dailyO
Art & Culture

5 Indian films you must show your kids this summer

Advertisement
Geetika Sasan Bhandari
Geetika Sasan BhandariMay 27, 2016 | 11:24

5 Indian films you must show your kids this summer

The summer holidays are on, and the sweltering heat is forcing kids to stay indoors, much against their wishes. All of us know how difficult it is to keep kids entertained and creatively engaged, which is why I thought of coming up with this list of five Indian children's films that I have seen in the past few years, and that I think are worth showing to your kids.

Advertisement

Usually, I find most Hindi films inappropriate for children, and tend to take them only for animated English films such as Zootopia, The Jungle Book, and so on, which is why it is such a refreshing change to find well made Indian films for children.

In no particular order:

1. Bumm Bumm Bole (2010): Directed by Priyadarshan, it is an authorised adaptation of the 1997 Iranian Academy Award-nominated film, Children of Heaven.

jyfif2mjmtz2ycgsfqmc_052716111607.jpg
 

The story revolves around an impoverished family in a village that cannot even afford school uniform or shoes. The father (Atul Kulkarni), mother (Rituparna Sengupta), son (Darsheel Safary), and daughter (Ziyah Vastani) make do with what they get and that's not a lot. When the little girl's only pair of shoes gets misplaced, the siblings decide to share the pair.

Soon, a marathon is announced in the village, and Darsheel decides he will compete so he can win the third prize - a pair of spanking new sports shoes. I won't tell you how it ends, but needless to say, the script, the brilliant acting and the heart-warming story, will touch you.

Takeaway: It's a great way to teach kids to value their things and to be grateful, without sounding preachy

Advertisement

2. Stanley Ka Dabba (2011): Written, directed and produced by Amole Gupte, the film stars Divya Dutta and Partho Gupte (Amole's son) in pivotal roles. Before The Lunchbox came around, this film did a brilliant job of appropriating food into film and weaving a beautiful story around the humble dabba.

stanley-ka-dabba-3_052716111556.jpg
 

It's about Stanley, a popular class 4 student at an English-medium school in Mumbai, who never carries his tiffin on some pretext or the other. He comes into contact with the Hindi teacher (played brilliantly by Amole Gupte himself) who forces other teachers and students, to share their food with him. One day, he corners Stanley about why the boy doesn't get his own food and threatens him with dire consequences.

Takeaway: A tear-jerker, this one will teach your children sensitivity without you having to say a word.

3. Chillar Party (2011): A personal favourite, this is one movie you can see over and over again. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and Vikas Bahl, who went on to direct the award-winning Queen, Chillar Party is about a group of urban kids who live in the same apartment complex. The insightful film gives us a peek into the dynamics of urban living.

Advertisement
maxresdefault-1_052716111619.jpg
 

The children come into contact with an urchin who steps in to clean cars when his uncle takes a holiday. Fatka, as he is called, has a dog, Bhidu, and the movie gains momentum when the children are exposed to the world of politics thanks to an incident involving the dog. Chillar Party won the 2011 National Film Award for Best Children's Film, and for good reason.

Takeaway: It gives city kids a chance to introspect, since many of them tend to be pampered and perhaps even selfish. It also shows children the power and importance of standing up for what they believe is right.

4. Hawaa Hawaai (2014): Again an Amole Gupte film, it features an older Partho Gupte, and Saqib Saleem. It centres around a boy, Arjun, who moves to Mumbai with his mother after his father (a farmer) commits suicide. Arjun serves tea at a local stall and dreams to skate.

hawaiiu_052716111626.jpg
 

As Saleem (a skating coach) notices his talent, Arjun must now get himself a pair of skates. With no money, he and his friends scour the local garbage stops and champion a pair of skates out of scrap, which they name "Hawaa Hawaai".

Takeaway: Resilience and hard work, this film has all the values you'd want in your child.

5. Delhi Safari (2012): The only animated film in the list, directed by Nikhil Advani, features the voices of Akshaye Khanna, Govinda and others.

The film brings the environment hazards we're all witnessing, to the fore. The only difference is: it's from the point of view of animals.

delhi-safari-2_052716111633.jpg
 

The film is about five animals and birds who decide to undertake a journey from Mumbai to Delhi to protest the taking away of their jungle, their home. The film won the National Film Award for Best Animated Film.

Takeaway: While schools are doing a good job of teaching children about global warming, most of the talk is from the point of helping us. Hardly anyone is talking about what it's doing to our animals. This film does just that.

(Courtesy of Mail Today.)

Last updated: May 27, 2016 | 11:59
IN THIS STORY
Please log in
I agree with DailyO's privacy policy