Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Two alumni of MP School of Drama (MPSD) have been working for 10 months to free children from the addiction through online games and curbing suicidal tendencies.
Priya Bhadoriya and Saurabh Singh Parihar have formed a group called Akarshanam Jal Kalyan samiti to promote holistic development of children.
They are using their skills as theatre persons to keep children away from mobile phones and involve them in physical and meditation activities. “Ideally, children should neither be bookworms nor be mobile worms. They should understand how to accept failures and disappointments in life,” Priya told Free Press, referring to children and youths who kill themselves over petty issues like failure in exam or after scolded by parents, teachers.
They said they were distressed to see how the children of their relatives and friends had changed for the worse after the Covid pandemic. They had become more aggressive and introvert and had little interest in physical activities.
“We began with six children from our families and today we are working with around 150 kids,” she says. They have four centres in city including at Sarvadharma Colony (Kolar Road), Anand Nagar and Regional Museum of Natural History.
They teach the children how to read clearly and with proper pronunciation. They also involve them in theatrical games to ensure that they exert physically. They also make the children meditate and perform Surya Namaskar.
They take the children to temples to allow them to absorb the positive vibes at the places of worship. They also help them to enjoy music of nature like sound of water, wind and birds’ chirp.
The children are also told about the life of freedom fighters to inspire them. “We are trying in our small ways to ensure that when these kids grow, they are well-rounded individuals,” Surabh said. They have also formed a small musical band of children named Neev. The band plays Hanuman Chalisa, shlokas and mantras.
