Throughout our childhood till now, we all have witnessed the blatant glorification and celebrations of certain South Asian rituals associated with deciding the woman's fate in the new household after her marriage. The Pakistani media serves as a powerful tool to stereotype women by restricting them to specific roles such as that of a caregiver, cook, or wife. The Laziza Kheer advertisement has been one that has been repeatedly aired on television since 2013 and has sickened me each time I come across it. This advertisement perpetuates various stereotypes through the way the bride's getup, the characters' acting styles, and its visuals.
The advertisement revolves around the bride being tested on her kheer-making skills, and her fate in the new household is to be decided by her father-in-law. It starts with the mother-in-law taunting her, saying, "Kheer bana tou logi na bahu" This perpetuates the stereotypes of the "Saas Bahu" relationship along with normalizing the unwillingness of her mother-in-law to help her. Throughout the advertisement, the bride is shown to be extremely anxious and stressed and is shown to be dependent on her husband's opinion. Hence goes on to seek his approval, who refuses to comfort her and walks away. Just as you may think, the infuriating glorifying of demeaning the bride stops a child walks into the kitchen, who seems to know that there is an examination panel sitting to test their chachi and say "Chachi aaj tou imtehaan hai" adding to the bride's disrespect and anxiety.
Finally! The patriarch and the head of the household tastes the kheer and gives his approval, and everyone starts clapping.
The Laziza kheer advertisement is just one of the many examples that do not only disregard women as human beings but instead normalize disrespecting them along with perpetuating various stereotypes and defining gender roles. These advertisements reinforce the notion that the entire purpose of the woman is to seek approval and satisfy the needs of the family through the role of the caregiver, who cooks, cleans, and remains a quiet and shy bride.
I rewatched the advertisement for the blog and the same amount of rage went through me just like years ago when I first watched this. I've always felt so uncomfortable watching this, because it completely alienates the new bride and makes her feel like her reduced role of making the kheer is the only way she will find a spot in this new family she's married into. Not to mention I absolutely HATED how they tried to romanticize the husband's role in this when all he does is ignore her and walk away and then they smile at each other after she gets the approval from his dad. Also the way the approval was set up was also so infuriating…
An Amazing Read! The blog raises important concerns about the perpetuation of stereotypes, gender roles, and the objectification of women in these narratives.
It is disheartening to witness advertisements like this one, which reinforce the idea that a woman's worth and fate are determined solely by her ability to fulfil traditional domestic roles. By showcasing the bride's anxiety, dependence on her husband's opinion, and the ultimate approval from the patriarch, the advertisement not only undermines the agency and individuality of women but also normalizes disrespect and unequal power dynamics within families. Similar instances can be found in other media pieces as well. For example, many Indian soap operas often portray women as passive and submissive, revolving their entire existence around…
These ads show constantly how women need to prove themselves to be worthy enough to become a part of another family. Not only does it promote harmful stereotypes of what marriage should be like, but it sends a message of discriminatory behaviour towards women where you literally reduce their worth and show them as these weak characters who cannot do a single thing without other people's approval. Women are objectified but these ads promote that they should be okay with it and stick to the task. The gender disparity can be seen, the head of the family probably has never even cooked but of course because he is a male, he gets to be the judge.
What an apt analysis of this ad! I remember it very vividly from my childhood and I also remember enjoying it because of the ending- which I found funny at the time but in retrospect there are so many things wrong with it, most of which you’ve already mentioned in your post, but I would also like to highlight the role of the actual husband here. I find it very demeaning how she eagerly asks him how the kheer is, and that man just replies with “ye tou abba hi batayein gay”. The least you could do for your new wife is to encourage her and make her feel confident instead of subjecting her to even more scrutiny by the…
I remember the first time I saw this ad and did not find it to be amusing at all - clearly, the little feminist in me was always very critical of the type of content she saw. However, what scares me is the effect this must have had on little girls, especially when they saw someone their age, play the role of a girl that thinks that all of this is completely normal. Moreover, advertisements are created in a way to leave a long-lasting effect on you, so every time I hear the word 'Kheer', this is the first ad that pops up into my mind. I'm sure its similar with many other girls, and they're made to believe that…