Apparently, this Indian ad showing a woman remarrying is a big deal

Buzzfeed's Rega Jha shared this ad by Tansishq, an Indian jewellery brand. She explains that while marriage is a common theme for these types of ads, the idea of showing the second marriage of a woman with a child is unusual:

"This is remarkable for a nation where widow remarriage, although legal, is still not completely accepted, and divorce and remarriage, while on the rise, are still highly stigmatized."

Ms. Jha says that at the end, the girl asks her new stepfather if she can call him "daddy".

The ad is pretty over-the-top in its sentimentalism to Western eyes, but the Twitter comments gathered in the post congratulate the advertiser for showing a "dusky" bride (played by Priyanka Bose) who "isn't stick skinny" and who has a child.

Wedding photographer claims her work was stolen for a "quickie marriage" radio contest

Ottawa wedding photographer Barbi Guild Cameron took to Facebook recently, claiming that local radio station HOT 89.9 took one of her photos, without permission or payment, for use in a partnership marketing kit:

The new Hot 89.9 out of Ottawa Canada runs a contest every spring where by couples get married in the span of 24 hours. I think it is a horrible, horrible contest and devalues marriage. It is certainly a contest I do NOT want my name or branding associated with. Imagine my shock when I see my image on their media/marketing kit info that entices potential advertisers to the contest to pay big bucks to be a part of it.

The image is from the blog of Barbara Ann Studios, where it appeared in a 2009 post about the wedding location of Strathmere.

Ms. Cameron continues:

I contacted the the radio station and they did not immediately get back to me. So then I contacted their owner, NewsCap Radio (who own ALOT radio stations across the country). They contacted me immediately expressing that they take copyright issue VERY SERIOUSLY. Well, everything was very serious until I mentioned that they were to compensate me for the illegal use of my image (AND ALTERED USE I MIGHT ADD). That is when the email tone turned negative. 

The Vice President of NewsCap Radio offered me $40. When I turned him down, he emailed me the following: 

"Barb you were kind enough to provide us with a few definitions. Here is one I just looked up:extortionNOUN The practice of obtaining something, esp. money through force or threatsSYNONYMS Blackmail-exaction
You are obviously a very talented photographer, I would stick with that. Extortion is not your thing.CheersSB" 

If they would have approached me to use the image, we would have had a chance to discuss the commercial use of it (IF I allowed the use of the image in the first place). However, once the image is used, I am at the disadvantage because the image is already out there. 

I no longer want money from them. I instead want this story to be shared and shared and shared and shared. Maybe, just maybe, some marketing person at a company will read it and it will educate them to not STEAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY just because Google barfed it up on their screen. 

 I can only imagine the horror that someone who counts on wedding business felt when her work — and her clients — were used to promote a contest that in her opinion "devalues marriage".

If all the above is true, it's quite conceivable that some graphic designer at HOT 89.9 figured nobody would ever know if they "borrowed" an image for a piece that was never supposed to be seen in public. But it's the alleged reaction from the Newcap VP that is really troubling.

Let's see how this plays out.

Thanks to Marc A for the tip.

Marriage proposal infographic #vday

Apparently, the girlfriend works at Mashable. So maybe she'll actually like it. (I hope so, because I'm looking forward to the wedding night venn diagram.)

Via Buzzfeed

Engagement pizza comes with a ring, flowers, limo and fireworks*

*horrified girlfriend not included

Eater put me on to this publicity stunt of a Valentine's Day offer by none other than the chain restaurant known colloquially as "Pizza Slut":

Here's a close-up:

I love how the $10 pizza is additional to the $10K in swag. (Including a brand-appropriate red gem in the ring.)

Eater also quotes the press release:

“Would you like a proposal with your order?” Starting today, consumers visiting PizzaHut.com can answer “yes” to that question and purchase the $10 Dinner Box Proposal Package, an epic collection of proposal goodies inspired by the new $10 Dinner Box on the Pizza Hut menu. Pizza Hut is offering only 10 of the exclusive packages just in time for Valentine’s Day at a cost of $10,010 each. The $10 Dinner Box Proposal Package includes a ruby engagement ring, limo service, flowers, fireworks show, photographer, videographer and of course, most importantly, the mouth-watering new $10 Dinner Box. 

Fitting all of these amazing items into one package echoes the feat pulled off inside the new Pizza Hut $10 Dinner Box, which includes a medium one-topping rectangular pan pizza, five breadsticks with marinara sauce and 10 cinnamon sticks with a sweet icing cup in one box for only $10. 

“If we’re able to fit pizza, breadsticks and dessert into one box for only $10, why stop there?” asked Kurt Kane, Pizza Hut CMO. “Our customers want the best of everything, from their food to memorable life experiences. So we decided to make one of those experiences – the marriage proposal – second-to-none and offer it at PizzaHut.com right alongside the new $10 Dinner Box.” 

With only 10 packages being offered at PizzaHut.com, those looking to pop the question in a unique way need to act fast. c. Here’s a closer look inside the $10 Dinner Box Proposal Package. 

Ruby Engagement Ring: a stunning ruby stone flanked by shimmering diamonds
Limo Service: pick up your sweetheart in style before popping the question
Flowers: no proposal is complete without a spectacular bouquet of her favorite flowers
Fireworks: a perfectly-timed fireworks display will vault this proposal into the record books
Photographer: photos taken of the happy couple before, during and after the moment
Videographer: capturing video of the moment she says “yes”
$10 Dinner Box: hands-down the most vital, and appetizing, piece of the package

It's a cute little stunt. Although paying ten grand to help a crappy pizza chain generate PR is probably not the way I would have wanted to start my marriage.

F'd Ad Fridays: "Fell Out of Love With a Girl"

Jack White (who still carries the assumed surname of his ex-wife and former White Stripes bandmate Meg) is such an old fashioned romantic:

Via The Daily What