Australia – Following the viral ‘See The Signs #ShareTheLoad‘ film by Ariel India that spotlights the long-term impact of unequal distribution of chores on relationships, 100 house staff has uncovered signs of equality and inequality in the household and its impact on the relationship in a first-of-its-kind event that celebrates Ariel’s ‘ShareTheLoad’ movement.
The event was facilitated by Indian actress and model Neha Dhupia who delved deeper, with the 100 house helps, into the signs of equality and inequality within the household. In the event, a live survey was conducted with the house staff in attendance to gather their observations and insights.
The live survey showed that 95% of house helps observed that couples are happier when the husband takes interest and helps with household chores. Meanwhile, above 80% of house helps said that when husband and wife do not equally divide household chores, distance sets in a marriage.
They further shared that equal distribution of chores between a couple removes stress and burden from one of the partners and can boost companionship and happiness. More than 85% of house helps agreed that communication between couples reduces when husbands do not help with household chores.
“It was an insightful experience to facilitate this session with 100 domestic helps, in which they shared their observations and experience. House helps offer an outside perspective on relationships and how they change over time. The results we obtained were quiet staggering but, at the same time, they also highlighted the importance of sharing the load,” said actress Neha Dhupia.
She added, “Household duties are not dependent on gender. It is not ‘his’ or ‘her’ job, it’s our life and our shared responsibility. By sharing the load, husbands can ease the burden on their wives and strengthen their bond to create a more harmonious household. It’s time we break free from the traditional gender roles and create a culture of equal partnerships in our homes. If there is continued inequality; it may create an emotional distance in the relationship. I urge everyone to see the signs and #ShareTheLoad.”
Sharat Verma, chief marketing officer and vice president – fabric care at P&G India, also remarked, “At Ariel, we want to trigger meaningful conversations that will help drive positive change. This year, with our #ShareTheLoad movement, we want to urge everyone to see the signs of the equality and how it affects the relationship. To delve deeper into this, we invited house helps who observe relationships as an outsider to share signs of equality and inequality they see between a couple.”
The Ariel ‘See the Signs #ShareTheLoad’ film has already garnered more than 40 million views across YouTube and social media. Leading voices and influencers have also shared the film on social media supporting the movement.