Vicks has come out with a 'Touch Of Care' ad campaign that's based on a true story. The ad talks about the bond between a mother and an adopted daughter.
We see the daughter Gayatri narrating her story of losing her birth mother at a young age and how her adoptive mother came into her life and how her mother has been more her friend than mom for the last 10 years, helping her get through tough times and sickness.
She describes the troubles her mother herself went through, having been thrown out of her house when she was 18. It is only towards the end that her mother is revealed as transgender woman Gauri Sawant.
For the first time, a mainstream brand has created a campaign with a transgender woman for a mother.
The ad directed by Neeraj Ghaywan raises the issue of discrimination against transgender people who struggle for basic rights. Indian advertisements are increasingly taking up social causes, whether it be skin colour bias or LGBT issues. Transgenders are a group that often sees negative portrayal in cinema, but there is a growing sensitivity to how they are portrayed on screen. This advertisement goes one step further in giving a touching portrayal of the transgender as a mother.
