Originally posted by: skanda12
Friends, yesterday's episode was still hovering around the subject of Ruq and her mistreatment of Jodha (something we all love to hate!), but as expected we got our lovely Jodha-Jalal moments too! I suspect this is going to be the future formula followed by the Creatives. We may get all other areas of the storyline moving forward but we will also get our daily dose of Jo-Ja moments.
Thank God for small mercies! ⭐️
Yesterday, one cute part was when Jalal saw Jodha giving "khidmat" to Ruq and started feeling bad about it ... but when Jodha explained that she was not doing all this for Ruq but for Jalal's own unborn child, he shed a tear that she was so large-hearted. But then he also twisted the whole thing to his advantage. He whispered to Jodha in Ruq's room that she should not spend all her attention on Ruq because he too was sadly in need of some TLC. He told Jodha to come as soon as her work would allow to give him also some much needed care and attention.
Then when Jodha did not still come fast enough, he sent a bandhi to request her presence immediately, and then he told Jodha, "My body is having very deep pain also ..." and he put her hand to his heart! Jodha didn't know whether to commiserate with him or give him a good smack for naughtiness. But his further dialogues completely won her over. He said "If you are not in front of me, my heart starts paining badly and stops beating!".
All told, this man is a loving rascal, and he has now learnt the fine art of getting Jodha to do whatever he wants by clutching his heart in pain! And to make matters even more difficult for her he says things like "As a Rajvanshi, have you not taken a vachan to always serve your pati?"
In all this folks, I got the distinct feeling yesterday that Jalal did not one bit like the way Ruq was using Jodha as a servant, even if Jodha was putting a brave front on it. Jalal did see Jodha sitting in her room and crying from humiliation after returning from Ruq's room. Even if Hamida and Salima and the others felt good about Jodha serving Ruq well in her pregnancy, and Ruq herself was acting like she needed a great deal of help, Jalal did not fully buy into this story. For that I am grateful. Even now, I feel, he has let Jodha help Ruq only because Jodha herself is bent on helping the unborn baby for his own sake! And every chance he gets to take Jodha away from Ruq and her "khidmat" he is going to try.
Somewhere deep inside him, I think Jalal suspects the truth of the pregnancy story of Ruq ... and likewise there was also a wee bit of distance between Hamida and Ruq on this subject even though overtly she gifted Ruq the khandani kangans that she herself wore when she was expecting Jalal. Ruq herself is on the verge of self-betrayal if she's hookah-smoking behind people's backs. But the day when Ruq will be unmasked and have to return the kangans to Hamida is not far away.
Jodha knows that Ruq is doing this to humiliate her. When Jo first went to her, Ruq let it be known that she could straighten anything and that Jalal only loved Ruq while other begums kept coming, got conquered and promptly discarded by him. Initially, Jodha went along with serving her because that is her nature - she cannot say no to anyone. More so, to someone who is carrying Jalal's baby. On Monday, Jalal had asked Jodha how she could be jealous of Ruq and his baby. So now for the sake of Jalal's happiness, she will subdue her jealousy of Ruq and take care of her and the baby she is carrying.
Jalal was visibly angry with Ruq for making Jodha do her khidmat. I have always known and mentioned also in a few posts that once Jalal accepts Jodha fully , he will be as loving and protective of her as he was of Ruq till date, more in fact. The new Jalal cannot accept anyone, not even Maham or Ruq humiliate Jodha. But he is so touched by Jodha's wish to care for his unborn child.
He knows Jodha isn't crying only about having to serve Ruq; that Ruq must have said something to make her cry. Hence, he reassures her that even if Ruq is carrying his baby, he only loves Jodha like Krishna loved Radha.
I was very happy with this scene. Many friends wondered that he let Ruq and co insult Jo in public and that he never stood up for Jo in front of RUq and others. But I said in a few earlier posts that he will soon change and will no longer either humiliate her himself or let others humiliate her.
Apart from Jo's cajoling, the only thing that saved Ruq yesterday from Jalal's wrath was her "expectancy".
Later, Jo started playing the game with Ruq. She was, as you said, equally saccharine sweet and mollycoddled Ruq like a baby. Even in front of Jalal, she showed as if she knew everything about caring for pregnant ladies. I wonder where the other pregnant lady, BB, is. 😉)
I also noticed Jalal trying to deliberately flirt with Jodha and compliment her in front of Ruq and later even calling her to his room on the pretext of some work with her. I enjoyed this scene very much. This was how earlier he used to make Jo jealous by flirting with Ruq and elevating her ahmiyat in his life in front of Jo. Now the tables have turned. Now he is making Ruq jealous in the same manner.
