Balika Vadhu educates Indians about child marriage

New Delhi, Aug 25: Although the Constitution of India has made law to eradicate the child marriage in the country, about 40 percent of children in India still suffer as they are married of at an early age of 8.

To educate the people about the problems of child marriage, 'Balika Vadhu', a daily soap has recently hit the screens in Jul 2009.

The show depicts exactly what happens to a child when she or he is married of at an early age, CNN report said.

CEO of Colors Rajesh Kamat says "viewers love it because it's based on reality", adding that "there is enough research on child marriage, the evils of child marriage. We've based our storyline on that."

Kamat said that the concept the show was based on is very much real and most of the incidents depicted in the program still happen in parts of India. Even though the Indian legal age for marriage is 18 for girls and 21 for boys, the law is often ignored.

Puja Marwaha, of the children's charity Child Rights and You (CRY) said, "Child brides are often illiterate, malnourished, considered a burden on their parents -- and their lives bear no resemblance to the glossy images seen on TV."

"Poverty is not pretty so the child is not going to be wearing party frocks and looking pretty, contented and happy because that's not what really happens. What really happens is the child is forced into adult responsibilities too early. Whether it's the responsibility of motherhood or whether it's linked to abuse, as is the case many times," Puja said.

The report also said, some Indian lawmakers argued the show Balika Vadhu violated the Indian Constitution and demanded the show be banned. The government looked into it and gave it a clean chit, so the cameras continue to roll on the sets, and the show goes on.

OneIndia News