaves the theme of feminine power into its campaign #TouchOfCare by in this piece of branded content. The ad follows the story of an orphan child whose father had left a long time ago and whose mother passed away too when she was eleven years old.

After being in an orphanage for some time, this girl was adopted by a transgender woman. The girl narrates how her new mother cares for her and provides her with everything she needs. The little girl shares how she wants to be a lawyer instead of a doctor to legally fight for her mother and provide her with the basic human rights that she needs.

Though it is an unconventional portrayal of feminine power, we still see the same theme of a woman being an altruistic caregiver towards her adopted child. The campaign's message is clear: care and compassion can make a huge difference in people's lives, especially during difficult times. The #TouchOfCare tagline encourages viewers to think about the small but meaningful ways they can show care to their loved ones. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, feminine power has become a powerful theme in Indian branded content, reflecting the changing role of women in society and the country's cultural values. By celebrating women's strength, resilience, and empowerment, these campaigns have helped in creating a more inclusive and gender-equal society. 

Brands can play a huge role in the cause of women's empowerment by acting as catalysts of change by highlighting the potential of feminine power to inspire positive change and challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes. It is important for brands to portray women sensitively, and they should not feature the tokenistic appreciation of women as that can make the brands seem disingenuous. 

Most brands also need to break away from the mould of portraying women as superheroes. They must remember that it is not necessary to put women on a pedestal to take a progressive stance. Instead, it can be problematic to a certain extent as it puts unrealistic expectations on women. Tanishq’s portrayal addressed this very issue and was much needed in this day and age of branded content, where all brands choose to put women on a pedestal.