The emergence of a national-popular television aesthetics: Surveying in the 1990s through advertisements

This chapter examines television advertisements shown between 1992 and 2003, in order to trace the cultural patterns and trajectories of democratization in India during the period of economic liberalization that began in 1991. From catering to an elite, wealthy audience that appeared to represent the entire nation, advertising evolved to reflect the values of the poor as well, helping to lead the nation beyond the Nehruvian assumption that progress would come from the educated middle and upper classes. In marketing to the poor, television portrayed this consumer as clever, thrifty, and capable of seeing through the brand image. However, advertising also expressed consumerist values and encouraged acquisitiveness, detaching its audience from political issues.