I also feel he is not fully convinced by this pregnancy story. He may later try to find out the truth covertly. In the meantime, he is trying to provoke Ruq into admitting the truth. And if he can have some fun with Jodha in the bargain, then that's like hitting two birds with one stone. 😉
Finally, for the first time yesterday, he was angry with someone (if only a bandi) for entering his room while he was having some private moments with Jo. Earlier, anyone could barge in on the two. But now he is getting irritated with anyone who interrupts his time with Jo. 😆
What could be the medical emergency that Ruq has complained of, Mansi? Will she pretend to have an MC to get rid of the unwanted FP, which is backfiring on her? And then apportion the blame on Jo? Again a dreadful thing to look for tonight!🤢
Mansi, see how Jo and Ruq are turning adverse situations to their benefit? Jo is making the best of having to serve Ruq. In the process, she has earned brownie points from Jalal, HB and Salima! Ruq is constantly trying to turn every situation to her benefit. Let's see what she has planned for tonight. 😕
I feel Jalal may announce the Shivani Tej marriage in the DEK to get Jo away from Ruq and keep her busy with some happy work. 😊
Even yesterday the Zee man has re-confirmed to one of our members who called him that "Maham will expose this fake pregnancy of Ruq and bring Ruq down". Now I am only waiting to see if it all happens in the mega eisode itself or slightly later. But I am dead sure they will not elongate this misery and very soon Ruq will be exposed.
I sincerely hope so! Already enough of Ruq's plotting!
That is because I feel that this Ruq pregnancy affair is just a chota-mota issue, and the larger tracks of Adham's exposure on the accounts and his death etc. are still up in the air and Todarmal has been cooling his heels since he came to Agra. I expect all those unclosed loops to be now closed on the bigger story issues, thanks to IPL ending this week, and this kind of small matter of Ruq faking pregnancy will not last beyond a couple of episodes. Still there is Shivani's wedding to be completed too!
Yes, please! Let's put Ruq put of the picture and focus on the others waiting in the sidelines - Surang mystery, Shivani-Tej, MH, MS, Todarmal, Atga's murder, AK's downfall and death, Maham's downfall and death, Shehnaz exposure,...
In Jalal's room however all is supremely at peace. He is sleeping with his head in Jodha's lap, getting his head massaged and saying "Are you a princess or a magician, your fingers are so good with the massage". The longer it takes for Jodha to return to her room, the greater becomes Ruq's consternation. "Hope they both aren't at it again" she says to herself.
@underlined: What a mind Ruq has! 😆 BTW, has anyone else noticed the lovely soft, whispery tones Jodha is nowadays using when talking to Jalal? And the glow on her face and the twinkle in her eyes when she is with him?
(PS really shines as the much-in-love Jodha.)
The whole episode is thus about this cat and mouse game where Ruq does her best to separate Jodha and Jalal, but they checkmate her attempts by grabbing private moments whenever they can. It is all so sweet, but underlying the overall cuteness of the episode I sense some teda shrewdness in Jalal - as if he doesn't quite believe in the Ruq story but is going along for now. Somehow compared to the last time Ruq was pregnant, this time Jalal looksa bit lukewarm to Ruq's pregnancy. Could be my imagination, but I did sense some reserve in him that makes me wonder if he knows already that Ruq can never become a mother and that she is faking it! If Hamida has heard this from the lady hakim that Ruq can never be a mother again and she can have this doubt about the truth of this latest pregnancy, could Jalal not have this doubt also? Especially when he cannot even remember sleeping with Ruq of late?
Yes, Jalal is not over the moon this time. Even though RUq is going to be the MUZ, he is largely ignoring her and carrying on with Jo. And so I suspect that when Ruq blames Jo for her MC, he will not be angry with Jo like the last time he was. Maybe they have reintroduced Ruq's pregnancy track to show the changed equation of Jalal with his 2 khas queens - Ruq and Jo. Last time, he was close to Ruq and immediately distrusted Jo of the MC. Now, he is close to Jo and distrustful (to an extent) of Ruq's pregnancy.
Maybe he is disappointed that Ruq is going to be the MUZ while he wanted Jo to be the MUZ, as predicted by Salim Chisti Baba?
Another reason for showing this track may be that Ruq needs to see with her own eyes how close JJ have become emotionally and mentally. Just as she was in denial about their physical closeness till she saw them herself, she is in denial of their soul-level connect and needs to witness their state of emotional oneness from close quarters.
The precap of the episode however goes completely into a different angle. The ever-aroused Adham Khan who presumably had been eyeing Shehnaaz since her arrival was seen grabbing her dupatta and saying "Give me what I want, my girl!". Shehnaaz., putting on her childish act then gives him her dupatta (and stands in just a skirt and choli in public) saying "Okay take my dupatta if you want to wear it." But then Adham goesa step too far in grabbing her hand. With a recoil as fast as a vicious snake, Shehnaaz gives a hard and sound slap across Adham's face! Jodha who is walking past is stalled in her tracks.
When will this Adham realise that he should not try to run after anything in a skirt? And when will he realise that this "girl" in her childishly innocent act is actually a calculative cobra in disguise? He had this slap coming for a long time and it became Shehnaaz's privilege to hand it to him!
