Originally posted by: A.C.
Hi there,
First of all, thank you so very much for saying everything you did! Everything you said went right down to the core of this ShivIka love story and is one of the main reason that I adore it!
And yes, I am worried at time about the points you mentioned even though they are the very reason due to which I absolutely love these two.
Essentially, this is a story of two independent, confident and self-reliant individuals. They are quiet similar to one another at the core of it but stand on opposite sides of a line - a line made by fate and the circumstances of their birth. What makes the situation interesting and complicated is that they are both equally right! However many of us hate Shivaay's khoon khaandaan speech, he is not wrong. A man of his stature, his status requires a wife who is adapt at handling it all. Social image means nothing to Anika - and I am proud of her for that - but for Shivaay, its essentially his bread and butter. Empires are made on these very images that we all tend to deny and love to defy.
But I guess that's where the love and partnership between two people come in. I am a follower of an ongoing literary series which has somewhat of a similar plot to it. A famous billionaire falls in love with a crude, crass cop who is literally the opposite of everything he could ever require in a wife. But she is the one he yearns for, and so defying society, he goes after her and marries her - even when she warns him against it! The series follows the aftermath of the wedding.
What I love about it most that these two characters are still mostly the way they were before they met. The heroine is still crass most of the time - its her job, she's a cop! - but she has also developed this veneer of polish lets say for the lack of a better word. She is still inept at small talk and socially awkward but she tries to balance that because first, she loves him and second, because he rarely ever asks her to. And the hero, well, he is less highhanded than he used to be, but not once did he ask or demand her to become something that she isn't. He loves her for what she is and never once has he rubbed it in her face that she is a less than perfect wife for a man like him. The essence of their bond was the fact that they never asked the other to change, instead they accepted one another they way they are and simply tried their best to live together without smothering each other. And over the years I have seen that relationship built. I have seen it evolve to what it has become - an equal partnership between two strong individuals. This is what I have learned the most from the two of them: that love takes a hell of a lot of work, but it can work if you want it to!
I see the potential of such an evolution between ShivIka but I also understand that its very hard to do so. Such a story requires a lot of balance - balance between love and society, freedom and exercise of power, and most importantly, between female empowerment and male self-respect, This is the crux of the conundrum that I think GK faces. Because honestly, I am not sure this can be portrayed realistically on television. Its going to require a lot of not only amazing writing but also focus - which given the number of characters Ishqbaaz has is a really difficult task to achieve.
So yes, I maybe an optimist, but I am what my mother calls the realistic-optimist! So I might be hoping for the best here, but I am also aware that the chances of things happening that way are very low. Hence I guess all we can do is watch and love the show until we can bear it no more and then cut out losses and move on! But until that happens, I am going to enjoy the joy ride that ShivIka is right now and write a lot of fanfiction to settle my frustrations!
Love,
A.C.
