MOMMIES ARE NOT DUMMIES

A lot has been written about negative portrayal of women in media and I on the occasion of the Mother’s day, restrict my observation to the portrayal of mothers in media and I dedicate this post to all mothers.

Indians are strange.  They are seldom neutral.  There is always extremism and contradiction. So are the expressions and the portrayal; be it in advertisements, TV serials and films.

“Mere paas maa hai” is an outdated sentiment. Women, particularly elderly women are just props now.  If at all they have a role, they are portrayed as task masters and manipulators.  While women are excelling in many fields, women in all advertisements are dumb.  They either cook, wash, clean, reprimand children and henpecked husbands, ill-treat daughters-in-law or at the most add a little glamour quotient to any product, be it a perfume or an after-shave lotion, a razor, a bike or even a tractor.  It is all the more horrible in films and TV serials.  Women are shown as control freaks, gaudily dressed and manipulating and creating trouble throughout. 

When are they going to be portrayed as themselves?

Just imagine if anthropologists/social scientists/historians in future take the present day films/serials/advertisements as basis for their study of the attitude/status of women of this period, will they be able to capture the correct picture?  Forget future, aren’t men getting a preconceived notion about women because of this clichéd portrayal?

In olden times, a mothers’ role was restricted to that of a bread-maker, but the role of the present day mother is very demanding.  Most of the women, though employed, are not relieved of any of the domestic responsibilities.  They are also forced to learn to ride and drive vehicles to facilitate shuttling of children between schools, tuition centres and other coaching classes.  They also eventually become personal secretaries of their husbands and handle all their work.  While some enjoy economic and social independence, there are many more, who don’t.

The older generation women too are not spared.  They too cannot afford to sit and while away their time, chanting prayers and telling stories to kids. They are forced to offer support to their working daughters/daughters-in-law in managing their homes and raising children. 

While all of them are indispensable, they certainly are taken for granted and their contribution is very rarely acknowledged or appreciated.  Poor things, they are left to blow their own trumpets and we often find those who click “like” or “share” of related newsfeed on social networking sites, are just the cohort members.  Really sad .

The concept for this blog is my friend Uma Ranganathan’s.

After Uma read my previous post, she sent a mail requesting me to write about the portrayal of women, particularly mothers in advertisements. When I read the contents, I could completely empathize with her and appreciate her concern. Her statement “Mommies are dummies” impressed me very much.

 

I can claim, I am the surrogate mother of Uma’s baby as she has conceived and I have delivered, I mean the blog.