Vim, a brand of home cleaning products owned by Hindustan Unilever Ltd, recently ran an advertising that caused a stir online. Some people questioned whether the campaign was a joke, while others criticised Vim for its “sexist” tone.
The dishwashing liquid container in the advertisement for “Vim Black” was black and labelled “for men.”
The advertisement has a man in a gym talking about how he “helped” his mother do dishes in a video that was uploaded on Instagram on Friday by the model Milind Soman and MTVIndia. When Soman approaches the man, he compliments him for “bragging” before giving him Vim Black and advising him that it is “for men, simple to clean, more to brag.”
Soon, the advertisement and screenshots of the goods were widely shared on social media. Many users made jokes, others vented, and some noted that the advertisement appeared to be satirical. Milind Soman was also the target of several trolls for supporting a “sexist” advertising campaign.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CmBJ9rzobri/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Vim ultimately explained that the advertisement had been a joke on Sunday. “We don’t take the black pack seriously, but we take men’s ownership of household responsibilities very seriously.” On Sunday, Vim posted on Instagram.
Vim attempted to make the point that home tasks are men’s chores too in another post on the social media site, and that performing what is required of them does not give them any bragging privileges.
This is not the first time that Vim has released an advertisement emphasising that domestic duties are shared by both men and women.
In 2020, the company’s “what a player” advertisement featured cricketer Virender Sehwag doing the dishes as a match announcer praised his “performance.”
The same stereotype was countered in 2021 by a campaign with the slogan “Nazariya Badlo, Dekho Bartano Se Aage” (change your vision, look beyond the dishes). In one of the advertisements, a man and woman were introduced prior to marriage, and the woman advised the man to be “independent” when it came to taking care of the home’s duties.
Source: Indian Express
