5th December 2021
Online Event at Zoom
The national awards function of the Laadli Media & Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity (NLMAAGS) was held online on Sunday the 5th December and awarded 39 noteworthy works in the fields of journalism, advertising, films, television, theatre and books. The Honourable Norwegian Ambassador, Hans Jacob Frydenlund and Mr Sriram Haridass, Country Representative, UNFPA India, were the guests of honour. Noted journalist, writer and television personality, Mrinal Pande was the chief guest.
“These awards are a result of year-long enthusiasm to cull the very best from amongst a vast repertoire of work as diverse as films, books, advertisements, theatre, television, and journalism. Congratulations to everyone who chose to be inclusive in their representation of genders and question the stereotypical norm,” said Bobby Sista, Founder and Executive trustee, Population First.
“Making media more inclusive has been raised vociferously by this organisation, which is very much the need of the hour. We all know that gradually parts of the media have been becoming a little impervious to women and their images, and this reinforces the poor self-images that a lot of women in India have of themselves because they have not been raised to consider themselves as a whole human being. I want to congratulate all the winners and the Laadli Media Awards for crafting a niche where honest conversations about women can be engaged in and women are imparted dignity,” said Mrinal Pande.
“Research shows that media, even in countries that are perceived to be more gender balanced, continues to be male dominated by men both in terms of participation and content. In some cases, it contributes to stereotyping. Women are less often used as resources for political and scientific content, as men, instead women are mainly interviewed for soft content. Women are often addressed by their first names and connected with roles as care-giver. For example, the mother of three has become the new finance minister is the news headline. Would this be a description used for a man? This father of three thinks most likely not,” noted Ambassador Hans Jacob Frydenlund.
“Print, digital and social media, all play an important role in how people form their identities, social norms and values in relation to gender. In other words, if we want real equality in societies, the media must actively seek to show more gender-sensitive and gender-neutral perspectives, in India, in Norway and across the world,” he added
“With consistent engagement over the years, it is encouraging to note the increased discourse to promote greater gender equality within the media and advertising community. In recent years I understand that the productive efforts to mainstream gender sensitivity have not been limited to media content but media leaders and regulatory bodies have taken this discussion into their work culture as well. What started as awards has now a way the industry thinks and works. I would like to congratulate all winner not just for your gender sensitive stories, but because I believe each one of would be the change makers and help lead a movement for socially responsive and gender inclusive media,” noted Sriram Haridass, Country Representative, UNFPA India while commending the work done by Laadli Media Awards and all the winners.
“Today we are felicitating some great creative content in advertising, films, books, and television along with the best media reports and programmes chosen from the regional winners. I congratulate all the awardees and wish them more power,” said Dr.A.L.Sharda, Director Population First.
“We are looking at a new generation of content creators who are redefining gender roles in their real lives, defying the old regressive practises and standing up for an inclusive society. Their voices need to be heard and amplified to build a new world. Lend your voice, lend your support and share your resources with us to keep us going,” she added
This year the Laadli of the Century was given to the multifaceted Shama Zaidi, screenplay writer, costume designer, art director, theatre person, art critic, and documentary filmmaker while the Laadli Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred upon Padma Shri Neelam Mansingh Chowdhry for their path breaking work in their respective fields which inspired many to follow in their footsteps. Tanuja Chandra was recognized as the Laadli Woman Behind the Screen.
A new category The Laadli Gender Champion Award was introduced this year in memory of the triumvirate of India’s feminist movement, Gail Omvedt, Kamla Bhasin and Sonal Shukla. It was given to Flavia Agnes, the noted gender activist and women’s rights lawyer whose organisation, Majlis has assisted many women seeking legal recourse.
Anubhav Sinha’s Thappad was felicitated in the theatrical release category, while The Great Indian Kitchen released on Amazon Prime was recognised in the OTT category. W.O.M.B- Women of My Billion by Crossbow Miles and Awedacious Originals was awarded as a documentary. Garima and Susheela, the feisty twins from Kaatey Lal & Sons were awarded the “The Laadli Most Inspiring Woman Protagonist In a TV Serial”. A motley of advertisements was recognized for its gender sensitive portrayals and these include Animal’s Pure As Love For Bhima Jewellery, Leo Burnett’s Keep Girls In School For Whisper India, FCB India’s Tum Kab Itne Bade Ho Gaye for Horlicks, Ogilvy India’s #Nohandunwashed for Savlon, Ogilvy India’s #StopTheBeautyTest For Dove, LoweLintas’s #IAMMYTYPE for SkinKraft, Taproot Dentsu’s Nip In The Bud for IDiva, Benshi Films’ #ANTI-DOWRY for Kerala State Film Development Corporation, and Dentsu Impact’s social experiment The Divide for Paytm.
While Parmesh Shahani’s Autobiography Queeristan, Rituparna Chatterjee’s memoir The Water Phoenix, Kavita Krishnan Non-Fiction Fearless Freedom, Vandana Rag’s Fiction Bisat Par were the five books recognized in the books category, fifteen journalists from amongst the regional winners were selected to receive the national accolade for their work and included TV9 Telugu, Anna Keerthy George, Boondh.Co, C Vanaja, Juhi Smita, Dr. Shantanu Abhyankar, Aishwarya Amritvijayraj, Sharanya Manivannan, Navamy Sudhish, Md. Asghar Khan, Siddharth Dube, Parikshit Nirbhay, Vandana, Sadaf Modak, and Nitasha Natu.
Young students of Hyderabad-based Aarabhi- the Center for Performing Arts, and their Guru Kalaratna Ashok Gurjale, presented an ensemble of violin renditions of Vatapi Ganapati, Godavari and Tamsoma Jyotirgamay. A snippet of Ji, Jaisi Aapki Marzi! by Nadira Babbar and Ekjute Theatre Group was also showcased.
The event was live streamed on the Youtube channel of Population First and had garnered nearly 800 views on the day. The event was extensively publicised and obtained, 35 clips across print and online media platforms with a total PR value of over INR 15,000,000/-.
Comments from the some of the Jury members:
• Kiran Manral- Reading the entries made me realise how much of a yeoman’s service the Laadli Awards do. They put the focus firmly on writings that highlight women’s issues, issues of gender, of violence various issues read about, we hear about but put them on a back burner.
• Megha Tata- All these steps that Laadli is taking in acknowledging, and in rewarding will go a long way in getting more and more creative minds to be more conscious of creating advertising that addresses some of the gender stereotypical issues that we deal with in everyday life. More power to Laadli Media Awards and more power to our creative industry, so that it may sit up and see of how it can make a difference and make a society at large a more balanced society.
• Ramesh Narayan- It is an award with a difference, they not only run for a cause but they even espouse the cause. The winners are not only excellent in the work that they do, but they are making a difference in the world and making it a better place. Such awards need to be hailed and need to encouraged.
Link to view: https://bit.ly/3tpP6J8