Women Ask Their Partners If They See Them As Their Equals

Ariel’s new video, where a woman asks her partner if he sees her as an equal, is the first step to an equal tomorrow

Gender disparity is visible in most Indian households even today, especially when it comes to the division of domestic responsibilities. The last two years have highlighted why it is necessary that both men and women pull equal weight and evenly split their household chores. Men have adopted certain behavioural and lifestyle changes that have somewhat reduced a woman’s burden. But the imbalance continues.

Let’s be honest. If you are a guy who has gone to a boarding school or university or are even living on your own while working in a metro city, chances are you can probably cook a decent meal or rely on takeaway. If it is the latter, you already know it is unhealthy and are trying not to burn or split your fingers. But if you are used to the daily tasks of cooking, cleaning and generally managing the household besides office responsibilities then, you are aware of the workload and know how to do the basics.

So, why do some men want women to take up all the housework after marriage? Is it because they have grown a bit complacent or because they think they are no longer needed to contribute to the overall management of the household? These are the pertinent questions that Ariel raises in its first-of-its-kind movement where women are asking their partners, “Do you actually see me as your equal?”.

How do we help curb this inequality that exists in households and change people’s mentality? Ariel’s movement encourages men to be equal partners when it comes to participating in chores at home. Before we tell you more, watch the video:

The movement started in 2015 with a question that got everyone thinking – “Is laundry only a woman’s job?”. In 2016, the film questioned people as to “Why is laundry only a mother’s job?” It encouraged dads to share the load and in 2018, they asked, ‘Are we teaching our sons what we have been teaching our daughters?”

Their latest video goes a step further and discusses why men who have grown up performing essential tasks such as cooking or laundry when in college or living with friends, suddenly want to shed away from these responsibilities once married. They are aware of the toll all these accumulated responsibilities take on a single person. Then why is it that after marriage, they want women to single-handedly manage household duties besides her professional career? The film talks about how these unconscious biases show up in our day to day lives in the form of cues of inequality. And for the first-time women are turning around and asking if their partners actually see them as their equal or is it simply lip service? Ariel believes that when we #SeeEqual, we #ShareTheLoad equally!

Ariel is hoping to bring about a change in our households and society by asking these questions and starting these conversations.