Like rivers to the ocean
Legacy
Going bananas over Madras checks
Twice removed and double the guilt: The inner turmoil of escaping the Chennai deluge unscathed
The Changing Face of Tradition
“When I was a child, a week before Deepavali, my sister and I would divide the firecrackers between us and keep them out to dry when the sun came out,” says Shanthi Ramkumar, mother of two boys, “We had about two or three days’ leave at school. We would be so excited that we would not sleep all night before Deepavali.”
Talk to any parent about traditional festivals in their childhood and you can be sure to find a wistful smile as they recount the simplicity of life before television and the delight of having one’s extended family join in the festivities. The resplendence of firecrackers, the delight of buying a new doll for the display or the special taste of a Christmas plum cake lingers in one’s memory.
Where have those days gone?
Shanthi laments, “Today, festivals like Deepavali are mostly spent in front of the television. Nobody is waking up early. Children too, do not want to burst firecrackers. Depending on the age, they are either scared, or they think it is not environment friendly, or even a waste of money. We cannot even take the car out for fear of damage from firecrackers. The only charm left of the concept, are the new clothes. ”
Our children live in a different world than the one we so fondly remember. Perhaps our nostalgia plays a major part in the way we involve our children in festivities even as we try to recreate our own childhood memories of the occasion. Still, tradition is an important cornerstone in bringing the family together.
TRADITION AND FESTIVALS
There are so many facets to tradition, from religious ceremonies that mark the rites of passage to evolving a family tradition unique to a particular family. Celebrating festivals is only one aspect of tradition, but a very important one. Why do people celebrate festivals?
“It is our custom handed down to us from generations before us” says Nithya Madhavan, “We have to teach our children that this is how we follow our religious practices.”
Priya Srikanth has two daughters who are enthusiastic participants in the festival arrangements in the house. Priya says, “Celebrating a festival is the only way our children will learn about it. Besides, it gives us peace and fulfilment – especially as I have seen my mother doing these rituals regularly. We also get to meet relatives.”
Today, there are smaller families, and hence fewer relatives, who are all geographically distributed across the country and the world. Some families still make the effort to come together for a festival.
Sahar S. believes that the two Eids are occasions for people to come together. “My parents made sure we all got together on these two occasions, so that I established good relations with my cousins. Our immediate family has become almost three hundred people. My daughter gets a chance to meet her first cousins, second cousins and third cousins. I appreciate those people in our family who live abroad, who spend lakhs of rupees just to come here to be with us for two or three days.”
Shanthi Ramkumar is appreciative of her friend who hosts a ‘pooja’ called Kedar Gowri, usually on the evening of Deepavali. “She invites all her friends along with their spouses to visit her for at least ten minutes. If we time our arrival together, then in this small get-together, our respective husbands also get to meet and interact.”
FESTIVITIES AND THE CHILD
“Putting up the Christmas tree is a family activity.” says Raji Monisha Cherian “Each one of us adds our own touch. The biggest association for my son Advait, is the gifts. Till he was seven years old, Advait believed in Santa Claus. It gave me and my husband great pleasure in hiding the gifts and making them appear magically under the tree. When Advait was seven, he watched the movie, Polar Express and got to know that Santa was a myth. Now he is fifteen but when we meet Santa at Spencer Plaza and at the Church, he takes great delight in shaking hands with him.”
Priya Srikanth says, “My girls are very traditional. The moment they see me wearing a sari they say that they want a ‘pavadai’ set too. They help with the setting up of ‘kolu'(the traditional doll exhibition at home). My older daughter gets very excited and keeps asking when each festival would come.
Ishita Sharma says. “I have been married for twenty seven years. When it comes to Deepavali, we go to my in-laws’ house for lunch. Till seven years ago when both my parents were alive, we used to have dinner at their place. From the time my daughters were in Class 9, it became an occasion for them to wear a sari and get a family picture taken. You never know who will not be there next year especially when you have elderly people around.”
