The show is conceptualised on an international reality show called Baby Borrowers. While celebrity couples (married and unmarried) being solely responsible for looking after biologically unrelated babies can be an acceptable occurrence abroad, Indian viewers are yet to acclimatise themselves to such a trend.

 

The channel NDTV Imagine, the broadcasters of the reality show, has received a notification from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to take the show off air, but have refused to do so until notified by a body of authority. In spite of the complaint reaching the Ministry for Information and Broadcasting, no action has been taken towards pulling the show off air.

 

The case has been brought into the open by social activists and NGOs highlighting primarily on the physical as well as the psychological impact of the show on the young children, made to participate in the process. The parents of these show-babies might be aware of the impact of this kind of treatment on their children in the long run. However, the spotlight and cameras seem to be the sole pullers that make them put their children through something as traumatic as this.

 

“The broadcasters, though, need to keep in mind the adverse psychological effect such a trend might have on not just the children involved in the show but to families all over the country”, says Krishnan VR, a student of Business Management in Cochin and also a critical follower of Pati, Patni aur Woh.

 

The government needs to form a stricter regulatory body in order to filter shows based on their format and its acceptance with the Indian audience. They should understand that a particular show can become distasteful for the common Indian audience if its programming content does not think of its social impact.