Three schoolgirls from a sleepy region in Tamil Nadu's Karur district set off on a mission to meet their loved stars of the hugely popular Korean pop band BTS with just Rs 14,000 in their pockets and without passports.
While the ambitious plan of the girls met the end it was supposed to -- i.e. them not being able to fly out of the country -- their brief disappearance did cause panic among their families and prompted state-wide searches.
Girls Planned To Go To Seoul On Ship Without Passport
Passionate fans of Korean pop band BTS, the girls, all aged 13 and students of Class 8 in a state-run school, decided to go all the way to South Korea's Seoul, the South Korean capital to meet their loved stars.
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The girls quietly stepped out of their homes on January 4 and reached Chennai after taking a train from Erode, which is near Karur. As the girls did not return home, their parents lodged a complaint with Karur police, who alerted authorities state-wide and began searches.
"They took a firm decision to somehow meet the BTS stars and shortlisted the seaports of Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh to take a ship to South Korea and they eventually chose Visakhapatnam," news agency PTI quoted a Child Welfare Committee official as saying.
The teenagers together had just about Rs 14,000 with them, the PTI report said, adding that the girls naively believed that they could still make it. They managed to get a room in a Chennai hotel on Thursday night and were under the impression that they could take a ship to Seoul without passports.
After a tiring day with failed attempts to go ahead, the girls boarded a train from Chennai to reach their homes on Friday. "At Katpadi railway station, when they got down at midnight to buy food, they missed the train. Police personnel spoke to the children and Child Line authorities and we were alerted," P Vedanayagam, head of Vellore District Child Welfare Committee said.
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They were accommodated in a state-run facility in Vellore district and their parents were summoned and counselling sessions were held for the children and their parents.
Girls Knew Every Single Detail About BTS
District Child Welfare Committee said they found out that the girls knew the minutest details about the BTS band and the stars, ranging from the way they dressed and what not. "They had bought shoes similar to the ones used by the pop band stars," the official said.
The BTS stars were their inspiration and unhindered access to smartphones led to obsession. "It was very clear to us that they yearned for a life of dance and music," the official added.
However, their decision 'to go abroad' to chase their dreams was a terrible mistake and this was conveyed to them politely.
The official said the children were encouraged to focus only on studies which would help them realise their dreams, whatever it may be.
"We told the children about the importance of education and its value and advised the parents to keep an eye on what their children do." The teens were told that smartphones and the internet, though useful in everyday life, should be utilised primarily for education-related purposes, the PTI report mentioned.
Officials said that one of the girls had a single parent while another's father was mentally ill, adding that the mothers of these girls work as farm labourers.
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"They have little or no time to monitor what their children do and what they want," an official said.
The parents were requested to make suitable arrangements to take care of their children to ensure that they get support and guidance. After counselling, the children were sent to their home district with their parents and they took a train on January 6 night.
(With PTI inputs)