For Nithya Madhavan, Navaratri is the occasion when she can try out a new recipe for one sweet and one savoury. It is also the time when she gets to dress up her daughter in traditional clothes against her usual attire of jeans. “My mother-in-law gifted my daughter with a ‘pavadai’ for Deepavali. She wore it on that one day, but the rest of the time, it is lying in the cupboard. I tell her that this is also our dress and she could wear it occasionally, at least once in 2 months.”
THE NRI FACTOR
Aparna Rao was in for a serious case of culture shock when she moved to Cupertino, CA, USA. “Cupertino has a very high Indian population and it was a very busy time for all the South-Indian ladies, during Navaratri, going out nearly every day to each other’s houses for ‘kolu’. By the end of Navaratri, I swore not to eat Sundal for the rest of the year!”
Non- Resident Indians embrace tradition with great fervour. Many are disappointed with the previous generation for not properly inculcating tradition in them right from childhood.
Meena Radhakrishnan says, “We have always celebrated festivals, but took them for granted. We never understood the symbolism or significance nor did our parents or elders bother to explain them. The focus was on fun – fireworks, sweets, meeting relatives and friends. We now celebrate the traditions with a deeper sense of appreciation and understanding. Also, I suppose we as uprooted desis, have a fear of raising ABCDs (American Born Confused Desis).”
Aparna’s friends’ circle celebrates Halloween with a potluck meal and all the children in the apartment go ‘trick-or-treat’ing. She also ensures that her children celebrate Indian festivals with equal fervour. “Whether they follow it or not as adults is left to them – we have to do our best to provide exposure to our Indian values and culture. This will set their bandwidth when it comes to ‘westernization’.”
Instead of doing time-consuming rituals, Meena Radhakrishnan, instead, shares with her three sons, the significance and what can be imbibed from the festivals. Some rituals, considered almost sacrosanct in India – like buying new clothes – are not as relevant to her as the deeper significance of the tradition. “I make do with even a new top or a salwar that I wore probably once-which makes it ‘new’ in my mind!”
FAMILY TRADITIONS
Other than religious and cultural traditions, there are family traditions – activities or rituals that bring the family together.
For Meena Radhakrishnan, that special family tradition is the trip to India every 2-3 years. “We do miss the atmosphere in India – nothing to beat that on any festival! My oxygen tank signals ’empty’ and I just need to be there.”
Ishita Sharma who lives in Chennai says, “My husband works in Bangalore and comes home every alternate weekend. When he is here, Sunday evening is dedicated to playing Scrabble as a family quite late into the night.”
Ishita also believes that anniversaries and birthdays are great occasions to bring the family together. She says, “We’ve all been celebrating our 25th anniversaries in the family. We get together at a place not in our own town. This is strictly only among my husband’s siblings and their families. It’s such fun because some of us have not seen each other in a long time.”
Dona Konidena’s family looks forward to an annual holiday, especially since her husband travels a lot. “We make it a point as a family to never miss a new year’s eve together. For the last four years we visited different countries. My older son is already asking where we would be going this year,” she says.
While Sahar and his family love to travel, they spend every weekend with a group of like-minded friends irrespective of caste or creed. “We have food together, we then put the children to sleep. Sometimes, there are things to discuss and we talk till 3a.m the next morning.”
GOING THAT EXTRA MILE
There are so many ways to instill tradition in our children. The way to do it is only limited by the extent of our imagination.
Priya Srikanth, for instance, tries to do a different theme every year for the Navaratri display. “One year, I made a model of Mount Kailash depicting the story of Ganesha and Muruga going around the world. I also make it a point to put up a chart explaining it so that the children who visit will also learn the story.”
The Internet is an immense source of information and everything from history to rituals is available in English and most Indian languages. Aparna says, “It is easy to explain the significance of festivals to our children. Often, the priest tends to explain the significance of the pooja in English, step-by-step. It does take longer, but it’s really worth the time as the entire family gets to understand it. I also love the fact that Satyanarayana ‘Kathas‘ are read in English.
