I had been to my hometown, and after seeing my niece’s complete addiction to TV, started wondering how my childhood was. TV had just started to appear in the neighborhood (license raj against owning TV/radio were just ending those days) and not much program’s where there. Cartoons like spider-man, he-man, jungle book etc were a mega hit amongst the kids.
But mostly we were on the streets playing all kinds of games or fighting! What did you think? Colonies are the birth place of street fights and gang wars! 
My niece, now 7, will not sit down unless she gets the remote in her hand, a trait she has learnt from my dad, her grandpa. My dad, when he was alive, was a control freak with respect to TV. 
She’ll not go out to play, even if she does its not more than a couple of hours; in terms of percentages, its like 1% outside, 99% in front of the TV.
With chutti TV (Tamil kids channel) playing almost all famous cartoons in tamil and Jetix streaming chinese cartoons dubbed in tamil, kids are finding it easier to follow, I guess. If the tube is playing, almost always its either Pogo/CN/Chutti/Jetix! Somehow the elders of the family have managed to make a deal with her, she allows them to watch their soaps.
Food stays on the plate, toys are collecting dust, home work gets done only when her tired mom returns from work and takes charge. She knows all the mega serials, thanks to my mom and other elders of the family, and can narrate the stupid stories better than anyone. She knows how to unlock even if channels are locked so its futile.
She’s not alone, I keep hearing these stories from all directions. hmm…
Calvin and Hobbes (c) Bill Watterson
