As a publication that has, since its inception, observed, reported on and been part of India’s advertising, marketing and media ecosystem, Manifest has always believed that the industry has a responsibility to look beyond the work it creates and examine its influence on society.

Gender representation is an important part of that conversation.

We have always been particularly conscious of the voices and perspectives we bring into our own pages. In March 2025, we made a commitment: a 50:50 representation of women and men across our editorial coverage. Eighteen months later, we’re glad to be able to fulfil it. But we’re aware it can’t stop here, and we’ll keep at it.

This is also why becoming a cause partner for IAA Voice of Change, an initiative of the IAA India Chapter with UNICEF as knowledge partner, felt like a natural extension of what Manifest already stands for.

Our association with the movement also builds on conversations we have been part of before. In 2024, Manifest founder and editor Raahil Chopra moderated a panel discussion at the IAA Voice of Change roadshow at Famous Innovations, bringing together industry voices to discuss the role advertising can play in challenging established narratives.

Our work around creating more space and opportunities for women in the industry has taken several forms over the years. We brought See It Be It, the Cannes Lions initiative supporting and accelerating women in the creative industry, to India in collaboration with Indian Creative Women. We have also partnered with organisations such as She Directs Ads, which works towards creating greater opportunities and visibility for women directors in advertising.

And through all of this, we have seen something encouraging: the industry's willingness to engage.

Agencies, brands, creators and industry leaders have increasingly been willing to question existing biases, have difficult conversations, and consider what a more representative industry could look like.

Having had the opportunity to work across both Manifest and IAA Voice of Change, I have also seen first-hand that meaningful change rarely comes from one initiative or one organisation. It comes when different parts of the ecosystem begin to move in the same direction.

That is what makes Voice of Change important.

As a media platform, Manifest believes it has a role to play here. To create space for conversations, amplify voices that deserve to be heard, question the norms that have become accepted and, importantly, keep the conversation going.

Becoming a cause partner is therefore not simply about associating ourselves with a movement whose values we share. It is about using the platform we have built to contribute to that movement in a meaningful way.

Because, as we have repeatedly heard, the advertising industry does not just reflect culture. It helps shape it.

The people we see, the stories we tell and the roles we assign through advertising all contribute to how society understands gender, ambition, leadership and possibility.

And if we have the power to shape those narratives, we also have a responsibility to shape them better.

For Manifest, that is what being a cause partner means.

But meaningful change cannot happen in isolation. It needs each of us - as individuals, organisations, creators, leaders and members of this industry - to question the biases we see, challenge the stereotypes that have been normalised and make space for voices that have historically been underrepresented.

So, as we continue this conversation, we invite you to do more than listen. Question. Challenge. Speak up.

Be the Voice of Change.