The Influence of Television Commercials on Clothing in India

In this article I aim to show that there are some major changes in India because of television regarding clothing. Whilst there is cultural fusion of Indian and western style clothing, this fusion is happening in different ways for different groups. Status in clothing (Campbell 49) is also reflecting other divides. The way that people respond to what they see on television commercials may depend on their gender, age, class or whether they live in a rural or urban context.
The research is based on a ten year project which began with in-depth ethnography conducted in India. Most of the research was conducted in the North East of India, though some was conducted in Delhi, Bombay and Bangalore. The ethnography included living with Indian families for long periods of time (ranging from six weeks to six months). Other research methods were also used including questionnaires, interviews and focus discussion groups.