Think the word 'mother', and it mostly doesn’t just remind you of a person, but also evokes a sentiment. And more often than not, the words 'mother' and 'father' are bound within the strict binary of ‘biological’ male and female.
But this new ad by Vicks India attempts to break that rigid binary, by talking about love and care in a manner everyone understands.
The story is narrated by a young girl, who sits on a bus on the way to her boarding school. She talks about her childhood and her mother... her adoptive mother. The girl talks about how she and her mother spend time together, how Sunday was their favourite day and how her mother wants her to become a doctor.
Throughout this narration, the mother is a mere figure on the sidelines, the focus continuing to remain on the girl and her memories.
Who is this woman? Find out here:
The identity of the girl's mother is a revelation, because of all the persons you expect to see, a trans woman is not one.
The trans woman in the video is Gauri Sawant - and the ad tells the real story of how Gauri adopted an orphaned Gayatri when she was 6 years old, according to Chinki Sinha's piece in Open magazine.
Gayatri's mother was a sex worker who died of HIV AIDS. Gauri adopted her then, bringing her home, grooming and feeding her.
In the video, Gayatri talks about how everyone needs the care that Gauri has given to her - a reference to the discrimination that transgender persons are often subjected to.