At the beginning of the 21st century, there are more slaves on earth than ever before in human history. Many are young children who have been kidnapped from their families and forced to work in unspeakably brutal conditions until they die, or are no longer useful. It is estimated that in India alone there are more than 300,000 enslaved children who have been kidnapped to work on products that end up being sold in the United States and the rest of the world.

Following one man's search for his missing son, THE CARPET SLAVES: STOLEN CHILDREN OF INDIA exposes an extreme form of child slavery — carpet making in Northern India — when it debuts MONDAY, MARCH 26 (7:00-8:00 p.m. ET), exclusively on CINEMAX. The "CINEMAX Reel Life" presentation is produced and directed by Brian Woods and Kate Blewett, whose previous credits include the Emmy®- and Peabody Award-winning "CINEMAX Reel Life" documentary "The Dying Rooms," as well as the HBO documentary "Innocents Lost."

Other playdate: April 26 (6:40 a.m.).

THE CARPET SLAVES: STOLEN CHILDREN OF INDIA is set against the backdrop of intractable poverty, relentlessly expanding global trade, and the heroic efforts of people dedicated to eradicating child servitude and to rehabilitating its victims. It follows a trail that begins in a remote village in northeastern India, where Chichai, one father among thousands of parents whose children have vanished, agonizes over the loss of his son, Huro, kidnapped five years ago at age six. Without the means to conduct a search on his own, he can only pray that Huro is still alive.

With the guidance of Ghuran Mahto, who works to free India's child slaves, and the South Asian Coalition Against Child Servitude (SACCS), Chichai and the filmmakers travel to the outskirts of Varanai, a city in India's "carpet belt." Tipped-off to Huro's possible whereabouts in suspected slave master Munim Gupta's carpet-making operation, Woods and Blewett pose as carpet importers and meet with Gupta's sales reps. Soon after, accompanied by the police, they take part in a dramatic raid on the loom owner's facility, which turns up more than a dozen young boys. Incredibly, Huro is among those freed, and he is tearfully reunited with his father.

Huro and his fellow captives had been forced to weave carpets from 5:00 a.m. to midnight, locked indoors at all times, and beaten viciously if they didn't meet a quota or dared to complain.

During the four centuries of the West African slave trade, 13 million people were shipped across the Atlantic. The latest estimates are that at least twice as many are now enslaved around the world. Much of today's slavery is well hidden: Many of India's child carpet slaves labor undetected in homes and small buildings in rural villages, instead of highly visible factories or sweatshops.

Child slavery is not just an Indian phenomenon. Professor Kevin Bales, an advisor for the United Nations Working Group on Contemporary Slavery, describes how the demand for cheaper products and the lowering of trade barriers has lead to exploitation of those with little or no education and limited access to official intervention. This can easily include slavery, especially of children who cannot hope to overpower their captors.

Each year, $140 million worth of hand-woven carpets are exported from India's carpet belt, the majority going to the U.S. and Britain. Bales notes that the cheaper cost of rugs made by slaves brings down prices for all rugs. Consumers benefit, but are unaware of the cruelty that made the bargain possible.

Progress is being made. The UNICEF-backed organization Rugmark now distinctly labels carpets that are free of slave labor after monitoring their production in the carpet belt around Varanai. By purchasing imported carpets with the Rugmark label, consumers deprive slave owners of an immediate profit and raise awareness of the worldwide struggle against child servitude. SACCS estimates that as many as nine out of ten carpets that don't carry the Rugmark label may have been worked on by slaves.

THE CARPET SLAVES: STOLEN CHILDREN OF INDIA is produced and directed by Brian Woods and Kate Blewett. For "CINEMAX Reel Life": supervising producer, Nancy Abraham; executive producer, Sheila Nevins.