Budhia

This was a documentary I caught yesterday and I was really disturbed by it. It focuses on a 4year old boy, 4 YEAR OLD who is being trained for marathons.. When I saw him lacing up his tiny running shoes and saw him sleeping in the jeep before his run, saw the way he put his food into the mouth, the way his head swayed side to side as he ran, all that came to mind was my 5 year old cousin.. So young.. So innocent.. I felt so sorry for this kid..

Budhia was born in the slums, the youngest of 4 kids and his mum had sold him off to a peddlar in return for cash to support the kids and her family.. He was abused by the peddlar at such a young age.. He used to get stoned after the guy came back drunk and he managed to get into the hands of Baranchi, who now claims to be his guardian..

Watching the video, I can't help but doubt Baranchi's genuine interest in the child's welfare.. I can't help but wonder if Baranchi would have treated his own child this way, whether he would have put his own son through such rigorous training and harsh conditions.. And when asked if he was worried that these methods of training could have severe impacts on such a young boy, he responded saying that if Budhia were to die, he would die a martyr, doing something proper.. How can you say something like that? I don't know.. This could just be my side of the issue, but I was just really disturbed..

I can't seem to find the final part of the documentary though, where Baranchi makes Budhia run in a 70km record breaking marathon under sweltering heat.. Where you see the poor kid dehydrated and exhausted halfway through the race, yet Baranchi refuses to give him a drop of water and instead lures him with the water bottle suspended above him to make him run.. Finally at 67km, after seven hours, the child just stops and his head rolls back, his eyes start to close and he starts having fits and throws up.. I thought the child would die.. Yet, after just an hour, Baranchi takes him back to collect his medal and meet the press and media and insists that the boy will still run in the future despite what healthcare officials have to say..

I just think it's really disturbing.. subjecting a small kid to so much pressure, adding muscle building protein and raw glucose to his diet at this age, and ultimately acknowledging the possibility that Budhia could die one day this way.. I just think it's cruel..