My daughter, all of 2 years & 6 months started talking of jumping from bridges and flyovers, of late. Panic stricken, I tried telling her that its not a good thing to do. But come a long drive and a flyover, the same dialogue was repeated. I was curious to know who taught her to even think about jumping from bridges. The mystery was solved the other day when she stood riveted in front of the TV: it was the last season’s Thumps Up ad! There was Akshay jumping over & around buildings and bridges. Since my 2-year old cannot read, the stat warning-type ‘do not attempt these stunts’ was wasted on her. But think about the power of moving images and how it can impact such a young mind! Scary. And her favourite ad on the telly is the – you won’t believe it- the Max New York Life ad, ‘Sanju’. She comes running to be in front of the TV and does a ‘boo!’ to me after the ad.
In fact, my daughter is quite brand conscious for her age. She wants to go to ‘Coffee Day’ and seems to recognize the facade, thanks to the purple colours. She even mistook the Karnataka Bank branch facade (same purple colour) for Coffee Day! Talk about branding! The other brands that she has heard being mouthed at home and asks for herself: Horlicks and Vicks. Some brands become part and parcel of our lives from early age. No wonder they get embedded in our heads & hearts for years to come. Heritage brands like Cinthol, Chandrika, Ponds, Cadburys and Pears would figure in that list.
[ad#ad-5]When I was growing up, my conscious awareness of brands was perhaps in school, related to confectionary & soft drinks. My daughter’s generation would perhaps demand a specific colour of iPod or a watch when they are ummm… five, I think. Quite possible.
2 Comments
Another example of how dumb we adults are! The ones who will attempt stunts like that are usually kids, and the stat warning doesn’t mean anything to them. Cruel world.
True. That’s a whole new debate though. Some say kids imitate the ‘violence’ even in cartoon films. Even TV shows that involve stunts become inspiration for kids. And they do it out of innocent curiosity.