Wednesday 2 September 2015

episode 20 girls rule






okay, fuzzy caps, but it was a lovely sequence and the song is still playing in me. she cracks the code, gets the letter done, completely flummoxes the great arnav singh raizada, leaves lavanya gawking mouth wide open at her incredible efficiency, asks "aur kuch?" and at her mean employer's silence, requests permission to go home, and leaves for the day. so endearing this young girl as she traipses down to first thank dm, then slip on her trademark jhola bag and walk out of the office on a lighter gait, unburdened and unafraid at last, on the way her only friend and mentor at work gives a thumbs up to "chamkili ki chamak". in the background dance the happy first notes of the title song, one just has to grin and hum along.

jo pehle hua na / vo ab hone laga hai / dil humko jagakar /kyon sone laga hai / yeh ishq hai/ ya kuch aur hai?

i do wish they'd come out with an ipkknd cd, with every bit of the music. raju singh's work is edgy, cool, and distinctive here. there are some really touching bits and great melody. of course, rabba vey and asr's background score are just classic. modern and smooth sound, i never tire of hearing.



the episode belonged to lucknow ki chikankari, and she was absolutely charming in every scene. my favourite up there. the sweetest sister act. family, warmth, lightness, innocence, and lots of happy love there. little things that make a day feel special. here some solid leg pulling of birthday girl. the sort of thing we've perhaps been through ourselves, simply told, performed with finesse. made one want a sister :) .


onto seel batta and another sis. got me thinking this  scene. the difference in the two women in asr's life. the one who fell into his arms out of nowhere: she's a simple small town girl with a mind of her own. she's a natural lateral thinker, easily coming up with ingenious ideas to tackle a situation. nothing really phases her despite her initial heebie jeebies. though bound by her idea of tradition, she is in no way orthodox in thinking.

then there's anjali: love of arnav's life, light of his eyes, his one and only di. born well, educated in finer schools (i presume), city bred. she is graceful and loving and gentle, and incredibly inflexible in her thinking, most orthodox. vegetables are not cut, they are "sudharoed", and they must be sliced just so, no other way; and what's this mami, chutney in a mixie? no, that must be ground on the stone the way nani likes it, and why is the dhania being sorted like that? er, let me do it... i have to say, i empathised with mamiji and her "oh gawd, kahan humka iss sankiyon ke beech phasaa diye!" oh g, where've you got me stuck among these mad women.

anjali can't think different. khushi is adept at exactly that. and in that she is a lot like the man who is out to torment her. individualistic, rule bender, this girl that rules the day. but, watch out, tomorrow is another day and looks like there might be rain.

my favourite dialoguewa:  
akhir hum babuji ki beti hain... kiski majal hai ki woh humey methi ki sabzi khilaye. ant mein toh hum jalebi hi khayenge.
after all, i'm babu ji's daughter. who can make me eat bitter veg, in the end i'll eat jalebis only.

end note, before we get to the rain, let's look at the sky. what does it say? akash, the sweet one is drowning in love. whose are those eyes on his laptop? and where exactly is his mind? his smart grandma can see something is up, but poor akash can never speak about what's in his heart. his dadi offers advice, time you learnt to voice your thoughts.


"uss dupattewali ke liye hi sahi, mujhe bolna to seekhna hi padega." for the girl with the dupatta if even, i must learn to talk. have to say, akash was the perfect foil to the cool, arrogant, debonair asr when it all started. gentle, innocent, more retiring by nature but not a wimp, with a smart understanding of dadi and mother kitchen politics. a man who fell in love at first sight and in his own non aggressive way managed to win her heart and bring her into his life. nice.  

yet the one who makes the screen go dizzy is not sitting all dreamy there. he's right here. nasty, mean, calculating, planning his next move.


uh oh, he's just heard she hopes to go home early today. not good. and why did you narrow your eyes so, mr arnav singh raizada?




 "what the... you talkin' to me?"




i began writing my episode rambles in late 2012, and at the time i had practically no idea about making edits/visuals. many of the takes have very basic visuals, thought i'd let them be, at times they catch a moment that's difficult to catch again. plus that happy light air that's ipk, it seems to catch that and anyway, these are such deadly actors that whether it's beautifully edited visuals or basic ones, koi faraq nahin padta. 






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