During festivals, it also helps to get children to participate in an activity – be it painting, drawing competitions, or reading a shloka – it makes it more interesting and interactive for them.”
In our efforts to involve children in learning about tradition, we forget that we too have a lot to learn. Nithya Madhavan raises a valid point. “Since our generation keeps saying we do not have time, we are neither following nor learning tradition. We have to find the time for this. Our elders know plenty, but not enough people in our generation are getting that information from them. We only have to ask them and they will be happy to share what they know.
Meena Radhakrishnan has some simple advice for families when it comes to tradition. “We need to take time to slow down, shut-off all technology, including TV and cell phones and truly enjoy these festivals first. Then if we take the time to share its significance with the children, it could go a long way forward in getting them to appreciate and continue these traditions.
Some names have been changed to protect identity
TWO WOMEN, FOUR TRADITIONS
Meet Ruchi and Dona, two women who are so different in the way they celebrate tradition or evolve their family culture, but so unanimous in their approach to bring the family together using tradition as a cornerstone.
RUCHI BHAYANI
Ruchi Bhayani married into a Jain family and went on to willingly follow all the customs and traditions of the religion. She says, “I had a love marriage with Vikas, who is very religious and very strong on the principles of the Jain religion. Before committing ourselves to the relationship, he was very particular that I have to accept his religion. He was very logical about it, he did not impose anything but made me understand a lot of things. It was made easy because Vikas and I share a superb rapport, love and understanding”.
Ruchi lives with her husband, her daughters, her in-laws and her grandmother-in-law. She ensures that her daughters are inculcated into the Jain tradition. For this, she learns first. “I know the basics and my husband also supports me. We have made sure that my elder daughter recites the basic ‘shloks’ every night before bed. Seeing her, my second one also joins her hands.”
Ruchi’s entire family makes it a point to visit the temple on Sundays. On Saturdays, Ruchi’s elder daughter voluntarily visits the temple with her grandmother and great grandmother for an hour in the morning, when the ‘mandal’ sings devotional songs. Ruchi says, “When her grandmother was away in the US, my daughter continued to accompany her great grandmother to the temple every week and also slept beside her at noon to keep her company.”
While the annual festival of Paryushan is considered the most sacred period of the year where each day is dedicated to a special characteristic of the Jain religion, Ruchi’s family also celebrates Rakshabandhan to promote bonding among cousins and the close-knit community.
“For Rakshabandhan, we get together with my late grandfather-in-law’s four brothers and their families. The families of each of these four brothers take turns in celebrating Rakshabandhan every year. All the brothers of my father-in-law’s generation and all the brothers of my husband’s generation stand in line and are tied ‘rakhis’. If the sisters are not there, they send the ‘rakhis’ so that other sisters can tie them. We order idli-vada, pongal, chutney, coffee and tea from Welcome Hotel and have it for breakfast. Thanks to this, my children will understand family values, family bonding, and relationships.”
DONA KONIDENA
When Dona Konidena, who lives in Jakarta, enrolled for an international yoga teacher’s training course in Chennai, she was in for a paradigm shift. “It’s amazing to see people from different parts of the world coming to India to learn our culture and traditions. This country has so much to give and as Indians, we do not utilise it. We take our traditions for granted.”
Dona is a Bengali married to a Telugu Brahmin. She has been celebrating Ganapati Pooja for the last nine years, and considers it to be very special. “This pooja is a tradition in my husband’s family and being the daughter-in-law, I want this to be carried forward. Though I do not belong to the tradition, I understand it promotes closeness between my husband and son. I would not want my child to be deprived of this blessing from his father. It’s a rare occasion when they actually sit in front of the idol and do a pooja.
“Last year, for a short stint, I tried to work in Hyderabad while my family was in Jakarta. During Ganesh Chaturthi, I picked up an eco-friendly clay Ganesha from Hyderabad and took it to Jakarta. We did the pooja, kept the Ganesha for five days and on my return to Hyderabad, I immersed the idol in the Tank Bund!”
