Social Media Enraged Over Perfume Ad Promoting Rape Culture

New Delhi: Two ads that have been streaming on television amid the England vs New Zealand cricket series have not gone down well with Instagram and Twitter users. In the new ads launched by perfume brand Layerr Shot, women are shown getting scared that they will be sexually assaulted or harassed by a bunch of men making suggestive comments. Critics have slammed them claiming that they “encourage rape.”

In the first ad, a man and a woman are shown sharing an intimate moment in a room when three of his friends barge in. One of them asks the ‘boyfriend’, “Shot maara (did you take the shot)?” He replies that he did, leaving the woman in shock. One of the other boys then rolls up his sleeves as he approaches the bed saying, “Ab humari baari (Now it’s our turn).” The woman recoils in fear, perhaps of being attacked. However, the man picks up the perfume bottle from the dresser and she is relieved.

In the second ad, the men are at a shopping mart, standing next to a lone woman shopper. “It’s four of us, and this is just one. Who will take the shot,” they ask. The shocked woman turns around and finds them to be talking about the perfume.

Many agreed that the ad should have never made it past the ideation stage at the ad agency. How does this kind of ads get approved, sick and outright disgusting. Is @layerr_shot full of perverts?,” wrote one user. “Whoever ideated, wrote, produced, acted in and approved the new Layer’r Shot ads, shame on each one of you,” wrote another Twitter user. Actor Sandhya Mridul commented. “No. WTF. This is so wrong!” Another mentioned how rape is not something to make jokes about as many women still live in constant fear of sexual assault. “My heart skipped a beat when the guy walks towards the girl in the first video. I hadn’t watched cable TV since ages, I had NO idea these ads were playing during IPL! S**t. @ascionline can you please look into these horrific ads,” commented a person. “Making adds based on our living breathing fears,” said another person.