Children live in a make-believe world created by the stories they read and hear. They think the moon follows them, babies are sent from the sky, and watermelon seeds can sprout inside the stomach. We quizzed Bengaluru children about the things they believed in when they were younger, and how they faced their moment of truth when they discovered it was all just fiction.
‘Dinosaurs lived in parks’
Rohan Muthappa was upset for two days when he learnt dinosaurs don’t exist any more. He blamed the heartbreak on Steven Spielberg’s sci-fi film ‘Jurassic Park’.
Now 17, Rohan recalls, “I was in Class 2. I asked my parents to take me to the nearest ‘dinosaur park’ because I thought dinosaurs are kept in big parks, like in that film. They smiled and told me dinosaurs became extinct millions of years ago.” There’s not a day when he doesn’t think of dinosaurs, or living in the same era as they did.
‘Ant-Man spied on us’
Superheroes are just fictional characters. Lakshmikant Prakash realised this two years ago. Until then, the 14-year-old thought Ant-Man, a Marvel superhero, was for real. “I believed he was a part of a secret organisation and he used his ant army to spy on us,” he says.
But he is glad to know that there are many real-life superheroes who are helping people in need.
‘My imaginary friend, Simitha’
Tanish’s sister Nabha S Chindi had an imaginary friend Simitha. “I know she doesn’t exist but she lives on in my mind,” says the seven-year-old. Together, they play and talk of everything from sunshine to flowers and food to fairies.
‘The world had fairy godmothers’
Tanish S Chindi felt his whole life was a lie when he realised that fairy godmothers were a figment of the literary imagination, “created to engage the kids”. He had learnt about fairy godmothers from comics and short stories.
“I would trade my real world with the fantasy world any day,” says the 13-year-old.
‘Tooth fairy never came’
Every time Simran lost a tooth, she would place it under her pillow expecting to wake up and see it change into money or treats. Her parents would place goodies there, and she thought the tooth fairy was for real. When a tooth did not change under the pillow. She was angry. “I wrote a letter to the tooth fairy asking her where she was. After a few days, I found the letter in my parents’ closet. I realised they were giving me the treats,” the 16-year-old recollects. She soon grew out of the disappointment.