Not only are the Konidena kids following the traditions of their paternal family, they are also imbibing the customs of their mother’s family. Dona says, “Durga Pooja and Mahashivratri are part of Bengali culture. My husband’s family doesn’t follow these, but I carry on that tradition from my mother’s side. For my children, it is not about two cultures coming together – this is our family culture!”
TRADITION IN THE WORKPLACE
Karthika Venkatraman works in an IT company and believes that thanks to the hours they work, celebrating a festival has become optional. She says, “We are working on a project based in the UK and their festivals are different from ours. So, if it is not a holiday in the UK, you may not get a day off here. I believe that even our festivals should be celebrated. The least that can be done is the ‘traditional’ day that we have every year at office, be celebrated on a festival day.”
Dona Konidena has more to say about her workplace in India. “We would ask colleagues visiting Kerala to bring us gold bordered saris, for our office activity on Onam so we would be dressed appropriately. For Sankaranthi Pongal, we would fly kites and there would also be Rangoli drawing. I was in the Aahaar (food) committee and our responsibility was that during festivals like Baisakhi, there would have to be one Punjabi food speciality so that people about the food that is special in that particular community.”
OUTSOURCING FESTIVAL FOOD
Shanthi Ramkumar believes that although festivals are an occasion to make those delicacies that are typical to the tradition, outsourcing makes a lot of sense.
“Back in the old days, there would be varieties of sweets and snacks (only for Deepavali). During the rest of the year, it would just be normal food with the occasional exception. Nowadays, everything is available through the year for consumption. Hence there is no separate charm in ‘Deepavali bakshanam’.”
“Today, we are unable to make limited quantities of ‘bakshanam‘ at home. When we use so much oil, it does not make sense to cook anything less than two or three kilos. Plus, it is labour-intensive. Working women who return from work the previous evening, make these bakshanams throughout the night and then feel fatigued on the festival day. If it does not turn out alright, nobody eats it.”
“It makes better sense to make a simple ‘payasam’ for auspiciousness at home and buy a limited quantity from a store or a caterer.”
FESTIVAL SIGNIFICANCE
Why do we display dolls during a Navaratri festival?
Raji Monisha Cherian says, “The practice of having a doll ‘kolu’ during Navaratri had its origin in the ancient agricultural economy where dolls were made from the clay from riverbeds to encourage dredging and desilting.
Why is an oil bath important on festival days?
Our ancestors had a logic about the oil bath on Deepavali day. The body is heated up with all the sweets (glucose) we have consumed. We have an oil bath to cool our system. Before the traditional oil bath we are fed ‘vethalai’ (betel leaf) and anointed with ‘manjal’ (turmeric). Betel Leaf is a digestive and lines the stomach’s defense mechanism. Turmeric reduces the intensity in case of burns because of firecrackers. Also, since we South Indians burst crackers at 3 a.m., an oil bath ensures we take a nap soon after lunch.”
Why are gifts exchanged during Christmas?
Being married into the Christian faith, Raji also says, “Christmas tree gifts encourage the act of giving. This also teaches the child to learn to wait for something he desperately wants and how to value a gift.”
Why do people fast during Ramzan? Sahar says that fasting during Ramzan is a lesson in the importance of food. “After 30 days of fast, you come to discover the feelings of a person who cannot have food, or who is left with not even a drop of water to drink. You understand how lucky or blessed you are that you are not only getting 3 meals a day, but you also get very good, tasty food. At that time, if you see the importance of food, you will not take it for granted.”
If you want to know more about any particular cultural or religious tradition, it is best to ask an elder in the family. India is a multi-cultural land and just as languages and dialects changes every 100 kilometres, so do the traditions and interpretations of the traditions. The Internet may not always have all the answers!
An edited version appeared the September 2011 edition of Parent Circle Magazine.
Ready, Steady, Go!
“Virtual sports do not develop any reliable worthwhile qualities that could assist in real life. Indulging in them could actually create a false sense of accomplishment.” says Dr. Kannan Pugazhendi, sports physician and consultant.
