India 'Disneyfied'?

Disneyfication of India

“Disneyfication (also called Disneyization) is a term which describes the transformation of something, usually society at large, to resemble The Walt Disney Company's theme parks. Sharon Zukin (1996) uses the former term in her book The Cultures of Cities, as do other social scientists writing about urban transformation. The latter term was popularized by Alan Bryman in a 2004 book, The Disneyization of Society. Disneyfication of urban space is explored in Jeff Ferrell's Tearing Down the Streets: Adventures in Urban Anarchy.

The terms are generally used in a negative way, and they imply homogenization of consumption, merchandising, and emotional labor. They can be used more broadly to describe the processes of stripping a real place or event of its original character and repackaging it in a sanitized format. References to anything negative are removed, and the facts are watered down with the intent of making the subject more pleasant and easily grasped. In the case of places, this typically means replacing what has grown organically over time with an idealized and tourist-friendly veneer reminiscent of the "Main Street, U.S.A." attractions at Disney theme parks.” – Wikipedia.

There principals of Disneyfication are as such: theming, merchandizing, and emotional labour.

Theming
Firms are coming up with different themes to boost sales. An example could be the F&B industry. Restaurants are repeatedly trying to sell not only their food but the overall image of the place, in order to gain an edge over the rest. One classic case could be the ‘Ohris Group’s Bollywood themed Restaurant 'Havmor 70 MM' and '1857' - Colonial themed Restro-Bar launched at Hyderabad. Each zone is themed in that look and feel. Also featured are full and detailed statues of Amitabh Bachchan and Helen with a lot of retro Bollywood elements including staff uniforms. Table tops are all themed as per the zone. Lots of authentic bollywood memorabilia on the walls such as LP records, Posters depicting Bollywood stars, etc.

Merchandizing
Bollywood, India’s version of Hollywood, is one of India’s greatest joys having gained recognition on an international context. Along with box-office collections, producers are increasingly looking at off-screen deals as an alternative source of revenue. One such example could be ‘merchandising for Saawariya. The whole business of branded entertainment is being driven by “outside associations” which is growing at a whopping 200% year-on-year.

Emotional labour
“Emotional labour is an element of work activity in which the worker is required to display certain emotions in order to complete work tasks in the way required by an employer.” One such example can be the call centre in Mumbai. Problems facing the call-centre workers such as `abusive client calls', `nerve-wracking time schedules and increasing targets' are among the issues in spotlight. There are several centres where the profit margins are so tight that operators are under constant pressure to meet tough deadlines and stick to strictly scripted interactions, and manage a cheerful disposition through it all.