Bollywood took sights at social responsibility for children in need of special care with films like Taare Zameen Par, Black, Paa, My Name Is Khan, U Me Aur Hum, etc. even though a few are remakes from Hollywood, a true tug at the heart strings Taare Zameen Par brought dyslexia into the spotlight. A most common occurrence in children which often goes unnoticed and the child is labeled a lout, a duffer and other unsavoury labels. Ishaan was a very real character in a very cruel world. So even though Paa, My Name is Khan and U, Me Aur Hum were wonderful stories about adults coping with their disorders, it was Taare Zameen Par, which I would like to believe set the benchmark for more such films or even TV series to follow.

A late 1960s horror film, The Shuttered Room, revealed a lost twin sister locked up as she was a spastic! In reality, often the child in need of special care was locked away in a room at the back or in some remote place. Counselling services and support groups weren?t in place. Even in older Hindi films the archetypes were deranged, polio stricken, etc. No one would attempt a film on a marginalized person as a main character.

TZP reflected the social mindset, especially that of educationists who wouldn?t think twice before sending a child off to a school for special children. A dyslexic person would hardly benefit from the latter system, a remedial centre would be apt, why discount integrated education? This is what TZP stood out for.

Zee TV must be credited with a path breaking series which they aired in 2009-2010 ? Aap Ki Antara ? a daily soap on prime time, which dealt with a father coming to terms with autism in his love child. Aditya and his wife Vidya make a lot of adjustments, but not without passing through a turbulent phase in their relationship. Taking Antara out into society is a challenge ? be it a family wedding or a restaurant. The neighbours too heap scorn on the child and ostracize the family. But it?s the charming Billu, who befriends Antara. The writers and directors left nothing unsaid as such about integrating autistic children or differently abled children into the mainstream. If each episode was a new ray of light in the life of an autistic child and the family; the conclusion was?? insightful as the end segment zeroed in on real cases where parents shared their anxietities and approach to solutions. For parents who were newly confronting autism in their child and looking for support, this daily show was reaching out to even those in remote areas. Recognized as the Best Serial of the Year, Aap Ki Antara deserves equal merit for creating public awareness about Autism and sensitizing society towards this issue.

One can?t overlook that awareness and acceptance of autism is a universal issue; nothing could be more reflective than an?Arabic?dubbed-version of Aap Ki Antara. It premiered on?Zee Alwan?on April 6, 2014; Antara was renamed as Anhar and is the Arabic title of the serial. Such is the power of television. Antara?s story isn?t just typical to India. Aap Ki Antara hopefully isn?t the only one dedicated to mental health disorders; I think viewers would welcome more such stories.

In the current scenario, a daily comedy series Badi Door Se Aaye Hai has taken a short break from mirthful foibles to a heart tugging segment. Liza and Ronnie D?Souzas have secreted their little daughter Angel, a child in need of special care in a home which looks after such children. They have now brought her home where Lisa discloses to Ronnie?s sister Anna that they took the step so that they could look after Anna as they had promised her parents.

The D?Souzas could well have been among 1000s of such parents who have resorted to keeping their special child in a care facility ? some times in fear of social stigma, some times because of lack of a support system or some times because they can?t compromise with their other children. Many a time the centre?s health specialist will suggest the parents take the child home as he/she won?t survive or the child now needs to be nurtured by parental care. So Angel comes home to be with her parents in her last days.

Angel is Sunshine Colony?s new rock star, Anna and the neighbours pitch in with Liza and Ronnie in making up for Angel?s lost years by celebrating all the festivals she would have experienced had she lived in their midst. Sunshine Colony is the ideal fit for social acceptance. The real world is different as we saw in Aap Ki Antara where some neighbours were scornful of Antara.

Content providers and channels are showing their maturity in going beyond kitchen dramas and other trifling plot lines and depict human interest stories. There are so many special people who have stories to share. More than cinema, TV enjoys a much wider reach; with daily exposure to a narrative, the social issues series tackle will leave an impression like water does, when it trickles continuously on a stone surface. TV can well be the vehicle to sensitize society about children with special needs.