Publicidad y Clase Media en la India de los noventa: entre la tradición y la modernidad

Abstract

The economic changes which occurred in India after the liberalization movement of the nineties favored the arrival of multinational companies and stimulated the sale of new products and services which started to be consumed by the new Indian middle class. In order to adapt to this new market, foreign companies promoted their products and services by mixing Indian and Western values, and by diffusing a halo of prestige and good reputation for the benefits, quality and design of these innovative consumer goods. These companies had to prove to be international and local, cosmopolitan and traditional; all this without losing an image of indianness. In order to reach that goal, advertisement agencies used clear symbols referring to India (Bollywood actors, patriotic songs, colors such as green and saffron…) along with the more and more frequent use of hinglish, a mix of Hindi and English which is expanding in the entire audiovisual market. India is nowadays a perfect place to understand globalization, its challenges and contradictions and the role of mass media and advertisement in all this process of change.