This book is classified into two major sections viz. Perspectives and Plots. While the Perspectives section majorly speaks of the conventional gender portrayals in advertisements over the years in India and abroad and mentions certain unethical practices being executed when it comes to presenting women in ads, it is the Plots section that extracts some path breaking ads from Indian advertising annals that have stood the test of time not just because of their content but the way the ads portrayed women. Such ads were found to shatter conventional wisdom about women and expectations from women in an exemplary way.This book can well be considered as a reference material for students pursuing MBA programs in Marketing at various B-schools. It can also be of help to Research Scholars pursuing doctoral research work in areas of brand communication and of course content writers engaged in content development on marketing and branding practices.

In recent years, Indian advertising has witnessed a significant transformation in the manner in which women are portrayed. The way women are depicted in advertising changes with times, reflecting the transformation taking place in society. Advertising is one of the major media that affect our daily life consciously and unconsciously and are responsible to play a significant role in shaping the society in a much broader perspective. Women today are no longer consolidated behind kitchen walls. Their aspiration for coming out of the door also taught society to think differently. Marketer wisely utilized this transformation process to launch their product and advertisement strategically. Present study provides a broad outlines the various ways through which women are depicted in Indian advertisements.

"This book deconstructs the quintessential Indian woman that the advertising industry portrays across the spectrum by looking at Indian advertisements across multiple brands with a gender lens based on societal and sociological perspectives. It delves into various critical issues like the differences between culture-defined gender roles/expectations and women's portrayal in the ad narrative, and which product category has consistently portrayed women as sex objects. Drawing insights from a seminal research study and Erving Goffman's classic book 'Gender Advertisements', it traces the journey of three decades, beginning the 1990s - the era of liberalization in India, to map trends and patterns in Indian advertising and presents the perspectives of the creative teams and top managements across Indian and global advertising agencies. It discusses the application of a Gender Sensitivity Barometer (GSB) which the creative teams can use to find out how sensitive or insensitive the ad has been based on pre-determined indicators suggested by the GSB. This book will be useful to students, researchers and faculty working in the field of management, advertising, mass communication, psychology, gender studies and sociology. It will also be an indispensable companion to professionals from the field of advertising and related areas"--

Patriarchy asserts men are superior to women Feminism clarifies women and men are equal Queerness questions what constitutes male and female Queerness isn’t only modern, Western or sexual, says mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik. Take a close look at the vast written and oral traditions in Hinduism, some over two thousand years old, and you will find tales of: Shikhandi, who became a man to satisfy her wife Mahadeva, who became a woman to deliver a devotee’s child Chudala, who became a man to enlighten her husband Samavan, who became the wife of his male friend and many more . . . Playful and touching—and sometimes disturbing—these stories when compared with tales of the Mesopotamian Gilgamesh, the Greek Ganymede, the biblical Sodom or the Chinese ‘cut sleeve’ Emperor reveal the unique Indian way of making sense of queerness. Devdutt Pattanaik’s new book builds on profound ideas that our ancestors shared but which we have rarely inherited. This book has content for mature audiences. Discretion advised.

The role of women has been changing over the years in various fields around the world like advertising, academics, politics, etc. Today 30% of employees in the software industry are women. They are also distinguishing themselves as professionals in different walks of life. But has the representation of women advertising changed over a period of time in advertisements? Or does it confirm to some of the traditional notions about women and their role in society? That is the question we wish to deal with in this paper. The first section gives a review of literature on gender role portrayals in advertising. The second section discusses the various hypotheses of the study and the theoretical foundation for the same. The third section discusses the methodology of the study and a detailed analysis of the results. The last section contains general discussion, implications of the study, scope for further research and conclusion.