Deepika Padukone is in the eye of yet another digital storm. She has lent her (gorgeous) face & (mellifluous) voice to a new Vogue Empower video. One that offers a range of choices that go beyond the confused consciousness of a middle class girl like me who always thought she is empowered; and mostly never made any of those choices.
At the onset, some smart critiques on this video are already out there. One on FirstPost (which can safely be renamed FirstCynic) and a second on TheLadiesFinger make entertaining reads with valid arguments.
I prefer to call my piece an observation (that question and contrast the ‘choice’ observations) of this video. And my core argument is that at the heart of this Vogue Empower video is the deep set sociological difference between the privileged makers & women who feature in Gloworm, black velvet beauty in this video; and the average middle class working women of this country. I don’t write about the poor here, that’s a wholly different story and this video actually heaps insults on their existences in more ways than one.
1. The video argues: It is my choice to have sex before marriage, or to have sex outside of marriage or better still, to love temporarily or to lust forever (note to maker- a girl licking her lips denotes hunger which might be a natural life choice for most women featured in this video considering the requirements of their glamour driven existences. It does Not indicate lust, more like drives disgust). These so called ‘choices’ will jeopardise the foundation of any committed relationship. This being a personal piece, I use my example. We have been married 8 years. In this time period, we have managed to create a world of our own. It’s a world which gave me freedom to live away from my husband to study & work for 19 months on my own. I didn't have to choose, it never became an either- or. And in this world of ours, sex outside marriage has no place. Lusting forever is not feasible either, for it might lead to temptation (we are only human). For us, sanctity in marriage runs deep & the faith has to be kept. It is my choice to do so. Does that ‘disempower’ me?
As footnote, isn’t it also a man’s choice equally, to have sex outside marriage, or lust forever, or love temporarily? Wouldn’t hurt and heartbreak apply equally to both sexes? Bottom line is, is this about empowerment or is it about validating commitment (phobia)?
2. The video argues: Bindi, ring & something else is my choice to flaunt; they are temporary and my love is permanent. Well whoever called any of those accessories permanent in the first place? And why is everything viewed as a patriarchal imposition? I wear three rings. My mother gifted me one, my husband gifted me the second and the third one I brought for myself. I love wearing them all the time- they are a permanent feature on my hands, because they remind me of unconditional love. They also remind me that for a girl who began with a measly media desk employee pay cheque, I could buy something precious for myself without a second thought. The rings empower me, they don’t shackle me.
3. There’s a lot of blow drying, ropes suspension & passive aggressive motion in the video. Thats just pseudo intellectual drivel. It’s got nothing to do with empowerment.
4. Deepika’s voice states it is her choice to come home at 4AM or 6PM. Neither is extra ordinary. Well, it isn’t always a choice. As a broadcast journalist for a decade, I have come home at the oddest hours. My husband would be half awake, anxious about how little rest I get. My dad, worried that I might react with irritation, would cagily check on my work hours. My parents believed that working normal hours would be good for my health & life (I suffer from hypothyroidism since I was 10). At the same time, no one has ever asked me to give up my choice of a career. Does their concern make them roadblocks to my empowerment? Or do they signal genuine love, sans expectations? I believe I empower myself a lot more by acknowledging their concern about my work hours & lifestyle choices; battling this out as a feminist counterpoint would be juvenile.
5. The video states that out of 7 billon men, who a woman has a baby with, is her ‘choice’. What about the man? isn’t it his choice too? Do we need to make a child another counter point in a long drawn out feminist argument?
6. On the visual treatment of this video: The playing with bra straps, lifting a top to show washboard abs, and hair flying all over a chiselled face reiterates every beauty cliche in the book. Buttoning your bra or putting on clothes on camera, does Not ring in empowerment. Women who go to work everyday to make their bread & sustain their households- be it a CEO, an IMF President or a school teacher or doctor- would hesitate to button up or button down before a camera. But their decision to work for a living, to contribute to the futures of their homes & themselves, liberates them more effectively & inclusively.
