Media Watch Project

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Media Watch Project

Under SPARROW’s Media Watch project we collect many print-ads which have double meaning texts, which turn the woman into the product being marketed, which stereotype women and men into desirable and sturdy categories. Chosen for this section are some general ads.

In the first one a woman is willing to do anything — even that — all for a gold pendant.

In the second one what is being advertised is a dot com concern. The ad asks you if you are looking for best products, and the best products they can think of are a woman’s breasts. And they come cheap.

In the third and fourth what is being sold is only a bathroom fitting. Difficult to guess that considering the woman is all contorted probably trying to become a faucet or a towel-hanger.

The last two ads speak for themselves.

Times of India, 10th February, 1999
Inside Outside, Feb 2002
Indian Express, 9th March, 2001
Inside Outside, Feb 2000
Times of India, 11th March, 1999
Times of India, 1st November, 1996

Title: Unlimited Girls
Director/ Script writer: Paromita Vohra
Producer: Devi Pictures
Cameraperson: Mrinal Desai
Sound Recordist: Subir Kumar Das
Editor: Jabeen Merchant
Language: English
Duration: 94 minutes

The film explores the various definitions and meanings of feminism through a group of women in a chat room on the Internet discussing what it means to be a feminist. The women offer varying interpretations of feminism and argue about the myths that surround it, including the infamous ‘bra-burning’ myth. Included are interviews with several women involved in the women’s movement and women from different generations, who talk about the way feminism has affected their lives.

Title : Preeti, Prema, Pranaya…
Producer : Mano Murthy, Ram Prasad, Somashekar, Dr. Renuka Ramappa
Director : Kavita Lankesh
Camera Person : C Mahendra
Year : 2003
Duration : 120 mins
Language : Kannada

Summary:
An old widow and an old widower meet accidentally and develop a liking for each other. He is a retired doctor and she is a classical singer. His grandson and her granddaughter fall in love with each other. Taking this as an issue, parents of these teenagers fight among themselves. But the grandparents support their grand children and at the same time they also fall in love with each other. Now both the families divert their attention from their children to the respective parents. Both the families ask the respective parents to move out because they feel ashamed of their love affair. With the help of the grandchildren, the two old people start their new life.

The film is written and directed by Kavita Lankesh.

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