Parents turn red as kids introduce themselves as Sheila in nursery interviews after Sheila ki Jawani; some scratch their behinds after watching All Izz Well
Parents turn red as kids introduce themselves as Sheila in nursery interviews after Sheila ki Jawani; some scratch their behinds after watching All Izz Well
Kids say the darndest things, indeed. Remember the one time your little one blurted out a taboo, leaving you slack-jawed on the outside, squirming on the inside, and mortified enough on the whole to crawl and hide under a table. Recent accounts from pre-primary schools chronicle similar loss of face for parents, when their impressionable young ones, having picked up the earworm of popular item number Sheila ki Jawani, introduced themselves, to the horror of their parents, as Sheila in admission interviews.
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Illustration/Satish Acharya
And boys said it with equal self-belief as girls. After conducting interviews for admission to her kindergarten in the western suburbs (name withheld), a principal observed that many kids, when asked their names, said 'Sheila', after the raunchy, outr ufffd Bollywood chartbuster. She didn't want to be named, but we spoke to the parent, who flushed red with the child's utterance.
Said Rita Shah (name changed on request), "I started preparing my child for the interview for his nursery admission. Every time I asked him his name, he said, 'My name is Sheila.' That made me anxious. I told him not to say that in front of the principal in the interview, but he went ahead and did just that. The principal was understanding enough to tell me not to get embarrassed because he was not the first child she had come across to have given such an answer."
Bare-all sing-a-long
Moreover, city pre-primary school principals claim toddlers are so obsessed with the song that they keep singing and shaking to it in the classroom. "Jasmine Dhanani, proprietor of a nursery, Cherry Tree, said, "They sing Sheila ki jawani and Munni badnaam hui in the class." But there are other obsessions, and they are much more radical. Said Jasmine, "Some kids keep dancing to other popular songs like All is well. In fact, they remove their pants and start scribing on their bums." Blame it on the very doable and imitable choreography, but you heard her.
She goes on disapprovingly, "The Japanese cartoon character Shinchan has also captured their imagination."
Whoever is familiar with the animated enfant terrible knows they are relieved that he's not real, and just blessed that he's not their child. "We tell them not to sing or behave in that manner and we advise parents to avoid showing such TV shows to kids," Dhanani said.
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What is it about the sultry song that has perforated down to the susceptible minds of children who were ankle-biters some months ago? The willowy actress wowing parents while grooving lithely in the video, the lyrics and the melody, the catchy music itself, or sheer hero(ine) worship? A bit of all actually, psychiatrists will tell you, adding hastily not to worry yourself sick. If an imaginative child wants to be Spiderman or Elasti-woman, it is equally possible for him to imagine being Sheila.
Dr Arun John, vice-president of Vendrewala Foundation, a helpline for students and parents, said, "There are imaginative kids and they have to mature on their own. Parents are over-worried nowadays. Just the way a child wants to be Spiderman, Superman or whatever-man, they are imagining being Sheila." Be grateful then that your kid is not flying off the roof in the quest to prove he is Superman. "So there is nothing to worry if a child says her, or his, name is Sheila."
'They're just aping'
Swati Popat, director, Podar Jumbo Kids pre-school, Santacruz, said, "Children learn things by imitation and they imitate the behaviour they see. If they have seen the actress dancing and moving her hips, children will try to imitate that, especially if their parents have appreciated it in front of the child."
She added, "So when an advertisement, show or a song such as this is over, a child should get the message from the parent that it is something they shouldn't do, and explained why." Other consultants urge parents to cut back on the cutesy mannerism they encourage, such as showing off their kids' prowess as performance artists in front of an audience.
Anjali Chabbria, practising consultant and psychiatrist, Mind Temple, said, "The song is so catchy that even a six-month child will dance to it. Parents get concerned but they should just allow it to pass. They should show the child informative shows meant for their age, and not play songs and ask their child to dance to them in front of guests, as they do so often."
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