suraj poovaiah is a pro at computer games for my birthday ive asked my mom to buy me a laptop which i can show off to my friendssuraj will turn seven in decemberwhenever he wants to dance 12yearold sainath ghatkar morphs into his alter ego cody9 mumbaikid ghatkar is an avid user of an online game where the user can create his own avatar and wins points for its clothes and moves every evening after tuition ghatkar dances with the help of a computer at a cyber cafe and meets his school friends online it costs rs 25 an hour and more on weekends but thats what kids like sainath prefer for rs 30 you get the code which allows you to buy funky clothessays sainath the good old days of ludo or monopoly are passe today even young kids are turning to multiplayer pc games quentin staespolet ceo of kreeda an online mass multiplayer games company that uses games as a socialising tool says our user profile includes many kids online gaming is an extension of the phenomenon of people connecting through technology and children are a natural part of this processadds saleem mobhani coo of hungama mobile now a kid is cool if he has a ps2 or an xbox 360 join the brandwagon psychologists too vouch for the fact that social maturity in kids is very high now they are now extremely brandconscious the mother of a 12yearold once came to psychologist seema hingorrany because her son demanded branded underpants hingorrany was amazed at the clarity of the kids reasoning its made of cotton its healthy and would show when i wear low waist jeans kids use their pocket money for shopping they want videogames dvds and playstation they choose their own activities and teachers hingorrany has several cases of cellphone addiction in kids especially in their crucial years there were some kids who threatened to stop eating if their parents didnt buy them a cellphone parents buy it to ensure safety but kids cut short their dinner to talk to their friends for hours fouryearold aryan v goes to school only if his parents make a false promise of going to a mall after school every weekend we take him to a mall just to eat a burger or play video games a burger is something he eats without much trouble all for the free toy that comes with it says father venkatesh basavarajlook good stay fit move over barbie today every girl wants to look as good or better than her favourite doll geeta tiwari marketing incharge of a fitness centre in bangalore reveals every month about 60 girls aged 1215 come for fitness and beauty therapy they spend rs 50008000 per visitaccording to fitness expert naveen of bangalores platinum bodies even 12yearolds register for fitness training during every new schedule most of the time they walk in aloneit doesnt end there dr venkatram mysore of dr venkat charmalya centre for