What a roller coaster ride for the protagonistI think that Gulaal has become a creature of habit, set in her ways and punishing herself into widowhood, not letting herself live. The imlis (tasted but not consumed) hidden away in a drawer hint at a woman who has boxed in her pleasures both physical and mental and put them away on a storage shelf. She herself has forgotten that fun person she was and has developed her rigid code of ethics and morals. She fell in love with Vasanth - an adult and a gentle visionary who indulged her. Her life with Vasanth was brief - she spent more time with the child Kesar than she ever did with even Vasanth.
Imagine the shock of realizing that she herself was the cause of Vasanth's murder at Dushyanth's hands? I am still not clear if she knows that Durgesh was behind the traumatic accident - again a vendetta caused by her backing out of her betrothal with him. The deeyarvattu was a strong but shocking decision on her part - and she vowed to keep the deeyarvattu chaste and pure - but then she was even younger than kesar's current post leap age when she made that decision. Motaba warned Gulaal about possible carnal implications of the deeyarvattu and sharing physical proximity as Kesar grew older and even sent Kesar away from home (one of those occasional flashes of wisdom on his part). Motaba even wanted to break the deeyarvattu but Gulaal threw her "I will leave home" tantrum (like I said a creature of habit and one of her actions that confuses me)...
She is now bewildered by the adult Kesar who has been immune to her zombification and has become his own person albeit her bogeyman. She has mostly seen rude, aggressive, angry and self centered behavior from Kesar. She is also laden by a huge dose of guilt about Talli/Sudha. Except for Talli (who is also mostly self centered), there really is no-one in the house who gets her (except for JamnaK ' for all the wrong reasons). For Gulaal to evolve, she will first have to see Talli's issue meet closure (hopefully in a positive way), she will have to see (and develop respect for) more of Kesar's maturity and adulthood. Finally she does have to reciprocate the basic attraction that Kesar feels - this can be only done when she comes to terms with Vasanth's death. During the goshala confession scene when Kesar quietly but resolutely confesses his love to Gulaal ' he also turned Gulaal's argument about Talli being in love with him as a similar tool to persuade Gulaal. I do not want Kesar to be another Vasanth but it is the gentleness and compassion that V displayed that caused Gulaal to be attracted to him. Kesar does have that streak in him , but Gulaal has yet to see it. Gulaal also needs to be stood up to, not indulged, by Motaba and Paanba ' two people whom she actually respects.
Till then (on a lighter note), she will continue with her habits of manipulating people, giving Kesar his facials and treating her maiykka and sasuraal as railway stations, hopping the doorstep to and fro depending on her personal flavor''
Edited by trifolia - 14 years ago
Arjun
