The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has followed up the successful launch of its Gender Next report in October 2021, a study by ASCI and Future brands, with the release of guidelines that guard against harmful gender stereotypes. The guidelines were released at an event held at India Habitat Centre and presided over by Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smt. Smriti Irani. A recent study by Kantar shows that 64% of consumers believe that advertising reinforces rather than helps eradicate harmful gender stereotypes. The guidelines encourage advertisers and creators to deploy the SEA (Self-esteemed–Empowered–Allied) framework.
ASCI’s Guidelines on Harmful Gender Stereotypes in advertising are – Advertisements that are aimed at /depict children may target and feature a specific gender but should not convey that a particular children’s product, pursuit, behavior, or activity, including choice of play or career, is inappropriate. While advertisements may feature glamorous and attractive people, they must not suggest that an individual’s happiness or emotional wellbeing depends on conforming to these idealized gender-stereotypical body shapes or physical features. Advertisements should not mock people for not conforming to gender stereotypes, their sexual orientation or gender identity. It should not reinforce unrealistic and undesirable gender ideals or expectations. It may not suggest that a person fails to achieve a task specifically because of their gender.
The advertisement should not imply that their physical characteristics are a significant reason for them not being successful. Advertisements should not indulge in the sexual objectification of characters of any gender or depict people in a sexualized and objectified way for the purposes of titillating viewers. No gender should be encouraged to exert domination or authority over the others by means of implied threats, actual force or through the use of demeaning language or tone.