Deep pockets down south ; Kids in the hinterlands of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are no bumpkins when it comes to spending.

No babes in the woods

In early November, Siddharth Sriram, 10, and J. Keerthana, 8,emerged from a consumer electronics shop in a dusty southern townand jumped onto a bullock cart along with their most recent prizedpossessions: a 32-inch LED television and a Sony home theatre. Theyalong with their father R. Kumar, a native of Theni in the foothillsof the Western Ghats - some 75 km from the temple town of Madurai insouthern Tamil Nadu - had started from home on a Sunday morning tobuy an LCD television to replace an old flat-screen model. "I hadjust harvested paddy and decided to take advantage of festivaldiscounts that various companies were offering,'' says Kumar inchaste Tamil. What happened at the shop took him by completesurprise. The brother-sister combine began pestering him for an LEDTV.

He resisted for a while but when the children began to create ascene, he gave in. "We had agreed at home to pick up a 32-inch LCDTV costing Rs 32,000 but finally ended up spending Rs 45,000,'' saysKumar. The kids also forced him to buy a Sony Home Theatre costingRs 13,500 against the original plan of a Philips Home Theatrecosting Rs 5,000.

Location: Theni, in the foothills of the Western Ghats in TamilNadu

Pester power poster boys: Siddharth Sriram, 10, and J. Keerthana,8

Purchasing power: A 32-inch LED television and a home theatrecosting a total of Rs 58,500"This happens all the time,'' says RajKumar, the Manager of Jainsons, a consumer durable chain, in Theni."We sell about 600 TVs every month and it is the children who makethe choice in at least 60 per cent of those sales," he adds. Thechildren in this predominantly agricultural small town were alsolargely responsible for Raj Kumar having to order and deliver three40-inch LED 3D TVs costing Rs 75,000 each in less than two weeks inNovember. "The kids watch advertisements on TV and are clear aboutwhat they want. They ask for models with a USB drive, a highcontrast ratio and good sound quality,'' he explains. Theirinfluence is not restricted to TVs but extends to air conditioners,mobiles and two-wheelers.

"Being a well irrigated district, the per capita income of thefarmers, who typically grow rice, sugarcane, cardamom, grapes,bananas and cotton, is good. That coupled with children who areexposed to the latest products ensures that consumption here is asgood as in any city,'' says R. Serman, the proprietor of Seran'sShopping Spot, one of the oldest shopping centres in the town. Hecites the instance of chocolates. The fastest moving chocolate inhis shop is Kinderjoy - made by Italian confectioner FerreroInternational, which costs Rs 30 a piece. "Do not get misled by theway people are attired,'' he warns. The heavily-bleached whiteshirts and dhotis hide not only prosperity, but also the propensityto try the new goodies in the marketplace.

Shops till he drops

Seven-year-old Gaurav Shah, a Class II student in Tumkur, 70 kmoff Bangalore, is a big fan of actress Priyanka Chopra. His parentsPraveen and Asha Shah have no complaints about that. Except thatthey had to shell out Rs 44,000 recently because Chopra rides theHero Honda Pleasure in the ad for the scooter. And since Gauravlikes the Bollywood starlet, he also likes - and wants - the scootershe rides. The parents will, of course, be using the two-wheeler.But they had to take Gaurav's advice on which brand to buy.

Location: Tumkur, 70 km off Bangalore

Pester power poster boy: Gaurav Shah, 7

Purchasing power: A Hero Honda Pleasure Scooty, a 32-inch LCD TV,a two-tonne airconditioner and a PC with 500 GB of storage space,all costing a total of Rs 1.25 lakhShah, a realtor, acknowledgesthat his two children - Naina, 13, is the other - know more aboutcomputers and electronics than he and his wife do. The only downsideabout such awareness levels: Shah ends up spending more frequentlythan he would like to. For instance, the family replaces their TVset twice a year at the behest of the children. "Left to ourselves,we would keep the same TV set for at least five years,'' says Shah.The family also bought a 32-inch LG LCD TV four months ago; theson's demand now is to replace that with the one with a USB plug-in. And recently Shah had to spend Rs 26,500 on a Godrej airconditioner when the children insisted on one for the living room."We already have one in our bedroom and never felt the need for onein the living room. But our children made us buy that,'' says Shah.

The children keep track of all print and TV ads and hear aboutthe latest stuff their classmates and friends have acquired at home."New models keep coming, and they get attracted sometimes by eitherthe looks or by features or just by the sheer size," says Shah.Recently, when the family bought an HCL computer, the childrenensured that their father spent some extra bucks for more storagespace - all of 500 GB. After all, they need to store their favouritecartoon shows and songs from Bollywood.