I grew up in a small town and have lived most of my adult life in metro cities. I still wear a dupatta when I enter a place of worship. I wouldn’t button up in public or change garments in full view of anyone. I certainly wouldn’t fiddle with my bra strap in public. I just don’t see the point of it. As a reporter I used to dress conservatively. Why? Not because I feared physical attacks or a patriarchal stick over my head; but out of common decency. It also helped me do my job better. People you speak to trust you more if you look like a normal girl. Imagine if I were to button up my sleeveless top while asking a striking film set worker about his grievances? Would I get a story at all? Am I therefore, disempowered?
Is the girl who smokes a cigarette and paces up and down outside my home talking loudly on the phone, waking up the neighbours on hot summer nights, more empowered because the hem of her dress is of negligible length? More importantly, what’s that got to do with empowerment?
7. Last but not least- my core argument. When I chose to go abroad for an education, and a year of rediscovery, my mother in law was the proudest member of our family. She hasnt had the fortune of education, empowerment or a chance to work ever. Her life was spent bringing up six children & managing a busy joint family household. But she loved my choice, and applauded it without question. Where does she stand in this Empower Video, besides being the nath wearing, exotic village belle stock footage visual?
This video shows a perceived idea of empowerment of a super microscopic section of very privileged men & women. Their idea of choice, liberation and empowerment reiterates narrow barometers of free sex, easily available love (and lovers) & irrelevant teenage arguments about being a ‘woman’. Sadly, Homi Adajania is a great filmmaker & Deepika an accomplished actress; which is even more surprising.
The video doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of real challenges that women who actually need to measure a paycheque & their savings face everyday. Unfortunately, it doesn't even try to go there. But then, when destiny has served all of life’s needs on a silver platter, I suppose for folks like that, going beyond choosing the best dress, shoes & clutch for the evening, and applying the word ‘choice’ to anything else, Must resemble empowerment.
And no, it doesnt entice me to buy Empower goodies on Amazon.com either.
At the onset, some smart critiques on this video are already out there. One on FirstPost (which can safely be renamed FirstCynic) and a second on TheLadiesFinger make entertaining reads with valid arguments.
I prefer to call my piece an observation (that question and contrast the ‘choice’ observations) of this video. And my core argument is that at the heart of this Vogue Empower video is the deep set sociological difference between the privileged makers & women who feature in Gloworm, black velvet beauty in this video; and the average middle class working women of this country. I don’t write about the poor here, that’s a wholly different story and this video actually heaps insults on their existences in more ways than one.
1. The video argues: It is my choice to have sex before marriage, or to have sex outside of marriage or better still, to love temporarily or to lust forever (note to maker- a girl licking her lips denotes hunger which might be a natural life choice for most women featured in this video considering the requirements of their glamour driven existences. It does Not indicate lust, more like drives disgust). These so called ‘choices’ will jeopardise the foundation of any committed relationship. This being a personal piece, I use my example. We have been married 8 years. In this time period, we have managed to create a world of our own. It’s a world which gave me freedom to live away from my husband to study & work for 19 months on my own. I didn't have to choose, it never became an either- or. And in this world of ours, sex outside marriage has no place. Lusting forever is not feasible either, for it might lead to temptation (we are only human). For us, sanctity in marriage runs deep & the faith has to be kept. It is my choice to do so. Does that ‘disempower’ me?
As footnote, isn’t it also a man’s choice equally, to have sex outside marriage, or lust forever, or love temporarily? Wouldn’t hurt and heartbreak apply equally to both sexes? Bottom line is, is this about empowerment or is it about validating commitment (phobia)?
2. The video argues: Bindi, ring & something else is my choice to flaunt; they are temporary and my love is permanent. Well whoever called any of those accessories permanent in the first place? And why is everything viewed as a patriarchal imposition? I wear three rings. My mother gifted me one, my husband gifted me the second and the third one I brought for myself. I love wearing them all the time- they are a permanent feature on my hands, because they remind me of unconditional love. They also remind me that for a girl who began with a measly media desk employee pay cheque, I could buy something precious for myself without a second thought. The rings empower me, they don’t shackle me.
