so why did i feel so bad for arnav singh raizada today? he was curt, he was angry, he shouted, he was crusty and unfriendly in the extreme. yet, i felt something was not fair. maybe just the look on his face a couple of times. or the timbre of his voice here and there, but i got the sense that the hard hearted one was softer and gentler than many, and something in him felt pretty rotten today.
consider the scenario. the young man is all of only 26. yet in just a few years, by the dint of hard work and his sharp mind, he's built a strong business house, clearly in the black. his character, it is said, was based on the mills and boon hero that gul khan possibly grew up reading. at 14, i could have done a phd in that kind of romance novel, reading practically one a day. and believe me while the m&b man was tall, dark, and handsome, and definitely always a tycoon, he was never less than 35 years of age. usually 15 years older than the girl he'll collide into and their lives change.
here, asr is way younger, and he is the man who runs this show, takes all sorts of decisions without any support from an older wise counsel of any sort; of course, his uncle and cousin support him, but the ultimate responsibility falls entirely on his albeit most sexy yet still very young shoulders. if we are to believe in this character we have to understand, this wealth was not created by chance or fluke, a whole lot of effort and keen thinking had to go into it. that was mainly his.
and he takes on the challenge most readily. in fact, derives much pleasure from his work as well. the entire raizada establishment runs on his earnings. from whatever one can see, he is not overbearing at all, demanding things be done his way. he considers taking care of his family to be his duty, is utterly respectful of his elders, dotes on his sister. the only man he seems to lean on a bit for advice is his jeejaji.
an instance of his respectful ways. toward the end of this episode, he is seething about the eight young girls who have been brought into the house without his knowledge and who have wrecked his work things, yet when he sees naniji, he changes his tone instantly... gentler, courteous, with maybe just a trace of complaint in his voice.
that was just one example of the sort of things that are done with impunity by his family which seem not too fair to him. most of the members are fairly conventional in the way they view life and live. they are traditional, highly theistic, constantly engaged with worship and ritual. in matters other than religion too they do not challenge norms. they believe in marriage, they deem women should do "womanly" things like cooking and taking care of the family, they eat vegetarian food and don't bring alcohol into the house.
asr on the other hand is, as we all know, asr. he is certainly not into religious rituals, he believes he makes his own destiny which doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't believe in something out there, but whether it is there or not, he takes the responsibility of his own life, not willing to lateet some unknown fate take over. he does not believe in marriage for himself. he likes to eat non-veg food, and even drink alcohol on occasion, and his views on women are progressive, liberal. no question of tying them to their traditional duties, if you want to do something, go out there and do it, i am with you, seems to be his attitude toward the women in his life.
he is certainly different in his views from his family members. yet at a fundamental level his idea of duty is perhaps the exact mirror image of his naniji's.
everyone loves him, they live off his income, but they never seem to realise, he has a right to live his life his way. what's more, they are often a tad judgmental. even naniji, whose character has lovely qualities. anjali doesn't judge him but wishes he would change. people may not say it overtly, but they would do huge sighs of relief if he one fine day relinquished his ways and became like them.
is this fair? or is it fair to get hordes of kids into the house, without his knowledge just because he is not fond of noise and children? the least one can do is tell him. he might yell and shout, but he always doesn't finally come in the way of di's desires, does he?
the shot of him when khushi grabs hold of his hand while playing ankh micholi just stayed in my head. blind man's bluff, the day she returned to rm with her order of mithai and the gust of wind told him something was different, and he found her in his wardrobe, that day it had felt like the same game was on. today, indeed it was, and she was playing with the girls. anjali had requested she keep them entertained and out of chhotey's sight come what may.
so when she caught hold of him, she started with a "pakad liya na firse," caught you again, then as she felt his arms, blindfold still on, "arre phirse zaroorat se zyada lambe?" again you're taller than necessary. she had just had a most interesting play time with om prakash, the cutest of the prakash clan.
but this time it wasn't op.
er notice, he doesn't stop her from touching his face...
trembling hands reach up for blindfold, pull... and the signature one eye. but this time followed instantly by dhakdhak. he can't look away, she can't stop her heart racing. neither knows this thing has a name. she blinks, bemused. he's still, watching her, what's with the girl.
then with controlled rage, "kya kar rahi thi tum?" what are you doing?
lunacy in the living room.
"kya?" what? she prevaricated.
"kya kya? kya kar rahi thi tum?" what what? what were you doing?
the man who abhors noise and kids is back home.
khushi goes into high panic and supreme cookiness in her bid to protect the kids from his wrath. and we get to see some really funny scenes with the very expressive op as part of deal. but during this, khushi casually refers to him as laad governor, well almost, to op. considering the man is his employer, is this even slightly polite or right?
later, she describes him as rakshas, not human, laad governor, etc., to the children also. don't go near his room. he eats kids.
while on one side of the episode we see shyam up to his terrible tricks, trying to fix his horoscope, fudge raanisahiba, and shake off shashi ji, here we see asr discover destruction and disrespect in his room. a broken model that had taken days to put together, and a loud moustache sketched on his photograph. finally, despite khushi's best and most bizarre efforts when the truth come out, it's "aaa" shrieking girls rushing down the stairs time.
"enough!" no one could blame the man for shouting this time.
"toh yeh hain wo... jinhone model toda that," so these are they that broke the model.
the kids peer from behind khushi's back and ask,
"yeh hai wo..." this is he...
"wo kaun, beta?" khushi, sensing danger, fakes excessive sweetness: who he, child?
"aap hi ne toh kaha tha wo gussewala... jo baccho ko kha jaata hai. woh rakshas... laad governor," but kids will say it as it is... you'd only said that angry man... the one who eats kids. that monster... laad gov."
khushi is aghast. but it's asr i look at.
"kya kaha issne? rakshas laad governor jo baccho ko kha jaata hai... yeh tumne sikhaya baccho ko." what did she say? monster laad governor who eats kids... this is what you taught the kids?
"main jo keh raha hoon isska jawab do..." answer me!!! when he hurts he shouts the loudest. why did it seem as though khushi speaking like that about him really bothered him, and the tender one inside him was upset that such a nasty image of him had been conveyed to innocent children by the girl he had started calling ajeeb, maybe because she made him feel ajeeb things, things he had no idea how to describe. but certainly he didn't want her to say such things about him. i am wondering now, did khushi understand this?
just because he is brusque and confident, arrogant at times, and always master of the house, doesn't mean he doesn't need tenderness, care, someone to love him as he is. he shouldn't have to eat what he likes to outside or apologise for his way of thinking, because no matter who does or doesn't do what ritual, this man always does the best by everyone around him. and when he makes a mistake, his seeking forgiveness is genuine and deep. the only man on who he depends is playing a sick game and will betray him most terribly soon. no one will ever make space for his way of life unless he yells and screams. nah! asr you're a wonderful man, laad governor is just your ajeeb girl's way of saying you are.
if she is only 18, he is just 26 too. because he grew up quickly thanks to a nasty fate and a determined character, himmat dikhai... doesn't mean we can't give this young man his due.
that ankh micholi is one of the funniest and dhakdhakest scenes i've ever seen. had fun using it in this vm a man and his crazy girl. click to watch the vm.
......................
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