In some ways, it is an endless loop. There are no spaces in apartment complexes for our children to play physical games. So there is no fun for the children. When our children seek out fun in virtual forms, we parents want them to do something that will keep them fit and provide them with social skills. When all that they really want to do, is have fun in some form.
“Staying healthy and fit and getting social skills – those are adult parameters. The child is only thinking of what else he can do to have fun. This is where virtual sports and passive entertainment take over.”says Saumil Majmudar, CEO of Edusports, “With the TV and PC, all the attributes of a playing experience are there – like winning and losing – but without the benefits. If we want to ensure that the health, fitness and social benefits are there, we need to help children enjoy the playing experience on the ground.”
THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOL
At some level, we can rest assured that although the emphasis varies from school to school, children ARE being provided some physical exercise during the Physical Education (PE) class at no or minimal additional cost.
While some schools we spoke to have P E classes every day for some classes, others have it twice a week with specialised coaching for specific sports after school hours. The PE class itself could either be a free-play session where the children could pretty much play any game they wanted, to playing an active sport like, say, Basketball. But is it enough?
Chandra Nagarajan, the Senior Vice Principal of PSBB T.Nagar branch says, “Besides the Physical Education Class and the EduSports sessions, we have made swimming mandatory for our students from Class 3 upwards. Swimming is a survival skill – not only is it life-saving for the children themselves, but they will also be able to help others.”
Most schools also heartily encourage their students who are achievers in sports. For instance, for the swimming siblings, A.V. Jaywant and Jayaveena, their school, Chettinad Vidyashram has relaxed the mandatory attendance requirement. The children study on their own and their teachers enable them in any way possible. Kamala Ravindran, the Headmistress says, “When some of our students have travelled abroad for sports coaching during the school term, we have also explored methods like online teaching.” In fact, most schools in Chennai boast of alumni who have gone on to become National level sportspersons.
BASIC SPORTING SKILLS
What about the child who is not an achiever just yet, who is still trying out different sports and has not yet reached a high level of proficiency? In some cases, if the school is focussed mainly on the achieving children or on acedemic prowess only, the sedentary ones and the mildly sport-interested ones may lose out on some basic age-appropriate physical skills.
Dr. Pugzhendi says, “Unfortunately the educational institutions, especially the teaching faculty included, do not feel the importance of sport participation or benefits of fitness. They make parents believe that it would be only a distraction for educational ambitions. This is totally untrue.There is an urgent need to alter the focus of the physical education programmes in schools which are only competition oriented. The inclusion of noncompetitive elements as fitness is an absolute must.” ”
EduSports, a Bangalore-based company addresses exactly this need. The organisation’s objective is to equip children with the right skills at the right age, so that they get a headstart to many forms of active sports that they could play for life. They believe that the way forward is not by opening up play grounds,or conducting an afterschool program, but by making activity and sport part of a child’s education. A sort of ‘outsourced P E class’.
Majmudar says, “We partner with like-minded schools – who believe that sports is as important a part of holistic education as maths or sciences – to help develop a generation of healthy and fit kids through the magic of sports and physical activity.We run the entire P E period in the timetable with our own curriculum, lesson plans, props, assessments, parent interactions etc. How would you expect your child to be taught maths? That’s exactly what we do with physical education.”
THE ACHIEVERS
When we spoke to children, parents and educators about the importance of active competitive sports over unstructured play in a child’s development, it was reiterated to us, that sports achievers function differently from other children.
Some parents also said, “Children of sportspeople become achievers. They have a definite edge over other parents.”
The assumption is that the achiever child is a blessed child, endowed with superior genes and a gift for the sport pursued. Either it is the parents’ contacts among sports people or the parents know how to spot their child’s talent.
However, parents of achievers say that the parents’ commitment is all that is required. Parents who are physically active themselves know the value of it and ensure that the home environment supports an interest in sports. When a child pursues a sport, the entire family’s lifestyle changes.There are some daunting challenges that come up long before the family has to contend with the threat of career-ending injuries and favouritism among selectors.
