Aw phooey!

With Donald Duck turning 77 today, MiD DAY finds that he's fast losing ground to Pokemon and the like among the city's pint-sized denizens

Aw phooey!

With Donald Duck turning 77 today, MiD DAY finds that he's fast losing ground to Pokemon and the like among the city's pint-sized denizens

IT was on this day in 1934 when the fiery-tempered, incoherent, but intensely lovable Donald Fauntleroy Duck made his debut in a Silly Symphony film The Little Wise Hen.
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Donald, whose famously short temper endeared him to audiences, soon became one of the most popular Disney cartoon characters and in the 1940s he surpassed Mickey Mouse in the number of cartoons reaching the theatres.

Arnav Guptau00a0shows off his Ben10 toy with his sister, Gia, behind him. Viyaan Goelu00a0in his Ben10 raincoat

So, as the world geared up to celebrate Donald's 77th birthday, MiD DAY spoke to a few little ones in the city, only to find that classics such as Donald, Mickey Mouse and Goofy have all but disappeared from their radar with shows like Pokemon, Ben10 and Chhota Bheem taking their place.

Four-year-old Arnav Gupta said, "I don't like Donald duck that much. I really love Chhota Bheem and all my friends in class also watch all the episodes. I also love Ben10 a lot and have a few of his toys."

His sister, two-year-old Gia, on the other hand, loves watching shows such as Mister Maker and Fimbles on CBeebies.

"I would like my kids to watch classics such as Donald Duck and his nephews but they prefer all these new-age cartoons. One problem with cartoons like Chhota Bheem is that they sometimes use words like 'silly' and 'idiot', which I would not want my little ones to learn now," said Gauri Gupta, Arnav and Gia's mother.

"The stores are full of merchandise from these shows, ranging from Bheem colouring books to Ben 10 underwear and the kids only want these expensive toys.

The only Donald Duck soft toy we have is the one my husband gifted me after we got married as I am a big Donald fan," she said, adding that she was surprised how the kids could even remember names like Omnitrix and Transformation at their age.

"I like Ben 10 because it has aliens in it. And I really like Doraemon for his pocket full of gadgets," said Viyaan Goel (4).

His mother, Anjali, said, "I don't like him watching Doraemon and Shin Chan is a big no-no. They are very silly. I like him watching Chhota Bheem, though, because I don't have the time to sit and read the Mahabharat to him."

Girl brigade
As for the young girls, Hannah Montana seems to be the craze. "I like watching Hannah Montana and I really love the Barbie movies," said Eden Elbaz.

The change in kids' cartoon preferences is also noticeable in the merchandise like school bags, umbrellas and raincoats. When we spoke to Damodar, a shopkeeper, he said.

"There was a time when Donald and Mickey merchandise used to sell like hot cakes, but the kids don't care for them any more.
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They'd much rather buy a Spider Man or Doraemon umbrella rather than a Donald one."

Many school bag sellers in Andheri echoed Damodar's views.u00a0 "Boys usually buy Ben10 and Pokemon bags and girls buy Barbie and Hannah Montana," said one such seller.