More than a decade after schools banned it, schools continue to dispense corporal punishment in every second classroom. Children barely get their grounding even at home. A new short film, Maarna Nahi Hai Solution, launched on Children’s Day, details the alarming consequences of legitimizing violence against children in the name of discipline.
Behind closed doors and within the school walls, millions of children continue to experience physical punishment. According to the World Health Organization, more than 60% of all children between 2-14 years experience physical discipline at home.
The documentary film “Maarna Nahi Hai Solution” gives a critique of this detrimental practice. The film concentrates on the psychic trauma that children experience due to physical punishment and identifies the need for a switch toward non-violent, empathetic modes of incurring discipline. The school principal, Rafique Siddiqui, featured in the film, says, “Chaanta aapne uske gaal pe maara hai, par dhamaka uske dil mein hua hai,” which means that the real impact of punishment is emotional, not physical.
The film, a Much Much Spectrum production in association with Ummeed Child Development Center, features educators, parents, and survivors of corporal punishment as children. The movie by Aditi Gangrade and Aalap Deboor, co-founders of Much Much Media LLP, uses storytelling and expert testimony to convey some urgent issues:
Corporal punishment negatively impacts children, inducing anxiety, depression, and chronic behavior problems later. It highlights the gap between progressive child protection laws and their implementation in India. It also emphasizes the need for positive, non-violent discipline built on trust and empathy.
Aalap Deboor, the producer of the film, stated, “Filming this was an eye-opener for us. The everyday pain of corporal punishment and the life-long trauma it left on the protagonists is unimaginable.”
While the Right to Education Act, of 2009, explicitly prohibits corporal punishment, the practice is quite prevalent in schools across India. This issue is not unique to India alone: globally, caregivers subject 60% of children to physical punishment. However, only 14% of children across the world have full protection through the law from corporal punishment.
Aditi Gangrade, 20, who also suffered corporal punishment at school, remembered her traumatic experience thus: “School gave me extreme anxiety. Teachers humiliated me for being a ‘slow learner.’ Many parents even encouraged teachers to hit their children. I don’t want any child to go through what I did.”
Much Much Spectrum, known for its work in storytelling. And social impact, has been working on issues regarding health, parenting, and disability for more than two years. The film “Maarna Nahi Hai Solution” has already elicited strong reactions among viewers. It has been termed a “need of the hour” by many.
While the country is working towards abolition, the film reminded one that discipline is nurturance and not injury. It projects a future in which children shall be safe, loved, and supported.
Maarna Nahi Hai Solution is a timely wake-up call and a very powerful one. The movie has been screened on Developmental Disabilities India’s YouTube channel and launched on November 14, Children’s Day. It urges us to change our disciplining approaches towards children and adopt more respect for their emotional and mental well-being.
ANI
