Filmi kids: The good, the brat and the wily
The insufferably sanctimonious minors, the misfortune-prone bachche, wayward brats, and the precocious kids—here's how Bollywood has portrayed kids on screen. Happy reading on Children's Day!
One of the few accessible Indian films of the silent era, Dadasaheb Phalke’s Kaliya Mardan (1919) is renowned for attempting early special effects. The film’s other highlight is its child star, Mandakini—Phalke’s seven-year-old daughter and one of the first child artists of Indian cinema. Phalke presents her on screen with great adulation and flourish. A shot of Mandakini’s smiling face dissolves into her turning into Krishna. She conveys a variety of expressions. An intertitle invites viewers to study the young performer’s range. In the promotional material of Kaliya Mardan and Phalke’s other mythological films she starred in, little Mandakini is hailed as a wonder child, epitomising the flute-playing god.
From the cherubs in the early mythological fares to the eagerly virtuous children of the ‘50s to the angry, avenging lot of the ‘70s-‘80s masala-actioners, the image of child artists in Hindi cinema keeps evolving. Their characters, actions, and motivations reflected the mood of the time and their milieu. The insufferably sanctimonious minors in the sappy family dramas, the misfortune-prone ‘bechaare bachche’ in Manmohan Desai movies, wayward brats who’d grow up to be the baddies, awfully infantilised children of yesteryear, and the wily, precocious kids of contemporary cinema—Bollywood has spoken about the innocence of childhood and its loss, the real and the ridiculous, and more.
Child artists like Daisy Irani, Master Raju, and Mehmood Junior attained phenomenal success in their careers and were considered major movie attractions. Baby Farida in the 1960s, Master Bittoo in the 1970s, and Kunal Khemu in the ’90s—with their constant and familiar presence on the celluloid—became the definitive child stars of their era. A few, like Neetu Singh, Sarika, Sachin, and Urmila Matondkar, transitioned into successful stars as adults.
But the majority of Bollywood child artists faded away. Little information on them is available in the public domain. Most child artists routinely played both boy and girl roles. Many were known to have both male and female screen names. For instance, Daisy and Sarika were credited as Moppet Roop Kumar and Moppet Suraj, respectively, as they were often cast as young boys.
Bombay cinema of the ’50s made significant strides for child artists. The decade produced several mainstream children-centric films: Jagriti (1954), Boot Polish (’54), Toofan Aur Deeya (’56), and Ab Dilli Dur Nahin (’57), featuring the era’s notable young performers—Rattan Kumar, Baby Naaz, and Master Romi, among others. The post-independence idealism shaped the image of onscreen children. They spoke of honesty, unity, perseverance, and nation-building. Concurrently, the harsh realities of marginalised minors, too, evoked strong social commentary. Boot Polish highlighted the crushing struggles of destitute children through the story of two orphan siblings. Many works of neorealist filmmakers KA Abbas (Munna, 1954) and Bimal Roy (Do Bigha Zamin, ’53) captured the social apathy towards street children. This growing disillusionment and struggle against an unfair society was reflected in the later portrayal of children. Writer duo Salim-Javed, instrumental to this shift, also explored how the trauma of injustices impacted these young characters.
Also consider these tropes involving child actors. Master Alankar’s wronged young Vijay in Deewaar (1975) became the prototype for a slew of wounded, retribution-seeking filmi kids. In many films, child actors are conduits for the protagonist’s origin story and character development. A shot of a (running) child’s legs turning into an adult’s was a Bollywood staple. Sometimes they provided comic relief; at other times, they just needed to complete the family portrait. They sang lovely tunes too. Think the glorious parody song from Mr India (1987), an adorable Honey Irani in “Nani teri morni” from Masoom (1960), or the quirky charm of the other Masoom’s (1983) evergreen classic “Lakdi ki kaathi.” There’s also the exploration of compassion and friendship through their bond with animals. Be it fantasy (Rani Aur Lalpari, 1975), adventure (Balak Aur Janwar, ’75; Do Bachche Dus Haath, ‘72), or family drama (Minoo, ’77; Anokha Bandhan, ’82)—kids with a loving pet or trusted animal companion was a recurring trope across genres.
Films centred on kids have resulted in some of the most nuanced takes on childhood and the whims and curiosities of the young minds. In Kitaab (1977), Masoom (’83), and Zakhm (’98), the complex world of grownups is examined through a child’s perspective. Makdee (2002) is a fantastic horror comedy that debunks superstitions. The delightfully chaotic kids of Mr India, the mutinous cuties of Parichay (’72), and Brahmachari’s (’68) goofy gang remain Bollywood’s most beloved child starcasts.
The most significant work in children’s films has happened outside of Bollywood. Independent filmmakers and the Children’s Film Society of India—the film body focussed on children as its audience—have been producing insightful, engaging, and socially relevant cinema in major languages. Classics like Charandas Chor (1975), Halo (’96), and Malli (’98) to festival-feted contemporary titles like Gattu (2011), Village Rockstars (2017), and Dostojee (2021), to name a few. However, current Hindi cinema is happy to experiment. The success of Taare Zameen Par (2007), Stanley Ka Dabba, and Chillar Party (2011) and high praise for recent films like Toolsidar Junior (2022) demonstrate that the void of meaningful mainstream children’s cinema can be filled.
An edited version of the article was first published in Deccan Herald.
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