Shift in Patriarchal Male Gaze: From “Overt to Covert” & from “Front to Back”

Arvind & Saachi Dhawan

“The prohibition of an action only results in the adaptation of that prohibited action to fit into an alternative action”

In contemporary society, ideals of female beauty continue to evolve, yet this evolution reveals not liberation but the persistence of deeply embedded structures of objectification. One of the most significant changes in recent decades is the shift in focus from female breasts to buttocks. On the surface, this might appear as a broadening of beauty norms, but a deeper sociological examination reveals how this transformation reflects the changing tactics of the gaze – particularly the male gaze – rather than its disappearance.

Male Gaze – Not Disappeared but shifted the focus

The concept of the male gaze, as theorized by Laura Mulvey, explains how women are visually positioned as passive subjects in a world structured around male viewers or a patriarchal social structure. For decades, media, film, and advertising had objectified the female sexuality for their own interests. For them the primary site of sexual and aesthetic interest of males in a female body was their chest (breasts). so, a few decades back the prime focus of male gaze (in society as well as in media resources) was the front view of women’s body, especially their breasts. However, as social and legal constraints have made blatant objectification more visible and publicly unacceptable, the male gaze has not vanished but has shifted its focal point from front to rear (back) side of the women’s body.

In public spaces, men now often feel more comfortable gazing at women from behind. This shift allows for visual consumption without confrontation, especially in a cultural climate where direct front-facing stares may be called out or criticized or even considered as a punishable offence. The buttocks, unlike the breasts, are often exposed passively – through walking posture, or fashion – allowing the gaze to remain hidden under a layer of plausible deniability. This is not just a shift in taste; it is a reconfiguration of power.

Fashion plays a powerful role in enabling and amplifying this new visual regime. With trends emphasizing form fitting clothing, high-waisted jeans, leggings, and sculpted silhouettes, the fashion industry reinforces the aestheticization of the buttocks. While this may be marketed as empowering or expressive, it often serves the desires of a patriarchal gaze under the surface. Despite the industry’s increasing diversity and inclusion rhetoric, much of its visual logic is still governed by male designers, editors, and photographers. They construct trends that eroticize specific body parts, one area at a time, ensuring that the gaze always has a place to land.

The cosmetic gaze, introduced by Bernadette Wegenstein, furthers this understanding by showing how bodily appearance becomes a reflection of inner morality or worth. The buttocks now function as a new site of judgment: firmness, roundness, and symmetry are no longer mere aesthetics but symbols of discipline, fitness, and even self-love. Women are subtly coerced into toning, enhancing, or even surgically modifying their bodies to meet these shifting ideals, all in the name of choice and empowerment—when in fact, these choices are heavily shaped by external expectations.

Objectification in Parts

The shift from breasts to buttocks does not dismantle objectification; it merely moves it to another terrain. The body remains fragmented, and women continue to be viewed as a collection of parts rather than whole beings. In everyday life, the gaze persists – less direct, more strategic, but just as intrusive. Men may now turn to digital spaces – social media, surveillance-style street photography, or fitness culture – to consume images of women’s bodies without crossing overt boundaries.

This phenomenon also illustrates how patriarchy adapts. As public awareness grows about harassment and consent, the mechanisms of control evolve. The gaze becomes more covert, more spatially aware, but not any less powerful. It shifts angles, finds new trends, and aligns itself with capitalist markets like fashion, fitness, and beauty industries.

Male Gaze and Law

Ultimately, this is not progress but a clever rebranding of the same gaze. The solution does not lie in simply diversifying beauty standards, but in deconstructing the logic that allows bodies, especially women’s bodies, to be endlessly surveyed, judged, and consumed. True liberation lies in rejecting the fragmented gaze altogether and embracing a fuller, more human recognition of the self and others.

The prohibition of overt gaze by introduction of punishments for the offence of Eve-teasing & Oglinghas inadvertently served as the reasons for such rebranding as they illegitimized such overt gazes the gaze shifted to take the covert covers.

Women Fashion and Media as Agents of Shifting Gaze

For decades, the fashion industry centered its marketing strategies on bras, push-ups, plunge styles, lace details, and celebrity-endorsed campaigns that shouted empowerment while subtly reinforcing old beauty standards. But take a look around now, from billboards to Instagram reels, and you’ll notice a clear shift. The spotlight has moved down the body – welcome to the age of ‘yoga pants’ and ‘apt-fit pants’.

The shift isn’t just visual, it’s cultural. Where bras once symbolized a woman’s empowerment or sensuality, today’s narrative focuses more on comfort, function, and authenticity. Yoga pants and body-contouring bottoms now dominate both closets and ad campaigns, driven by a mix of practicality and style. The body part that’s getting attention? Not just cleavage but movement, strength, and confidence in one’s own skin.

Rise of the “Athleisure” Era

The global athleisure market was valued at over $300 billion in 2023 and is expected to keep climbing. Brands like Lululemon, Alo Yoga, and Gymshark are household names—not just because their products are trendy, but because they speak to a lifestyle. One that values health, wellness, and being able to go from a yoga class to brunch without needing a wardrobe change.

These brands aren’t just selling pants—they’re selling freedom, a break from constricting clothing, underwires, or “suck-it-in” shapewear. In comparison, the lingerie market, once booming with flashy Victoria’s Secret runway shows, has seen a cultural cool-down.

Social Media & the Booty Movement

Let’s not ignore social media’s role in this pivot. Platforms like TikTok and Instagram accelerated the rise of “booty-lifting” leggings and activewear hauls. Influencers and fitness coaches made leggings the new power item, showcasing workouts, “day in the life” reels, or styling videos. The viral Seasum “butt scrunch” leggings on TikTok are a prime example—they sold out globally in 2021 after being dubbed “magic pants.”

Suddenly, leggings weren’t just for yoga—they were fashion-forward, gym-approved, and couch-friendly.

A Cultural Statement, Not Just a Trend

This isn’t just a style trend, it’s a reflection of cultural values shifting toward body autonomy, comfort, and functionality. Women are no longer dressing for the male gaze, they’re dressing for themselves. Pants are the new power move.

As the fashion world continues evolving, yoga pants and apt-fit bottoms have proven they’re not just alternatives to bras, they’re a quiet revolution, one stretchy waistband at a time.

The Male Gaze That Shifted, Not Shattered

What we are witnessing is not the liberation of the female body, but its rerouting through newer, more socially acceptable avenues of objectification. The prohibition of the overt male gaze through evolving laws, heightened awareness, and cultural shifts has not dismantled its power; it has simply forced it to adapt. In the shadows of “empowerment” and “comfort,” the gaze now finds home in the folds of athleisure, the sculpted seams of yoga pants, and the body-hugging designs of apt-fit wear.

The replacement of the bra craze with leggings and tailored bottoms is not a sign of emancipation alone – it’s a redirection of attention. As breasts lose their exclusivity as symbols of allure, buttocks rise to take their place, dressed in the language of strength, fitness, and femininity. Yet, under the surface, the logic remains unchanged: the body is still fragmented, surveilled, and curated for approval.

True empowerment will not come from swapping one fetishized body part for another or marketing comfort that still conforms to a visual ideal. It will come when the gaze no longer dictates the narrative – when fashion celebrates bodies for their existence, not their appeal. Until then, what looks like freedom may just be the same old gaze, dressed differently.