For the moment, let’s talk about the achievers.
– Rohini Rau was a little over a year old, when she accompanied her mother sailing. When she was eight years old, she attended a summer camp. That same year, she participated in her first Nationals. Today, Rohini Rau is the National Sailing Champion (Laser Radial – Women -for the last 7 consecutive years and 420 Class -Women- for 3 years). She is training hard to qualify to compete in the Olympics even as she is pursuing her studies in Medicine. Among other things, she also dances the salsa and has learnt to play the piano and violin.
Rohini’s mother, Aysha says, “I come from a background where we were encouraged to do everything.Parenting is a job you have not been trained for, so if you have been exposed to a lot of activities, you will think that’s the normal thing to do. But if you have been brought up believing that you must only study, that is what you think should be done with your child.” Rohini’s family pulled out all the stops to support her in a sport where the financial demands become greater as the sportsperson begins to compete. This is not only in the cost of training but also equipment, the boat, berthing fees for the boat, ongoing maintenance and consumables. And the prizes are non-monetary.
– When Aarathy Kasturi Raj was seven years old, she visited Tower Park in Anna Nagar where she saw a roller skating class in session. She attended a camp there and went on to win, in the years since, 81 gold medals in roller skating and ice skating including 3 in international championships. She is in her 12th standard and intends taking up Medicine. She also plays basketball.
Aarathy’s father, Kasturi Raj says, “I was an athlete but was deprived of sports because of my parents. They always wanted me to study.” As a result, he believes that his children should not miss out on the encouragement he never had. Aarathy’s father accompanies her wherever she competes and since there are no facilities to learn competitive ice-skating in India, Kasturi Raj ensures that Aarathy visits Korea regularly for training.
– At the 34th National Games in Ranchi this February, A.V. Jayaveena created a record by becoming the youngest swimmer to win a medal in the history of the National Games in India. She went on to win 6 medals in the 6 events she participated in. She is in the 8th standard.
Jayaveena’s parents, ‘Thalaivasal’ Vijay and Rajeshwari chose to move houses to be closer to the pool that their children train in. Rajeshwari puts it succintly, “As individuals, we parents have our own wants – like going for movies, to the beach etc. But if we invest that time in our children, they will have a good future. Later, when they have created their own future, we can prioritise ourselves. The idea is that we should not have regrets later that we could have done more for our children.”
– Shalini Hudson, whose three daughters, Sharon, Beryl and Rachel, are into Track & Field training, disagrees, “Both my husband and I are not sportspeople. But we are still able to encourage our daughters.” She accompanies her three daughters twice a day on most days for their athletic training. She’s lucky they all train at the same venue! Shalini has also given up watching television so she can assist the children with their studies in the evening, after their training.
Although we may admire these children for their accomplishments, we do tend focus on their genes, the ‘lucky’ breaks these children have and the money that their parents are willing to pay for the training and equipment that comes with playing a competitive sport.
But we tend to sideline the role of family environment, parental attitude and the child’s own diligence and hard work.
TRAITS & ATTITUDES
Without putting these children on a pedestal and without undermining our own efforts as parents in providing the best for our children, surely we could wonder about what the families of achievers are doing differently? Maybe we could consider some traits and attitudes that seem to set these children and families apart. How else could one explain the fact that each of the achievers listed above has a sibling who is also an achiever in sports?
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Achievers start learning their first sport early.
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They are exposed to many sports so that they can find their passion.
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Although they may begin to learn a sport at the behest of the parents, they choose the sport they want to pursue. The first medal or win is usually a major motivator.
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They become self-starters in pursuing the sport they love. They align their lives to the sport.
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They learn to manage their time between academics, sports and hobbies.
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They believe that it is perfectly natural to be a national level sports person AND get above 80% in exams AND learn to dance/sing/paint. In fact, they believe that physical exercise, especially sport, improves academic performance by increasing concentration and these children are known to train right through their Board Exams.
