I have to start by mentioning Rajat Tokas first ... Is he just 22? Amazing actor...world class... A lot of us felt yesterday that Paridhi's acting in yesterday's episode was far superior to his... Now I know that he was saving his energy to deliver this masterpiece.
Beautifully executed dargah scene. Took my breath away.👏
Now let us talk about Jalal...It is so sweet to see that, thanks to the confession at Dargah, he has been forgiven by most forum waasis for his lack of trust in Jodha, her repeated public humiliation and finally a subdued reponse to her sacrifice in yesterday's episode.
Like most other forum members, I too was a little surprised and disappointed with his reaction after the poison ingestion scene. Remember how distraught he was after Rukkiya's MC, Bakshi Bano's betrayal and possible Maham betrayal... I was expecting a somewhat similar emotional reaction. However, i would have forced myself to ignore the subdued/ controlled response to her impending death, had I seen him get into a 'crisis management mode'...don't forget, he is an emperor first...But yesterday his hostage negotiation and emergency managment skills were not at all impressive considering the fact that he's been an Emperor for 8 yrs... He was able to do some damage control today. Finally grilling Zakira and getting the truth out of her was praiseworthy...ability to think rationally in midst of a crisis...very Emporer like... Supporting Rukkiya's decision to kill Ben right away...not so smart...please get information out her first...after all Abul Mali is still missing. Does he have a back up plan? Who else is involved? We are talking about Mughal dynasty... Backstabbers were in abundance...they should have questioned her about Abul Mali's possible whereabouts and if Mirza Hakim, his mother Mahachuchak begum or even the commander Munim Khan had anything to do with all this. Jalal's FBI and CIA have a long way to go.
I too loved the Dargah scene today but it did not move me to tears...I guess, I am in minority today and do have a heart of a monster. My requirements for forgiveness are different. Don't get me wrong...I love Jalal's character just as much as I love Jodha's. I end up defending Jodha more because unlike Jalal, she get attacked from all fronts, Jalal, harem waasis, jail waasis as well as forum wasis...so I am forced to get my narnaal ( with baarood) out and stand right next to her. But as far as loneliness and betrayals are concerned, I have a much bigger and softer corner for Jalal.. Not that Jodha's situation is a whole lot better.
Jalal's confession to God that he can't live without Jodha been interpreted beautifully in different ways in the few posts I was able to read today. To some people, it is not the same as a confession of love. To some, this is an expression of gulit mixed with love. They all were able to justify their stand very well in their respective posts.
My thoughts on this...saying that he cant live without her, means that he loves her...a lot...nothing else. Does it really mean that if she dies, he will die too...I hope not...he is certainly not a quitter and will not run away from his responsibilities towards other people in his life. He will grieve for a very long time but will continue to fulfill his role as an emperor, a husband, a son and finally will force himself to move on. Those of us who have lost a loved one know how true this is...when we think that we won't be able to live without someone...it means we love them...a lot. We grieve, break down but dont die, just gather our strength, pick ourselves up and move on...law of nature.
Therefore, in my opinion, today he said ' I love Jodha' to God and himself. I was happy to see that. This will later bring him immense peace...to her too, when she comes to know.
So why did my heart not melt today? Because, there is only one way this love can transform into happiness for both of them. Not sure how well he'll be able to do that...too many villians including his imperial ego...He has to give her what she craves the most...respect ...nothing short of that will do. This confession will not mean anything if after Jodha wakes up, he yells at her again... in public. This woman who values her honor more than her life, gets humiliated again and again...not just by him but others as well ( worse, with his silent consent)...No ''ishq wala love' confession, no matter how genuine it is , is worth anything if not supported by actions. I am not saying that he hasn't been good to her...but being good 70 percent of the time and spending the rest 30 percent time humiliating the object of your affection to breaking point, can never result in a healthy relationship with complete union of souls and bodies that he craves to have with her .( whether she 'deserves' the humiliation as pointed out by some people or her fault in all this ...will discuss in another post)
Statastics show that most spouse abusers believe that they ' love' their partner. Still they hurt them emotionally, verbally or physically. In their mind, their love for the other person justifies a lot things they do. Understanding human emotions is complicated and this fact does not change over centuries. Disclaimer: I just used an example and did not call Jalal (or Jodha ) a spouse abuser...so please, dont use your narnaal😊
His admission of his feelings for Jodha is a huge step ...I agree...but to me, love is an overrated emotion if not combined with respect as a package deal. The argument that this was 16th century is not good enough. We can't generalize these things...just like we cant generalize anything about treatment of women in 21st century. Agreed, women in 16 th century had very limited rights...but were they always powerless and subjected to ill treatment ? ...no...16th century women did not throw tantrums...says who?...some women held important positions like Mahamanga and Mahachuchak begum from Akbars era... Infact, in those days a woman's honor ( that too a royal woman's ) was more important than her life or even the lives of their loved ones. Thousands prefered dying in a battle to save the honor of their women. History is replete with examples like Rani Padmini of Chiittor. I hope they show Baaj Bahadur- Roopmati's love story briefly before Adham Khan gets killed.
I don't really care if he doesn't say 'I am sorry' to Jodha... Sometimes that is not needed between people who share a deep bond each other. These two certainly do. Also, i don't want to see a crying Jalal anymore. Nor do I want to see a love stricken Romeo. I just want to see a loving, sensible and protective husband. The Harem dynamics need to be changed ASAP because CVs are going to restore Rukkiya to her default mode very soon. Maham is not going anywhere for now. If nothing changes then we will continue to be forced to enjoy nothing but harem politics and 'Operation Jodha Humiliation' for few more months...not sure about you guys, but I need a break from incessant negativity!
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