3. There’s a lot of blow drying, ropes suspension & passive aggressive motion in the video. Thats just pseudo intellectual drivel. It’s got nothing to do with empowerment.
4. Deepika’s voice states it is her choice to come home at 4AM or 6PM. Neither is extra ordinary. Well, it isn’t always a choice. As a broadcast journalist for a decade, I have come home at the oddest hours. My husband would be half awake, anxious about how little rest I get. My dad, worried that I might react with irritation, would cagily check on my work hours. My parents believed that working normal hours would be good for my health & life (I suffer from hypothyroidism since I was 10). At the same time, no one has ever asked me to give up my choice of a career. Does their concern make them roadblocks to my empowerment? Or do they signal genuine love, sans expectations? I believe I empower myself a lot more by acknowledging their concern about my work hours & lifestyle choices; battling this out as a feminist counterpoint would be juvenile.
5. The video states that out of 7 billon men, who a woman has a baby with, is her ‘choice’. What about the man? isn’t it his choice too? Do we need to make a child another counter point in a long drawn out feminist argument?
6. On the visual treatment of this video: The playing with bra straps, lifting a top to show washboard abs, and hair flying all over a chiselled face reiterates every beauty cliche in the book. Buttoning your bra or putting on clothes on camera, does Not ring in empowerment. Women who go to work everyday to make their bread & sustain their households- be it a CEO, an IMF President or a school teacher or doctor- would hesitate to button up or button down before a camera. But their decision to work for a living, to contribute to the futures of their homes & themselves, liberates them more effectively & inclusively.
I grew up in a small town and have lived most of my adult life in metro cities. I still wear a dupatta when I enter a place of worship. I wouldn’t button up in public or change garments in full view of anyone. I certainly wouldn’t fiddle with my bra strap in public. I just don’t see the point of it. As a reporter I used to dress conservatively. Why? Not because I feared physical attacks or a patriarchal stick over my head; but out of common decency. It also helped me do my job better. People you speak to trust you more if you look like a normal girl. Imagine if I were to button up my sleeveless top while asking a striking film set worker about his grievances? Would I get a story at all? Am I therefore, disempowered?
Is the girl who smokes a cigarette and paces up and down outside my home talking loudly on the phone, waking up the neighbours on hot summer nights, more empowered because the hem of her dress is of negligible length? More importantly, what’s that got to do with empowerment?
7. Last but not least- my core argument. When I chose to go abroad for an education, and a year of rediscovery, my mother in law was the proudest member of our family. She hasnt had the fortune of education, empowerment or a chance to work ever. Her life was spent bringing up six children & managing a busy joint family household. But she loved my choice, and applauded it without question. Where does she stand in this Empower Video, besides being the nath wearing, exotic village belle stock footage visual?
This video shows a perceived idea of empowerment of a super microscopic section of very privileged men & women. Their idea of choice, liberation and empowerment reiterates narrow barometers of free sex, easily available love (and lovers) & irrelevant teenage arguments about being a ‘woman’. Sadly, Homi Adajania is a great filmmaker & Deepika an accomplished actress; which is even more surprising.
The video doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of real challenges that women who actually need to measure a paycheque & their savings face everyday. Unfortunately, it doesn't even try to go there. But then, when destiny has served all of life’s needs on a silver platter, I suppose for folks like that, going beyond choosing the best dress, shoes & clutch for the evening, and applying the word ‘choice’ to anything else, Must resemble empowerment.
And no, it doesnt entice me to buy Empower goodies on Amazon.com either.
I am a journalist from Hyderabad. I remember how a colleague once spotted my mangalsutra and pulled it out of my kurta and asked me incredulously 'You too?'. And I replied 'of course, I like it, it's a pretty piece and we bought it together. And I keep it tucked inside not because it's a mangal sutra but because it is a gold chain...albeit a thin one.. and I don't want to display it when I am on job.' She told me that I have defeated the mission of many generations of feminists with a single stroke. :)
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