Advertising today is a social force affecting and affected by our style of life and the group most vulnerable and targeted by advertisers is the age group between 5 to 20 years thus the present study explores the impact of advertisements in this age group. Moreover the lack of appropriate laws governing advertisements in India gives advertisers unrestrained liberty over their content which may have a negative affect on this vulnerable population. The present study aims to rectify this lacuna and compares Indian laws with effective advertising laws of other countries to check their conduciveness within India. The study was conducted in the economic and megapolis city of Mumbai where advertisers spend the maximum. Data was gathered via a questionnaire survey administered to the age group of 5 to 20 years and by a structured interview of their parents. Hypothesis on the impact of advertisements on choice of personal belongings and material possessions, increase in persuasion of parents towards buying a particular advertised product, use of advertised products related to personal appearance and effectiveness of advertisements featuring movie stars and free gifts and also attitude towards products promising intellectual enhancement were formulated and tested.Results indicated significant correlations between advertisements and choice of personal and material possessions and persuasion of adults. Subjective analysis of interviews found parents felt children were definitely affected by advertisements.
