I am a bit wicked in my expectations from any historical fiction series. But at the same time I don't think my expectations from the story are unrealistic in terms of credibility or story telling. I am not that difficult to please as well. When I get something good or even half good, I appreciate it. It is only when it is bad that I rant and my strictures come out. TRPs are a truth of any series. They do well there, they remain. They fail there, they are chucked out without a second thought.
Moreover, what does it matter to the CVs or Ekta Kapoor what you or I think of the series. It is a business proposition to them. What clicks is what runs on the show as content. All of us are having our own fun based on CN. I don't know if ever you saw our Rant threads on CAS. Those CVs would have committed suicide if they saw those posts. But the fact remains that they didn't see those and we all had a lot of fun till they ended up getting closed.
The 1990s Chanakya's Taxilla set up was very good. This one hardly approaches that. I also understand the total Samarpan Bhav of Chandra. That way it would have made the story spicier. Neither am I writing the story nor am I going to get to write it. So I will have to make do with what is served up.
Why for that matter, SBP's entry scene could have been done like this. They wanted to show her as a kind, compassionate girl who listens to her heart over the brain and loves her father a lot. My scene would have gone on like this:
Nandini sneaks out of the palace keeping a few pillows on her bed and covering them with a blanket. She disguises herself and meets one of her friends who is waiting outside with a bullock cart filled with provisions, clothes, etc.
All this has been bought from her monthly personal allowance given by her father and his gifts. Her maid asks, "Why are you doing all this Rajkumari? Maharaj will be very angry if he comes to know. All these things are yours. Why should you give it to anybody?"
A slow panning over to show Nandini's face and her expressions. She speaks up,"I have more than what I would ever need, but there are others around me who do not have even one tenth of their needs satisfied. There is no necessity for anybody except you and me to know this, not even Pithaji. When you give charity or help, one hand should not know what the other hand gives."
The maid has an admiring look of hero worship on her face for Nandini and remarks, "How unlike your father you are!"
Nandini reprimands her telling, "Not a word on Pithaji if you want to continue remaining my friend. Perhaps Pithaji has his justification for doing whatever he does. Perhaps this is Rajneeti...perhaps I think from my heart and Pithaji thinks from his brain...perhaps I am too weak and soft-hearted...and this is how big empires and kingdoms are ruled...Nandini falls pensively silent midway through her speech. Her maid recognizing her ethical and moral dilemma brushes it off telling, "For me you will always be the best princess, the best daughter, and the best friend."
They reach a poorer hamlet in Patliputra and distribute everything they have bought and quietly return back to the palace before their absence is noticed by anyone.
In a scene like the above, is there anything that is going to be exclusively unappealing to a TRP driven audience as the introductory scene of the older version of the female lead. Does the Bakri Bacho and Tamarind thodna for father come with a TRP stamp on it? All it takes is some intelligent and innovative writing!
As regards Chanakya, he definitely ought to give the Climb Trees Vidya more importance than Santaram Vidya! You can cross rivers on boats or by swimming; but you can only climb trees to protect yourself from wild boars.
I know the quips in the last para and the Nand ki Putri and Bakri were a bit wicked! But when I am not serious and in a mood to make quips, you will see a lot of such stuff coming from me.
Originally posted by: sashashyam
<font face="Georgia, Times New Roman, Times, serif">You wicked girl, you would be a nightmare for the CVs if they ever made the mistake of reading your strictures on their output!😆
Well, everything that you have written here is logical and holds together. But you are not factoring in the TRPs angle. If they had spent 2 or 3 weeks with the young Chandra - who is not star material like Siddharth in Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat, or Faisal Khan in Maharana Pratap - the ratings would have never taken off. And these days, shows are being axed in as little as 3 months. They would not dare to do that to Ekta, but she wants this to be a big success, and she has pinned her hopes on Rajat. So he had to come in early.
But they could have easily done a much better job with the Takshashila Vidyalaya. If you can get at it, look at the 1990 Chanakya and compare the two set ups.Nor could I understand not just Chanakya but Rakshas as well combining the role of the guru and the fencing master!
This said, your rethink on the wild boar scene is very funny. You know, Chanakya might know how to use the Santaram vidya to walk on water, but he might not know how to climb a tree!😉
I do not think Chandra needed to be convinced re: Nand or indeed about anything else. He sees himself as having been bought by Chanakya, and thus as belonging to his guru, body and soul. So the question of his having an independent opinion or will does not arise. That is the rationale for his total samarpan right at the beginning. Chanakya too makes it clear to Chandra that he expects total obedience from his shishya. Later this kind of obligatory obedience gets a solid overlay of tremendous respect and loyalty towards Chanakya, which cements the earlier samarpan on to an unbreakable foundation. You can see it in tonight's episode, in the sequence in the rain, when Chanakya sends Chandra off to Magadh to spy out the lie of the land.
Your last para had me in stitches - it almost hurt!😆 - and the Nand ki Putri and Bakri entry bit was almost as funny. As I have noted somewhere here or on my last thread, Shweta needs to do something more than playing pita maharaj ki ladli or a giggly Asha Parekh clone for us to be able to judge her acting. But I think she will do well.
Shyamala Aunty
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Edited by shailusri1983 - 8 years ago
