We recently checked out the new campaign by Ariel (India’s leading detergent brand) and it totally left a lasting impression on us. The Ad focuses on one key question – is laundry only a woman’s job? It’s about about how men should #ShareTheLoad with women. Household chores aren’t just a woman’s responsibilities. So, we’re urging men to get their macho on, break gender stereotypes and start aiming to take the load off their women’s shoulders. Many would ask the fundamental question – ‘is expression of gratitude on one day enough or is it better expressed by your actions every single day, in little ways which will eventually amount to more?’. Perhaps she doesn’t want a ‘thank-you card’ or a Facebook post or even that bouquet of flowers… perhaps what she needs is for you to express gratitude through your everyday actions. And trust us, she’s given you plenty of hints!
Watch the TVC here, if you haven’t already:
We’ll tell you how you can #ShareTheLoad with her and it doesn’t involve buying expensive gifts or playing romeo 24/7!
1) “I’m heading out to buy the groceries”
When your partner or wife utters these words – you could be in a tricky situation. While wishing her a ‘happy trip’, is a definite No-No, offering to drive her there, doesn’t really constitute as “Sharing the Load”. Instead gentlemen, why not offer to do the grocery shopping yourselves once a month and we promise you’ll be surprised with the results!
2) “I had a really long day at work”
Believe it or not, women have the occasional crappy day too! As her man, you need to reassure her that she is beautiful, smart and IMPORTANT even on her worst days! This is one chore you might have to do often, but trust me, it’ll be worth it! Also, occasionally, she may just expect a hot cup of tea and some biscuits to go with that, oh and maybe even someone to start helping the children with their homework. This is something you can manage every now and then, right guys? But what she’s NOT expecting, is for you to switch on the television, skip straight to the News Channels, and wait for her to hand you a cup of coffee!
3) “Think dinner might be a little later than usual today”.
This is NOT just a status update or a heads up before dinner-time. This is an invitation for all you wonderful men to step forward and ask, “Is there anything I can help with?” – a statement you seldom make but we keep hoping you will! The next time you hear this – get to it! Because preparing and laying out that steaming hot meal for you every night isn’t always easy and a helping hand is more than welcome!
4) “Let’s go out for dinner on Saturday night?”
Yup, you heard right. She wants to head out. She’s spent five days this week managing household chores and cooking for you. She could use a break. So guys, the ideal response which would yield optimal results would be: “Sure honey, and on Sunday its breakfast in bed for you, while I get the laundry done”.
5) “Its your shirt, honey – its exactly where you left it last!”
You must have heard this pretty often, right guys? Men have this habit of giving laundry very little importance – many do it just once a month. There’s generally very little thought that goes into the whole process of washing, drying, ironing and folding your clothes, when it’s already done and kept ready for you everyday. So every now and then, go grab some Ariel, gather all that dirty laundry and throw it all into the washing machine (yup, that giant thing that your woman uses to keep your clothes clean) – we promise you, it really isn’t all that hard. When she comes home to the smell of washed clothes, she’s definitely going to fall for you all over again!
FYI, did you know that 80% of working Indian women^ want their spouse to share the household chores*. We feel that men should take this opportunity to appreciate their women and #ShareTheLoad!
Tell us why you feel that a man should #ShareTheLoad?
To know more you can visit Ariel’s page on Facebook and Twitter.
*Claims generated from men and women who were in agreement with the above statements as per a 5-city (1250 person) survey conducted by an independent third party agency in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad & Bangalore, in November 2014.
^Women who work and do household chores