An Ola cabs sexist ad that showed that a cab ride was cheaper than having a girlfriend received much flak on Twitter earlier this week.
Ola cabs’ sexist ad that showed that a cab ride was cheaper than having a girlfriend received much flak on Twitter earlier this week.
A new ad was uploaded on Ola Cab’s official You Tube channel earlier this week. In the ad, that was titled ‘too expensive to take girlfriend out on a date’, a guy is seen walking through a busy market with his girlfriend. The guy has to stops every now and then as the woman uses her cloy charm to make him buy things she picks out.
What the ad tried to reinforce was that Ola’s new cab service ‘Micro’ is cheaper than taking a woman out on a date. However, the company forgot that half of its audience is women who are human and also posses the power of understanding, interpreting and responding likewise to derogatory ideas and messages.
The ad feeds off the stereotypical cliche that women try to manipulate men and con them into buying things they want using their corny charm.
But at a time when women are running the boardroom, going on solo vacations, travelling the world on their own, this run down idea of being just glamorous dolls who are heavily dependent on the mercies of men to fulfill their ambitions is not only sexist but also outrageous.
The sexist message that the ad bolstered was severely criticized on Twitter.
The public outburst led to the pulling down of the distasteful ad. However, the company was unapologetic about it. Take a look at the company’s apology tweet and the reply to the tweet:
Image: You Tube
A part time backpacker, an accidental baker, a doting mother, a loving wife, a pampered daughter, an inspired blogger, an amateur photographer read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, indivisual posts do not necessarily represent the platofrom's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Netflix’s ‘House Of Secrets: The Burari Deaths’ dwells into the shocking death of an entire family of 11 in one night. It throws light on gender roles, superstitions & mental health in Indian households.
(Trigger Warning: This story delves into a documentary about alleged suicide/murder and may be triggering. Spoilers ahead).
Directed by Leena Yadav and Anubhav Chopra, Netflix’s latest three-episode documentary ‘House of secrets: The Burari Deaths’ traces what happened with the Bhatia family in 2018. On a usual summer morning, 11 members of the same family were found suspiciously hanging from the roof in the suburb of Burari. Later it was concluded to be an occult ritual gone wrong.
By the time I arrived home I was a tearful wreck. I finally told my sister. She could understand. Should we tell Bhau, our brother? No, she said. “What if he comes with you and gets into a fight with that man?”
Some places just stick in ones head just as some faces do. One such place was Hotel ‘No Name’.
Sexist ads should be a thing of the past, but many remain that reinforce stereotypes, though slowly, some change has been achieved.
It’s safe to say that most of us vividly remember the Burger King tweet on International Women’s Day that read, ‘Women belong in the kitchen.’ This tweet, as expected, was followed with a lot of controversies and soon was deleted.
Yet another incident of molestation in an Ola cab in Bengaluru on the 1st of June has made us ask if cab service providers actually take sexual harassment and assault seriously?
“We regret the unfortunate experience the customer had during the ride. We have zero tolerance for such incidents and the driver has been blacklisted from the platform as an immediate action.”