Children of Sunny Fort in Action Area IIB went for their maiden Trick or Treat walk around the complex this Halloween and collected — of course, chocolates — but also money and sweets.
“The kids were really hoping to celebrate Halloween this time so we decided to help them. But it was such a last-minute decision that we barely got time to inform residents that they would be coming,” says Madhumita Bhattacharya, a mom who took the initiative.
Step one was to get the kids dressed and so some of them wrapped themselves in white dupattas, donned scary masks, used make-up to show blood dripping from their mouths, pasted long nails on their fingers etc.
The next step was to inform a bare minimum number of homes that the kids would be dropping by. “Since Halloween is a Western concept, people here would not know what to expect when 12 miniature ghosts ring their bell and cry “trick or treat!” We asked them to stock up on candies if possible,” said Bhattacharya.
Arhemm Paik dressed as a ghost
But hilarity and chaos ensued when the kids hit the road and that too for three hours. They ranged from ages four to 11 and kept wandering off. “So many kids wouldn’t fit in the lift, for starters, so we had to send them up and down in batches. Thankfully three more moms volunteered to herd the tots.”
Some residents were prepared for their guests and showered them with candies but others were clueless. Some started Googling what one is supposed to do on Halloween, others put their hands into the kid’s bags thinking they were being offered the goodies… “Some were embarrassed when they didn’t have chocolates and gave mishti or even money in lieu,” laughs Bhattacharya.
“Seeing our haul, more children decided to join us on our walk, even without costumes,” said five-year-old Arhemm Paik, one of the ‘mini ghosts’. “Initially I had thought no kids would turn up but it proved to be a huge hit,” said his mother Shahla Siddiqui, who was accompanying them. Arhemm, she claims, got enough goodies to last into the new year. “But it was heartening to see them share what they got with those who joined late.”
The haul of goodies collected by Adrita Bhattacharjee after the tour
While every home decided to “treat” the kids, the tots had a “trick” or two up their sleeves in case anyone refused. Rishan Adhikary said he would have pointed his toy gun at them and Adrita Bhattacharya would have shaken hands with them with a palm full of toothpaste smeared.