12/16/2025
From Antonio D'CostaAntonio D'Costa (LinkedIn)
🐥 Consultant Paediatrician and 🧠 EMDR Therapist🐥 Consultant Paediatrician and 🧠 EMDR Therapist
When Did Childhood Become a Performance?
Sudha Murty just said what many of us in child mental health have been screaming into the void: "Stop turning kids into online content machines."
As a pediatrician and trauma therapist, I see what happens years later.
The 14-year-old who can't look in the mirror without checking "how many likes would this get?"
The 10-year-old who asks if they're "good enough" because a reel didn't go viral.
The 7-year-old who has a meltdown when you say "no filming today" because they've learned their worth is measured in views.
Here's what most people don't realize:
A child's brain isn't equipped to process being watched by thousands of strangers. Their sense of self is still forming. When we monetize their tears, their tantrums, their bathroom training, their vulnerable moments, we're teaching them that love is conditional on engagement metrics.
This isn't about sharing a birthday photo with family.
This is about parents dressing up toddlers, scripting their lines, retaking shots until it's "perfect," and using their childhood as a business model.
And the child?
They can't consent.
They don't understand that this content lives forever. They don't know that at 25, a job interview might pull up a video of them potty training at 2.
From a trauma lens, here's what we're creating:
→ Identity confusion (Am I loved for who I am, or what I perform?)
→ Boundary violations (My privacy was never mine to control)
→ Developmental disruption (Childhood isn't supposed to have a target audience)
→ Future trauma (The internet never forgets what I can't even remember)
India has strict child labor laws for films and ads. Children have work hour limits, safety protocols, mandatory education time.
But on Instagram? A 3-year-old can "work" 24/7. No rules. No protection.
Sudha Murty is right to demand regulation. But as parents, we don't need to wait for laws.
We can start by asking one simple question before we hit "post":
"Is this for my child, or is this for me?
"Because childhood isn't content. It's sacred. It's fleeting. And once it's monetized, you can't buy it back.
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If this resonates, share it. Parents need to hear this. Children deserve better.
