Voltas Beko drew flak from netizens after the company’s advertisement of a dishwasher featured only women talking about the benefits of the new gadget on a video call.
The advertisement with the tagline ‘tested by real moms’ has been accused of being sexist since the brand failed to feature any men. The advertisement received massive criticism on social media with netizens questioning why men do not need dishwashers?
Men don’t need dishwashers? https://t.co/Fp8h4wAWwt
— Faye DSouza (@fayedsouza) July 20, 2020
How big of a team was it that decided what the commercial of @VoltasBeko dishwasher should look like?Even if was just 5, did it not occur to even a single one out of them that they will be sending a male chauvinist bullshit message?Professional incompetency at its peak!
— Phone Waale Baba Ji (@iJasOberoi) July 20, 2020
In times like these, #VoltasBeko dishwashers have made lives easier and chores convenient. They’re #TestedByRealMoms and bear their seal of approval. So, trust and bring home a dishwasher today. pic.twitter.com/RvC5bMTs66
— Voltas Beko (@VoltasBeko) July 16, 2020
Many even asked if it was just a woman’s job to wash the dishes.
This is ridiculous advert! You are stereotyping women! Why can’t u show men in line with current times? #testedbyrealdads hello dads raise ur voice and stop this advert @LGIndia @SamsungIndia @NCWIndia @TataCompanies @fayedsouza @karunanundy @Agrimonious
— Vivek (@_vksingh_) July 20, 2020
The hashtag used by the company used for promoting the product ‘#TestedByRealMoms’ was also criticized and asked the brand to move on from regressive beliefs and make more gender-neutral advertisements.
After receiving much flak, Voltas Beko issued a statement that read, ‘As a brand, Voltas Beko has always celebrated the spirit of womanhood in all our campaigns. Likewise in this advertisement, we captured a fun, casual conversation between four independent and spirited friends who got together over a video call during the lockdown. One of the characters in the video refers to how the family has been managing household chores, with her husband taking over the responsibility of washing dishes. This is when the protagonist of the film recommends a dishwasher. Our products have been developed to create convenience and comfort for all our customers, and are gender agnostic.’
Recently gender-targeted marketing of several brands was called out on social media. Scotch-Brite also decided to change its logo, which shows the face of a woman wearing a bindi, after being called out for promoting stereotype gender roles.
Also Read: ‘Time To Move On From Regressive Beliefs’: Scotch-Brite Promises To Make Its Logo Gender-Neutral
