It almost looked like a child’s playroom with toys placed in different corners- the colors, animated feel of the room proving contagious. The room was a large one. The factory workers were really busy in packing the toys, stacking them neatly and there was a sense of hurriedness in the whole process. The toy specialists, skillful at their job, were checking the toys carefully, completing the packing process like true professionals so that those can get exported the very next day, with no hassles. Out of a very dark room, we see a girl with a perfect ponytail wearing a pink sweatshirt speaking to a boy who was dressed more like Superhero. It was less of a conversation and more of an argument, though.
Girl ” hi I’m barbie. ”
Boy, ” Hi, This is Gijoe.”
Barbie :” I wish to play with a boy this time.”
Gijoe : ”Silly,boys do not like pink ! Or plays with dolls! We like adventures and fun.”
Barbie: But I’m fun too. I can twist my neck and do all that you can do!
Gijoe :”You are a girl’s toy.”
Barbie: ”No, I’ m just a child’s toy.”
The above conversation might be fictional, yet the concept is very much enmeshed within the walls of our society. When it comes to buying a toy for a child, we have already assumed that the pretty pink figures are for the girls and the action-packed figures in blue are for the boys. In recent researches, it has been observed that the world has become more stereotype than ever! Then what we are proclaiming as gender equality with slogans, billboards, talk shows rife with loads of lofty ideas stating that women are on the same footing as men are just empty statements?-Are we really progressing?- is a food for thought for all!
The glaring truth that has been observed in the recent times is that toys are categorized on gender notions. And, of course, thanks to the blue aisle and pink aisle concept, the very popular gender-based signage, the world is swayed with biases. Even Disney store’s website has categorized toys as being ”for boys ” or ”for girls ” where there should have been ”boys and girls” category to select from, whereby we can get a lot of toys for all little champs irrespective of their gender. The little ones, too, can decide for themselves which one they would want to play with.
The great color divide
Pretty Pink: Why can’t it be pulsating pink?!
There is absolutely nothing wrong with pink princesses, pink dolls or pink bicycles .The stereotype behavior of the society associates pink with all that is being girly, while the boys just detest (read are ‘made’ to detest) anything that is so ”girly”. We go deeper in the matter and see that girls have often been kept at bay from nurturing their innate desire to play any outdoor sport, put on their running shoes, have that baseball cap on and sport the oversized dad’s shirts – because that would make them tomboyish and it is a strict no-no for their image. This is because if they do not hit the salon, don’t delve in the world of make-ups, nice shoes, LBD’s and proper clothes only while gracing family functions, they would be unable to find the perfect (really so perfect) suitor! Girls are encouraged to indulge in ‘domestic plays’ more!
Brawny Blue: Blue can be for girls,too!
We have assumed that the color blue is for men .You must be remembering gifting a pink ball to a girl and a blue ball to a boy-whereas for me, I think blue stands for both. Blue has always reminded me of my school days; I had my uniform in blue .So the next time I pick up a dress for a girl I think I would like to go for blue and that would definitely be just another color for me!
The freedom to choose whatever they feel :
The question that keeps popping up is that who has invented the theory of pastel colors? Why should a boy like blue and girls have to like pink? Too many questions right!! How do we expect that our children would be their own boss when we have the top-rated companies specializing in playthings actually dictating us what toys to be played by the children? My 7 year old nephew loves watching Frozen. Almost everyone loves watching it. He even asked me to gift him the dolls! Why is it not okay for him to play with Elsa and Anna? The questions would keep coming back to us and we do have solutions like he is a boy so give him a blue truck, and she is a girl so give her a little pretty pink doll. Why can’t it be exchanged for once?
Feeling Pink but choosing blue :
My point is that the color pink and mainly dolls symbolize feminism, which excludes the brawny boys. However, this is the age of role-reversals! Don’t we see a dad cooking or taking care of babies? Although in 2021, we see that the toy manufacturers are actually expanding on the color palette; ‘change’ is taking slow steps for good and it is time to embrace change. And hopefully, we will observe the beginning of a new era. I am definitely not saying that the boys should drop down the air guns and play with dolls. cooking or taking care of babies? Pink is the colour of femininity as some say but it actually holds everything in the universe as one. Pink is actually a colour that exists below every skin – dark, pale or white the colour that resonates under the skin of every human that walks the earth. Hence let the colour be for all and not just for a particular gender. Here is a note for all parents, why not let your little angel swap the pink for blue, your charming little prince to opt for something pink or for softer hues that are typically tagged as being girly?) Give them the freedom to choose and see how it makes a difference.
Written by Poonam Chatterjee
Week 44 November 2021
