Films, Cartoons and Cinemas

Movies and Cartoon films have a way of catching the fancy of children of most ages, backgrounds and countries. Today’s reality in the context of nuclear families with both parents working, is that the strange intruder who has found his way into nearly every home often hijacks the minds and beings of children for hours an end, keeping them mesmerized and even addicted. Understanding this reality may be the first step to changing the situation. A complete regulation of time spent before TV is desirable but at the same time what could be done is to create awareness for good quality, stimulating movie and cartoons, which are conducive to the development of children. As articulated by M. Edgar Faure by development is meant ‘the complete fulfillment of the human being in all the richness of the personality , the complexity, of the forms of expression and various commitments’.

One such legend of India who used the medium of film to do some amazing work for the development of children was Satyajit Ray. His first gift 'Pather Panchali' was inspired by the book read by him on board the ship as he returned to India from London, against the backdrop of excellent world cinema by Bergman, Kurosawa, Renoc and DeSica that he came to admire and relish.

Ray paid attention to all the details of the film and meticulously sketched, recorded ideas and even stapled scrolls of cloth for costumes in his famous red books.

He started editing a children's magazine called 'Sandesh' and took up writing stories for this magazine at the age of forty. The two characters Feluda, the detective and Prof. Shonku are legendary members of Bengali Literature.

Wouldn't it be nice if top Film Makers, Artists and Scientists today drew inspiration from Ray to contribute at least ten percent of their working time to creating for children.

Films like ‘Tare Zameen Par' , ‘Swades’ and ‘Lagaan’ do fall in this genre by film makers like Amir Khan and Asutosh Gowarikar. Children's University would like to invite directors such as these for Film Festivals dedicated to Children and to create new types of films which will stimulate children towards harmonization of Science, Arts and the quality of Excellence.

This will ensure that the malevolent intruder called TV in many houses sheds some of this malevolence to be one who inspires and stimulates children to think, create and sculpts their minds as it gets them to share joys and trials.

This rectangular remote controlled pied piper who holds sway over most children of our times could become a key change agent if fare that appeals to the highest longing, curiosity and dreams is carefully crafted and made a part of the TV and film diet that children fill themselves with.

In fact, TV channels and film makers should be oriented and sensitized to create films and programmes that nurture the highest creative aspirations in children and simultaneously desist from serving anything that is harmful to the complete growth and expression of the child and her complete fulfillment in the realisation of her highest dreams and goals.
As per the Annual Universe Update - 2010, TAM (the official record keeper of audience metrics), backed by ORG Marg and AC Nielson, India now has over 134 million households (out of 223 million) with television sets, of which over 103 million have access to Cable TV or Satellite TV.

India would do well to have clones of Satyajit Ray, Amir Khan and Asutosh Gowarikar to seed these furrows of transmission with good seeds and sprouts to reap a rich harvest of beautiful minds, endowed with ideals of truth, beauty, goodness and National Pride along with a faith in internationalism and universal oneness.
Jayanti S. Ravi