"Teach values to children"
Today, parents shower their children with expensive gifts to make up for lost time which is not good
Whenever I go to buy a toy for my two-year-old granddaughter, the variety of toys available leaves me surprised. Last week, I went to a toy shop to pick up a gift for her. I wanted a simple doll, not those fancy Barbies. In fact, I wanted a doll which was dressed in Indian clothes. As I realised that our children are wearing Gucci and Prada as if they were born in them. To my surprise though our desi dolls were dressed in lehengas and cholis, they were carrying Gucci bags.
In India, especially in the metro cities, we do get carried away by international brands. It is a status symbol and more than that it sends out a message that: ‘We have arrived’. It is a good sign that there is so much money that Indians can afford to buy a bag worth a lakh. But dressing children in Armanis and Guccis without teaching them the value of money, is to my mind an issue when probed further, shows the real picture.
Today’s parents have no time for their children. They are brought up by nannies. In order to make up for not spending time with their children parents shower them with gifts. The expensive gifts become a show-piece which the children show to their friends. These gifts attract the not so fortunate who come and spend time with lonely rich children — play with the expensive toys and sometimes borrow their designer clothes.
I lived in a boarding school for most of my school life where all the children were the same. What made a child popular was that he had excelled in sports or studies. Nobody cared whether he/she was rich or came from middle class background. Everybody used the same brand of cream and wore only school uniform. We never knew the names of the creams that were there in the market.
Today, things are different. Overhear a conversation of a 10-year-old — they will be talking about how their skin is too oily or too dry. They use a specific cream of an international brand which will be suitable for them. Of course the cream in question is not easily available in India and needs to be imported. It is shocking how parents pollute the young innocent minds. The parents have forgotten to teach their children the simple pleasures of life.
Parents should take their children on family holidays like trekking in the mountains, taking them to see parts of our country — which are extremely beautiful — instead of an international holiday. It should be remembered that handmade bags made in India when sold abroad are more expensive and more elegant than Guccis and Pradas.
Parents today have forgotten to narrate stories from Mahabharat and Ramayan. The children today know more about Hollywood stars. The younger generation is bright and articulate. The right tuning without forgetting our traditional values and spending time with the children should be top priority for parents today.
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