No Kiddin’

Four. That’s not even half a decade,and that’s not even close to the legal age. But what the heck – she’s cute,totally adorable,the audiences are head over heels for her,and the TRPs are skyrocketing. ‘Aapki Antara’ is a programming genius,and Zaina Vastani,the masterstroke. So what if she gets cranky on the sets,and they have to amuse her with toys,the li’l girl is their lucky charm. Just like six-year-old Afsha Musani. Sharp as a whip,this firecracker of a bachcha with a geeky pair of spectacles is what we call a ‘luck,by chance’ find. The minute Zee realised her nuclear power potential,they drew up a new deal which elevated her from a contestant to the host of ‘Hero Honda Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs’ along with 10-year-old Dhairya Sorecha. Sixty-five commercials and a couple of movies later,Dhairya,by now,is a household face. Together,they make a record as the youngest ‘sutradhaars’ on the Indian telly. On another microwave,NDTV Imagine has nine-year-old Aashika Bhatia loaded in jewels and falling in love with Krishna in ‘Meera’ while Balika Vadhu’s Avika Gor had to re-adjust her school timings and shoot in the evenings. Little Sparsh eats,sleeps,studies on the sets,in between her shots for Colors ‘Uttaran’. ‘Chhote Miyan Bade Miyan’ is grooming comedians as young as six and seven. “And whenever there’s an audition for reality show,you have to see how parents drag their children for it from all over the country,” independent producer,Manan Modi gives an insight on the growing tribe of children on television. And yes,the ages are shrinking,“for the demand is rising because children’s shows have the most impressive TRPs,and channels are ready to pump in as much as Rs 30-40 lakh per episode for they’ll make ten times more out of it,” he tells us. And where does that leave the children? “Well,most of them love it. They don’t leave the house without make-up! But if anyone is to be questioned,it’s the parents who push them and are ready to forego school.” In fact,recently,Indian child rights activists had complained that child actors and child singers below the age of 14 were forced to work more than eight hours at a stretch,which often led to mental and physical exhaustion. Now that the Maharashtra Government’s demanding explanation,a debate has sparked off. “Producers and channels maintain that they are not paying the child,that they are following proper guidelines. Consent forms are signed by the parents,and it’s mentioned that this is an extra-curricular activity. Whatever money is made is through commercials,” tells Manan.

“On the look of it,it’s great for the channel,for the audiences. But it’s a different story behind the scenes. Children are not only pressurised to perform,they work at odd hours,their studies suffer and they miss out on a normal childhood,” Abhijeet and Alka Yagnik got candid during the auditions of ‘Li’l Champs’ in Chandigarh.

So is ban a solution? “Not at all,” shoots Vinta Nanda. “A country which doesn’t have laws,and fails to implement if it does have one,cannot order a blanket ban. You cannot say children can’t work on television,it’s a great platform. What is needed is working out certain guidelines like the West with the Producers Guild of India and Indian Broadcasters Association. This should cover working hours,a teacher,a medic,books,creche,playschool et al on the sets,” suggests Vinta who feels the industry lacks professionalism. “It works according to the whims and fancies of a producer. He can call a meeting in the middle of the night and you have to go. Shootings begin at 7 in the evening,scripts are written a day in advance,people are made overnight stars and forgotten. There is no association to take the responsibility or be accountable,” she exposes the exploitation,and gives reasons for her exit. While Zee’s programming head Ajay Bhalwankar maintains that they follow all guidelines like no smoking on sets,providing kids with proper beverages and food,having a counsellor,ambulance on call,sticking to a 10-hour schedule,keep explosives away et al,writer-producer Mamta Patnaik feels that it’s the parents who need to be addressed first. “They get over-ambitious. They should treat this as a hobby,not a profession,” Mamta recently shot a live action animation called Kaalo with children and says they make for the best content on screen because of their instant connect with the audience. “Saregama tried it with Li’l Champs,it was a hit and now replicated,” she says. For Balika Vadhu’s writer Purnendu Shekhar,GEC cannot work without children and it’s not fair to slap a notice. “It’s a medium to grow,to showcase you talent. If we reel under bans then how will we ever make a Home Alone or Harry Potter,” he questions. Agreed,we can’t avoid kids on telelvision completely. But do we have the right to exploit them? Think about it.