Portrayal of Indian Women Through Television Serials

PORTRAYAL OF INDIAN WOMEN THROUGH TELEVISION SERIALS Tender and the media is a subject that is being discussed frequently. The portrayal of gender as a product and the accompanying body politic in the media is well documented. Media can either be a accomplice to gender based discrimination by portraying stereotypical sensational images of women or it can provide balanced coverage that empowers women while exposing acts of gender bias. This essay of mine is specially focused on women’s issues and characters that are covered on television and the manner in which they are portrayed in Hindi television serials. Women portrayal in television is one of the disputable issues surrounding the media today. The modern images of the more liberated†¦show more content†¦Despite several debates and discussions taking place, new serials are cropping up every month, generally based on the same topic, as it seems like the viewers enjoy the suspense of a juicy family drama based on betrayal, deceit and an ultimate reconciliation. The target audience of Indian serials is assumed to be housewives and elderly women who spend their afternoons in front of the television, thus most of these melodramatic serials focus on the lives and personalities of these stereotypical women and showcase them in a positive or negative light. Marriage, being an issue of utmost importance and seen as a necessity in the traditional Indian household, is usually the focal point of most of these shows. The concept of fair and dark complexion has also been a hot topic for discussion. The attractiveness of a woman is usually measured by the colour of her skin. Some serials even go to the extent of casting darker women as the villains and fairer women as the fragile victim. These issues not only throw light on the plight of women in the Indian society, but also retard the improvement in the portrait of the fairer sex in India. Ekta Kapoor’s teleserials gave Indian television a new genre of women characters and the success of these characters calls for questioning our changing idols. Women if not shown portraying stereotyped, superhuman characters; are shown as schemers, manipulators, home-breakers or asShow MoreRelatedCodes and Conventions of Genres Essay1260 Words   |  6 Pagesword meaning that refers to types or categories of media products. Soap operas, situation comedies, police series, quiz shows and news programmes are just some of the genres to be found in television. Genres are identified by the particular conventions they use which are recognised through regular contact. Conventions are any elements which are repeated in such a way that they become familiar, predictable and associated in their use with a particular genre. Conventions include: Read MoreFemale Foeticide1557 Words   |  7 PagesContemporary Indian society professes a profound faith in every individual’s â€Å"right to life and dignity†. The rights relating to the weaker vulnerable sections of Indian society especially women, and more specially the girl child were violated. The twin social evils of female foeticide female infanticide were the main causes.Violence against women exists in various forms, in all societies, the world over. In 1996 the world health assembly endorsed the fact that violence against women is a PublicRead MoreContemporary Indian And Indian Drama1657 Words   |  7 Pages Contemporary Indian drama in English Translation has dramatically made bold innovations and successful experiments in terms of both thematic concerns and technical virtuosities. Mohan Rakesh, Badal Sircar, Girish Karnad, and Vijay Tendulkar are the most famous playwrights of the contemporary Indian drama, whose excellent works are now amply available in many languages throughout the globe. Mohan Rakesh s plays describe the sufferings of men and women, who fall victims of socio-economic hierarchyRead MoreRacial Stereotypes3031 Words   |  13 Pagesoften stereotyped and many actors are also â€Å"type-casted† in movie roles based on their race. Since the inception of television and movies in American popular culture, they have been used as a medium to portray certain images and messages about certain groups of people, particularly minorities, to spread fear and propaganda to the masses. One shining example of this is how television and magazines were used to depict black people in America during the early 1900’s. There were many different stereotypicalRead MoreDo Soap Operas Have The Potentials Empower Women Audience?3467 Words   |  14 Pagesempower women audience? Apply relevant feminist media theories to the analysis of one particular show. Introduction People nowadays live in a media society and they use different kinds of media products everyday. The public  enjoy  the  benefits  brought  by  technology as people not only can watch the programmes on television but also be able to watch them online. In Indonesia, nine out of ten people watch television every single day and a  growing amount of middle class people start television subscriptionRead MoreSatellite Channel Revolution in Bangladesh5002 Words   |  21 PagesConcept of Satellite Television in Bangladesh ï  ¶ Development of Satellite Television (STV) in Bangladesh ï  ¶ Background Information(Growth of TV Channels in Bangladesh) ï  ¶ List of Bangladeshi satellite channel ï  ¶ 1st satellite channel of Bangladesh ï  ¶ Programmes show in Bangladeshi satellite channel ï  ¶ TV news in banladeshi satellite channels ï  ¶ Beginning of the Change in Bangladesh ï  ¶ Cable Connection in Dhaka City ï  ¶ TV without Border (CNN entry in Bangladesh) ï  ¶ Satellite Television Asian Region (STAR) inRead MoreEssay on Western Movies Since 19602820 Words   |  12 Pagestwo Westerns were released, and neither was exactly a major success. Barbarosa, starring Willie Nelson, drew some respectable reviews–and some very damaging ones–but nobody went to see the film. The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez appeared first on PBS television, then later went into general release. Today the Western seems to be deader than the California Med-fly. Critics and aficionados of the form can only hear, as with Arnolds sea of faith, its long receding roar. Everything except fluoride in theRead MoreThe Impact of Electronic Media on Performance of Students11847 Words   |  48 PagesCHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY The media, most especially television, mobile phone, internet, computer have gradually become a part of our daily lives, and sources of information, education and entertainment have been described as the primary functions of the media. Student at higher secondary level learnt more of media. There is three functions to the media: i. Surveillance of the Environment (the news function). ii. Correlation of the different parts of the