Many parents are turning to high-tech baby monitors to watch their tots while they are in the office or travelling. An advanced version of the device even lets them talk to the infant and soothe it though they are miles away.

When actor Ranvir Shorey was in Ireland for a month-long shooting schedule of Ek Tha Tiger recently, he would long to see his eight-monthold son Haroon. He did not need to get back to Mumbai to do that, nor did he have to rely on multimedia messages or video clips that take ages to download. Shorey simply clicked on a special application on his phone. No matter what time of the day or night it was, the little one appeared instantly before his eyes.

Shorey could see live feed of Haroon waving his chubby arms in the air with delight as mommy Konkona Sen Sharma read a bedtime story to him in their flat. A little later, the naughty cherub would be sleeping peacefully in his crib.