Bengaluru: Is laundry only a woman’s job? This is the question Amala Paul was asking today, during a press conference. India is home to equal opportunities for both men and women and gender equality has become cornerstone to our growth as a society. However, while India is working towards equal opportunities for all at the workplace there continues to remain a high sense of inequality between men and women within the household, particularly when it comes to household chores. Drawing from the recent findings of a Nielsen India Survey on Indian Households supported by Ariel India, Amala Paul to draws attention to this very important issue.
The results of the survey reveal that more than 2/3rds of Indian women and over 73% of women from Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad feel, there exists inequality at home, between men and women*. Echoing the sentiments of Indian women, Ariel India has joined with acclaimed celebrities as they spark a national debate and raise a very important question – Is laundry only a woman’s job?
Be it doing the laundry, cooking or cleaning—the top three most important household chores—it’s often the women who carry this load all on their own. According to the survey, 70% of married Indian women feel they spend more time on household work than with their husbands*, ironically while 80% of men in Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, believe laundry is a woman’s job*. While men in nuclear homes may help occasionally, donning the chef’s hat or taking the children to the park, when it comes to the key household tasks like doing the laundry, it’s still largely perceived as the ladies’ domain.
Amala Paul joined hands with Ariel India to bring to focus that 83 % of working Indian women** feel men should help with household chores at home. “As a wife and as a working professional with a hectic schedule myself, I completely understand why 85% of working Indian women** feel they have two jobs, one at work and the other at home*. It’s great to have our husbands help out at home with the kids, but a happier household is one where the load of household chores is also equally shared. Be it cooking, cleaning or simply doing the laundry, getting men to share the responsibility is why I’m here today! I’m glad to join Ariel India and raise this very important question to the men in Chennai and the rest of South India, – is laundry only a woman’s job?”
