#VogueEmpower, Vogue India’s Empowerment Initiative Sparks Controversy
#VogueEmpower, Vogue India’s social awareness initiative which launched last October, has sparked some controversy in response to the release of its new campaign video about the prerogative of choice, “My Choice.” The short film, directed by celebrated Indian filmmaker Homi Adajania and written by Indian screenwriter Kersi Khambatta, currently has almost four million views on YouTube—a sizable but growing number considering that India has a population of over one billion.
In the black-and-white film, 99 women—including Bollywood star (and frequent Vogue India cover girl) Deepika Padukone—smile, dance, fight, and even glare at the camera against a black background. Padukone narrates the video with some one-liner zingers: “My Choice: to be a size 0 or a size 15.” “They don’t have a size for my spirit and never will.” Or, “To have sex before marriage, to have sex out of marriage. Or to not have sex. It’s my choice.” The latter is a provocative statement in light of the fact that rape is the fourth most common crime in India, and that the incidence of reporting rape in India is one of the lowest in the world. And while the video has become a viral hit with loud praise on social media across the world, it has also been hit with heavy accusations of hypocrisy since both Vogue and Bollywood have perpetuated ideals of inequality and impossible body and beauty standards.
Bollywood star Deepika Padukone on the cover of Vogue India March 2011. (Photo: Vogue India)
This isn’t the first time that the Vogue brand has come under fire for its social initiatives. When all the international Vogue editions joined together for the Vogue Health Initiative in 2012 and pledged to not cast underage or underweight models, many of them failed to keep their word—even mere months after making the initiative public. The punishment of breaking the promise was nothing but a slap on the wrist and a public apology.
Bollywood, India’s multi-billion-dollar movie industry, is well known for its sexist treatment of women. A UN-sponsored study found out that Indian actresses are more likely to be shown in skimpy clothes, have fewer speaking roles, and rarely have defined professions compared to their non-Indian counterparts in films.
It benefits Vogue India and Bollywood to be associated with women’s empowerment—and the video is a powerful combination of visuals and words. But perhaps these two influential behemoths can make an even better statement—and impact—by following the old saying, “Actions speak louder than words.”
Related:
Six Empowering Beauty Campaigns That Prove Beauty Isn’t Just Skin Deep
