Women are more visible than ever in Indian advertising. They’re on billboards, in social media campaigns, and fronting TV commercials—smiling, leading, achieving. It’s a shift made possible by generations of women who challenged their invisibility.
But look a little closer: Is visibility enough? Or are we still telling the same old stories with a modern gloss?
The Surface of Progress
Naila Patel, National Creative Director at Mirum India (a WPP company), puts it succinctly:
“The portrayal of women has evolved because the role of women in society has evolved. She’s no longer just the pretty face or ideal mother — she’s the protagonist, the disruptor, the change-maker.”
There’s no doubt that women now occupy more screen time and a broader range of roles. But presence alone doesn’t equal power. The question remains: Are women driving the narrative, or just starring in it?
Filmmaker Sonal Batra points out that traditional roles haven’t entirely disappeared.
“Advertising long confined women to homemakers and caregivers—smiling wives and doting mothers whose value lay in serving others. Even today, despite the shift in visuals, many brands hesitate to fully break free from those familiar moulds.”
In other words, women may be more visible—but are they truly represented?
Subtle Stereotypes, Reinvented
There’s a new pattern emerging: the illusion of change.
Leena Gupta, founding member at creative agency Talented, highlights a clever switch:
“Now the dad who changes diapers is hailed as a hero—celebrated for doing what mothers have always done without applause. Men are exceptional for being ordinary.”
A 2023 ASCI-Unstereotype Alliance study reinforces the concern:
- 58% of female characters in Indian ads are portrayed with fair skin (vs. 25% of men).
- Women are five times more likely to be shown as sole domestic caregivers.
The reality? Many ads are still coded with traditional expectations—just rebranded with modern flair.
As Gupta puts it,
“Progress happens when women’s stories aren’t told as exceptions—but as reflections of our messy, multifaceted reality—on screen and in the rooms where decisions are made.”
The False Lead
If visibility is the goal, Indian advertising has checked the box. But the real power lies in who controls the story.
Look at the biggest ad categories—homes, finance, technology, mobile data. Who’s making decisions in these narratives? Who’s shown as the buyer, the owner, the leader?
More often than not, it’s still a man.
Patel points out that many Indian ads now pass the “See Jane Test” (which checks whether female characters are shown as more than stereotypes).
“But while women have gained visibility, many still play roles steeped in traditional gender coding.”
Even ads that seem like progress often stop short. Batra recalls a Lux campaign featuring Shah Rukh Khan that felt revolutionary—until he appeared surrounded by women, still reinforcing the male centrality of the ad.
Progress, it seems, still has a foot on the brake.
When Brands Get It Right
Not all is bleak. Some brands are breaking the mould—reimagining the woman not just as seen, but as self-possessed.
- Mohey’s Kanyamaan campaign flipped the script on kanyadaan, rejecting the idea of the bride as a gift to be given away. It asked a simple but radical question: Why does a woman need to be given at all?
- Ariel’s Share the Load series continues to expose the invisible labour women carry at home, advocating for shared domestic responsibilities.
- Mercedes-Benz’s 2023 “Be One of Many” campaign rejected the trope of the “exceptional woman.” It centred a girl surrounded by images of iconic women, asking why she must be “the first” or “the only” to be seen.
“Women shouldn’t have to make history just to exist,” says Batra. “They should be able to thrive as part of the everyday landscape.”
The Fine Print of Change
Interestingly, the most resistant industries—finance, tech, and household products—are beginning to evolve. Ads now show women as investors, business owners, decision-makers.
But Patel is cautious:
“Some brands get it right. Others try. And many still resist change altogether.”
Gupta flags the troubling rise of “choice feminism”—where traditional roles are rebranded as empowered choices, regardless of the cultural baggage they carry.
“How revolutionary is it when an ad celebrates a woman for choosing beauty standards that have oppressed her for generations? Or for calling being a housewife ‘empowering’—without challenging the context?”
Progress isn’t one-size-fits-all. And it isn’t linear—especially in a country where empowerment looks very different in Delhi than it does in a small town in Bihar.
“Tier-1 ideas of feminism often fail to resonate across the country,” Gupta says. “Creators can’t just mirror culture—they shape it. And they must take that responsibility seriously.”
Beyond Representation: Authorship Matters
Representation has become expected. The deeper question now is how women are shown—and who gets to tell their stories.
Patel urges a shift in casting:
“Prioritize interesting personalities over perfect faces. Move beyond the subservient wife or the loud aunt. Body positivity, colour diversity—these shouldn’t be afterthoughts. They should be creative choices.”
Real change is often in the small things: who’s seen with dignity, whose body is honoured, whose complexity is explored.
But screen presence alone isn’t enough. Behind the scenes, women remain vastly underrepresented.
“Only 11% of creative directors are women,” says Gupta. “That’s why so many female narratives feel hollow. You can’t write authentically about experiences you’ve never lived.”
To her, progress isn’t about quotas or tokenism.
“It’s not about counting faces. It’s about giving women control over their own stories—both on the screen and in the rooms where decisions are made.”
The Heart of the Matter
True representation isn’t about showing women more—it’s about showing them better. It’s about moving from visibility to authorship, from token gestures to authentic voices.
Because without control, representation is just performance.
And for an industry built on appearances, Indian advertising must finally ask itself: Are we showing women the way they are—or just the way we want them to be?
