‘Lesbian Advert Reveals the Extent of India’s Cultural Change’
An Indian fashion advertisement has definitely got tongues wagging this week. Myntra’s video entitled ‘The Visit’ depicts a lesbian couple preparing to meet each other’s parents for the first time. It is the country’s first advertisement which openly depicts homosexuality in a positive manner. In just 10 days the video has earned over 200,000 views on YouTube and had 3 million hits on social media sites like Facebook.
Avishek Ghosh, co-partner of Hectic Content, who produced the advert said that they wanted to avoid any stereotypical behaviour associated with gay people. He said,”there was no one woman looking more masculine or feminine in the film.” Both women are equally feminine in the appearance and behaviour and exude beauty in their own way.
For years Indian media has paid little attention to homosexuality, particularly Bollywood where the focus is on melodramatic stories of star-crossed lovers and love triangles between poverty-stricken boys and wealthy girls.
LGBT rights activist Ashok Row Kavi said that lesbians are now being accepted around the world. They ‘have been in the news, they are getting married and fighting for their rights. This is what society sees, same-sex couples living happily, and there is a huge audience that accepts this.” It seems that more change is yet to come for India’s lesbian population and it is clear that Indian culture is finally accepting of them. For India, alternate sexuality is now bold and beautiful.
