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Television, a part and parcel of our daily living, does not merely entertain us but moulds a family’s, nay society’s, collective psyche. The age of innocence is dead and gone. What we have here is info-overload of the most undesirable kind. Witness the condom ads. Or, even the supposedly sedate suitings commercials wherein one model, wearing next to nothing, comes up to a dressed-up hunk, who is lolling on the beach, and asks him whether she was not hot enough. In another ad another female model virtually goes berserk on seeing a gents’ suit hanging on a dummy, resorting to gestures and sounds more appropriate in the privacy of a bedroom. You can’t screen your children from the influence of these images. So, what do you do? If you arrange for a separate television set for the kids you can’t be sure that they would be watching only cartoon movies or the educational channels like History, Discovery etc. Separate viewing hours for kids too would require the presence of a chaperon, something not practical for most of our households. But carnality is not the only thing that’s being purveyed. There are other unhealthy attitudes that are being instilled into impressionable minds. Television gives out the message loud and clear—consumerism is the right lifestyle choice, baby. Our soap-operas and advertisements give the impression that latest gizmos, wearables and vehicles are vital for one’s very existence in this world. Junk food is bad for kids’ health; any doctor will tell you this. Yet, pizzas, colas et al are being indiscriminately endorsed by those who are considered icons by our teeny boppers, viz., film, television and sports stars. So when mom packs paranthas with daal or green vegetable for lunch, their wards conveniently throw them in trash-bins and head for the ubiquitous school canteen, or the nearest fast-food joint. They eat the stuff concocted out of ingredients of dubious quality and cooked in unhygienic conditions. The end result is obesity and low immunity levels. No matter what amount parents give as pocket-money, it always falls short of the child’s rampaging desires fuelled by TV commercials and fashionable protagonists of popular soaps on the idiot box. Children are not satisfied with just any cell-phone; it ought to be latest model and fully-loaded to boot. Not just any vehicle–it has to be the fastest and the jazziest available in the market. Not just any set of clothes but of the trendiest brand, and loads of them too. And, let us not underestimate the power of peer pressure, a desire to flaunt one’s parents’ opulence and be accepted as a social celebrity in his or her own right. And, the extant status symbol?—having more then one boyfriend or girlfriend. To show off their "social status" their purses should be bulging with the moolah. All this necessitates bagloads of money or a generous credit-card. Since not all kids can have it all from their parents, they take to crime. Hence, the spiralling numbers of teenage criminals, increasingly from the well-off stratum of our society. Traditional values are vanishing as consumerism becomes rampant. How much rampant? You must have read in newspapers about the fat-cat mom gifting a luxury limo to her fourteen-year-old son on his birthday. Height of media-promoted crass consumerism? Touch! |
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YEH
to ho gayee pregnant. On regaining senses she will go and inform
her boyfriend," observed the eight-year-old matter-of-factly on
seeing the female character swoon on the small screen. Having made the
perceptive comment, her eyeballs still firmly fixed on the screen, she
resumed slurping of noodles in her bowl exactly in the manner depicted
in a famous brand’s advertisement. But, the elders sitting around
the dining table were shocked. Worry lines appeared on her mom’s
face and father looked a bit bewildered, the older siblings exchanged
knowing glances while the grandparents gawked.