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Their parents spend a lot of time and resources on nurturing their talent, not to mention sacrifices that they are happy to make. At least one parent has a ‘never-say-die’ attitude to somehow finding and funding the best resources for the children.
The rewards of taking up a sport are aplenty too. One of the main benefits of a child training in a sport is changes in lifestyle. Girish says, “When they take up sports, your children are getting into the habit of getting up early. To get up early in the morning, they have to sleep early at night. Secondly, time management – when they wake up in the morning, they have very little time to come to the pool, so they have to quickly get ready. Automatically, they keep their equipment organised. These habit fall into place without any effort. ”
Could this, perhaps, serve as a blueprint for other families? And can families course-correct if they are not sports or physical activity oriented? How does one even begin to influence a sedentary child or a child who has not played active sports?
FIRST STEPS
Girish says, “Most parents give the child choices. Any child, given a chance, will select the easier choice. Nobody likes controlled training. In the beginning it is essential for parents to teach them that sports is important. Parents have to push the child and also initially, assist the child in balancing time between academics and sports.”
Krithika Mouli, a parent, says, “The only way to find out what sport the child is good in, is to enrol the child in a few classes and see if she takes to it. Usually, the first recognition among peers is a defining moment as to whether the child will pursue it or not.”
Other than the regular coaching and summer camps that clubs and associations provide, there is a plethora of options available to pursue most sports in Chennai. (See box)
Here’s a thought. Enough of us parents are worried about cholesterol levels and the battle of the bulge. What if we moved from being active supporters to active partners in learning a sport along with our child?
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IS OBESITY SETTING IN EARLIER THAN THE ADOLESCENCE PHASE?
Body Mass Index (BMI) is one of the key indicators of overall fitness of an individual. While a high BMI is is related directly to obesity-related malaise, low BMI ratios have direct correlation to immunity-related malaise. The recommended BMI for children between the ages of 5 and 14 is in the range of 19-25.
In a study conducted by EduSports in 2010 among 4098 children surveyed across India, nearly 23% of the children, aged between 5 and 14 years possessed a high Body Mass Index ratio (above 25) and 19% of children showed low BMI ratios (below 19). Together, a whopping 42% of the children surveyed did not possess ideal BMI ratios.
However, a nine month, in-curriculum, controlled fitness-led physical education program in their respective schools, done on a selective group of 667 children, revealed improvement across the five fitness indicators that they were assessed upon. Endurance of children went up by over 17%; abdominal strength increased by 37.5%; percentage of children with the right BMI increased from 54.96% to 67.72 % and flexibility increased by almost 4%.
EduSports undertook this survey to identify the overall fitness levels of children in Indian schools as that would be a key indicator to the child’s performance across several factors including mental agility, immunity to disease and sports excellence. The study was built into the curriculum of 21 schools across 15 cities.
– Source: EduSports |
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SPORTS & THE GIRLCHLD
Why do girls not take to sports as readily as boys do? Some reasons we hear are
– I will get tanned and don’t want to look dark
– I will get injured and will have bruises all over
– I am a girl and cannot compete with the strength of boys
How much of this is coming from the child’s own assumptions and how much is coming from our social conditioning?
Dr. Pugazhendi says, “Parents (or society) feel that a girl who is a player, dancer, or even NCC participant will not be an ideal housewife. Or the girl’s marriage alliance would be rejected just on the basis of an imagined poor character. These are the main reasons for condemning girls’ participation in anything outside education.”
One common but rarely-expressed reason is that the girl is simply not comfortable sharing playing space with boys. For instance, in swimming classes. To address this, some schools have started segregated games where, for instance, boys and girls swim at separate times; girls can play basketball by themselves while boys go in for what is considered a more aggressive sport, football. To some, this may seem like a rather archaic solution to the problem, but if it helps get more girls out on the playground, why not?
Although many schools go on record to say that the girls in their school are as passionate about sports as the boys are, they are really referring to the sports achievers among girls and not necessarily to girls in general.
