The police counselling the girl at the Attiguppe metro station
Bengaluru: For a 13-year-old girl in south Bengaluru, a fascination with Korean pop culture took an unexpected turn when she left home one morning with a simple ambition — to find a way to South Korea and meet her idols, K-pop group BTS. Hours later, her day-long adventure ended at Attiguppe Metro station, where alert staff spotted her wandering alone without a ticket late at night on Sept 26 and informed police.
Her father told police that she had left home a few times earlier. When her parents tried calling her, the phone was switched off. After waiting until evening, they approached Hebbagodi police and filed a complaint, following which a kidnapping case was registered. Police reached the station, spoke to the girl and learnt that she had left home hoping to find a way to meet BTS team. They contacted her family and handed her over to her parents after counselling. The girl, originally from Maharashtra , lives in Bengaluru with her parents, who moved to the city for work. Police advised the parents to seek counselling for her.
She would spend hours watching Korean content on her mobile phone, sometimes through the night, and had begun adopting Korean-inspired clothing and mannerisms, according to her family. The girl, a student at a private school, had developed a strong interest in Korean songs, films and BTS. She had repeatedly expressed a desire to visit South Korea, leading to arguments at home.