NEW DELHI: A video showing a couple apparently engrossed in filming a social media reel as their young child gets caught in incoming sea waves has sparked outrage online.The footage shows a bystander noticing the child and rushing to bring the toddler to safety.His timely intervention has drawn praise from social media users, many of whom said the situation could have ended tragically.The video, shared on X, has drawn criticism over the risks of prioritising social media content over a child’s safety.The exact location and date of the incident have not been independently confirmed.The video has triggered a wave of criticism, with users questioning the adults’ apparent inattention and raising concerns about the growing obsession with filming content for social media.“Reels and likes are not more important than child safety. Even a small lapse in parental attention can lead to a major accident,” one user commented.“Absolutely sickening. ‘Reel culture’ is rotting people’s brains to the point where internet points matter more than a child’s life,” another user wrote.Another user criticised the couple, saying that people who abandon their children’s safety in pursuit of virality deserved condemnation.Some users also compared the incident with child-protection systems in other countries.“Any developed country, child services would have taken the child and these idiots would have been in trouble,” one of the users wrote.Others expressed concern about what they described as a culture in which online attention takes precedence over real-world responsibilities.The video has renewed discussion around child safety near the sea, where waves and currents can change rapidly.The incident serves as a reminder that young children need close and constant supervision around water, particularly when adults are near the shoreline.