Krithika Mouli, a parent, suggests, “I believe schools should do more to get girls to play sports. I think they should take them to real sport events with women participants and get them to interact with successful sports women.”
Dr. Kannan Pugazhendi says, “For girls, physical fitness ensures the reduction in the pain during the monthly cycles, and allows them to set even world records during these phases. Regular exercise would ensure optimal weight and body composition, bone mass and mineral density specifically. The bone mass in girls must be increased from the day of menarche until menopause through weight training or optimal axial loading of the long bones and the spine. Girls require the fitness to cope with demands made not only at school but thereafter in real life.”
But when it comes to specialised sports training, parents are not comfortable in sending the girl to class by herself in the early morning or late evenings from a personal safety perspective. Some parents don’t send a girl child for specialised sports training fearing that she will ‘befriend’ boys there.
“Girls deserve as much of the joy of sport as boys.” says Dr. Pugazhendi “It is the failure of the parents and the society if they do not give them the freedom to participate in competitive sport and feel proud about their achievements.”
Are there alternatives? Dr. Pugazhendi suggests, “If the family feels that the girl need not be given the privilege of sport participation, then the support of classical dance would be ideal. The classical dances of India would be able to provide the same benefits as any sport participation.”
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INDIGENOUS GAMES
It’s a fallacy that India never had a sporting culture. India is home to some fascinating sports forms like Silambam, Kalaripayattu, Kho Kho, Kabaddi, Mallakhamb, Mushti and a sport that many Indians may not know exists today indigenously – archery from Meghalaya! Many of these forms are being taught right here in Chennai.
Take Kalaripayattu, for instance.
“Kalaripayattu is considered the Mother of Martial Arts of the world,” says Dr. Pugazhendi, “It has been taken to other countries accepted, adopted and adapted to their country. It is India that has to recognize the values of our own system as we have realized the importance of Yoga recently.”
Shaji K. John conducts classes in Kalaripayattu at Besant Nagar for students from 7 years of age. “Kalaripayattu is a martial art taught primarily for self-defence. Fitness and adaptation to creative forms is a benefit along that journey. Among children, seven is the right age to initiate training because at that age, the bones are more supple and the mind is free from unnecessary things.”
Roshini Gopinathan has struck a happy balance of being fit herself and ensuring that her children learn a sport. Along with her children, Rohit (14) and Rishi (8), she has been learning Kalaripayattu for a little over a year and a half. Two years ago, when the family still lived in New York and were planning to move to Chennai, they saw a documentary on this martial art form and decided to research it. They found details of this class, and once they moved, joined it. Roshini says, “I have been fascinated by Kalaripayattu since I was a kid, but never had the opportunity to learn it until now. It is quite an intensive form with 3-4 classes a week, for over an hour. I would say my endurance and flexibility have improved. Although Rohit already has a lot of endurance, his flexibity and posture have improved significantly. It’s still too early to say for Rishi.”
Perhaps we could interest more parents to follow Roshini’s example and enrol their children in other such indigenous sports forms. We just might see a resurgence of some of the sports that are dying for lack of students. |
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SPORTS TRAINING RESOURCES
While there are private clubs for specialised sports and many academies for cricket coaching across the city, there is not much information on places where some of the other sports are taught. Here are some resources that cover most sports :
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BENEFITS OF SPORTS
There are times when, specially during exams, we consider sports as a distraction, Dr. Kannan Pugazhendi has some very valid reasosn why a child needs to be play an active game or sport.
He says, “Participation in any form of exercise could relieve stress especially in the child’s preparation for any form of examination. The student who exercises will be more relaxed, confident, has a deep sleep even if it is short, to achieve all this. Instead of being a distraction it would set the internal environment for peak performance in any examination.”
At a physical level, sports skills help
At a mental level, playing a sport helps a child to
In the long term,
Every sport has its unique challenge that demands and as a result, hones a specific set of skills.
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An edited version of this article appeared in the July 2011 Issue of Parent Circle
