Shops asked to keep them off pavements after corporator raises the issue.
Mannequins on pavements outside garment and textile shops have been banned. They will stand silent behind shop windows. This after a lady corporator took notice of them, and the sexy lingerie they sport, which under the male gaze strips women of dignity, according to her.
She says the male gaze is constantly in search for that which titillates and shimmering lingerie and night dresses on display on mannequins on the streets encourage men to treat women as ‘objects’ and make advances towards them.
Women corporators, fear that mannequins in seductive clothes can be interpreted as sex toys. So, as part of the women’s safety campaign, the BMC has decided to take action against shop owners who keep mannequins in ‘provocative’ clothes outside their establishments. It is, in any case, illegal to put up mannequins on pavements.
Additional municipal commissioner Mohan Adtani has ordered the license department of the BMC, which deals with shops and establishments, to initiate action. The decision to pull up shops came after mayor Sunil Prabhu took serious note of the issue raised by Shiv Sena corporator Ritu Tawde. She said such display attracts attention from men and can lead to crimes against women.
“In my area in Ghatkopar, the shops near SNDT College on MG Road display revealing night suits and night gowns. They also put fashionable lingerie on display. These clothes are displayed in such a way that no one can miss them,” Tawde said.
“Even though the target audience or clientele are women, most women lower their head in embarrassment when they cross such shops. However, the clothes give immense pleasure to some perverts. It encourages them to look at women as sultry objects and make advances towards them,” Tawde explained. She said it can prove dangerous, especially to girls attending college. The mayor concurred with the corporator and asked the administration to take cognisance of the issue.
Prabhu said such display should be stopped considering the increasing incidents of crime against women. “The shops can show the products to customers when they visit the stores. But there is no need to put them on display and that too on the road.” Adtani, too, believes it is time to end such ‘vulgarity’. He has asked the superintendent of licenses to take action against such shops. “We will first request the shopkeepers to remove such mannequins. Only if they do not relent, will we seize the mannequins and material on display,” said an official from the license department.
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