I had mentioned in a post earlier that Jodha needs to restrict the movements of Shehnaz and keep her under watch because people like AK and SD can prey on a mentally unsound girl. (When discussions were happening on the Rahim-Shehnaz incident) We are going to witness this sordid drama tonight. Wonder what Jodha is going to do about AK? This time, Jalal will support her more strongly than he did when she complained against AK in the Tasneem track.
I wonder why this scene is required? How is it going to tie up with the rest of the story? Will this incident be the impetus needed to start investigating AK? Will AK earn Shehnaz's ire and pay for it in some way?
Love the following green thoughts! 👏👏👏
My comments on this episode:
How much do Jalal and Hamida already know?
Folks, I don't know how many of you agree with me, but don't we see the glimmer of knowingness in Jalal that he suspects Ruq? Or is it just my imagination? I say so because I felt that this deliberate whispering to Jodha to come to his hojra and give him TLC was all for Ruq's benefit! I thought he was trying to make Ruq know that there was something between him and Jodha and he was trying to get back at Ruq for making a servant out his lady love!
Later, when Jodha was tearful in her room after being humiliated by Ruq, Jalal shed a tear with her when she pleaded with him not to scold Ruq as she wanted to serve the baby that was part of Jalal's flesh and blood. But after that bit of emotionality, when Jalal asked Jodha to reiterate that Radha was the most precious of consorts to Krishna, and that he was going to make an important elan which she should also come and hear, I thought I saw a determination of steel behind Jalal's eyes. He was not going to stand for any rank-pulling by Ruq on Jodha. He was going to make it plain for all to see how special and unique Jodha was to him.
How he would do this I am not sure, but I feel that after this elan, even Ruq with her story pf pregnancy and her anticipation of MUZ title will fall in a despondent heap on the floor and wish to sink into the ground. I wouldn't be surprised if Ruq thinks Jalal is going to announce her own elevation to MUZ ... but what Jalal will say at the elan, she won't have anticipated!
Again on the matter of the khandani kangans I feel sure one ugly scene will soon happen where Ruq has to return the kangans back to Hamida when she is exposed for the fake pregnancy. That will be worse humiliation for Ruq than the exposure of her lie itself! Imagine having to "give back" all that she cornered under the guise of a pregnancy? There again it looks to me like Hamida knows what she is doing. I feel she too is not 100% convinced about this pregnancy although she doesn't show it openly. I thought that kangan was one way of trapping Ruq. Maybe Hamida wanted to see if Ruq would carry this story so far that she would even accept the kangans blithely?
I know many of you may not agree with me about this reticence of Jalal and Hamida to swallow Ruq's story, but I am personally very convinced that I do not see full acceptance in them both on this story of Ruq's. There is some "lack of overflowing joy" in Jalal, or I feel he would have been so taken by the birth of this child that he may not be able to give Jodha so much attention! Agreed he has recently discovered new depths of love for Jodha, but even so would he not be more effusive about the waaris being on its way? And wouldn't Hamida gush even more? Something is lacking ...
A comparison of the tactics of our villains
Folks, I just noticed something I wanted to share. Each of the three villains - Ruq, Maham and Shehnaaz - has her own tactics of "enemy management" which I couldn't help but notice.
Ruq has a pattern about the way she tries to overcome her enemies. She first gets unusually friendly with her adversary to the point of being sickeningly sweet. Then she decides to checkmate them by a game of "occupying their time" to prevent them from being able to go against her wishes. She is doing just that with Jodha. Saccharine sweetness, followed by total occupation of Jodha's time! But it's not a very clever idea and Ruq will never be totally successful. Because any clever person with even an ounce of smartness should get easily alerted when they see this unusually sweet behaviour in Ruq - which is so not the usual Ruq!
This technique of enemy management by Ruq is in stark contrast to Maham's technique which is quite different entirely. Maham begins to spew venom at her adversaries right from the start. And then she goes to her next step of planting "clues" to implicate her enemies in sordid doings. Maham is cleverer than Ruq because through her initial vehement and aggressive attacking style she wrong-foot's her enemies ... and when they are off-balance she quickly plants clues against them. She throws people at a disadvantage by her sudden and unanticipated attack first.
Shehnaaz's style is very different again from the above two. Shehnaaz does very little to the enemies themselves. Instead she changes her own behaviour so as not to alert the enemy by either getting sweet with them or by getting aggressive with them. She flies under the radar of suspicion, because she hardly does anything to the enemy while she controls her game entirely by just changing her own persona cleverly. But then notice how she reacts when the enemy is fully taken in by her childish appearance. She strikes back physically as she did in the Adham case. She also showed this physical strike-back in a subtler way when she took the haar from Jalal in childish innocence and then tore it apart brutally physically. She also took the dolls sweetly in her hands and then screwed the neck off the Jalal doll. She plays by disguise first and by going for the kill next.
That was just my analysis of the three villains and their styles. Of all three I think Shehnaaz is the most dangerous because her game is so unobtrusive till the moment of vicious kill. The other two betray themselves by their "foreplay" of "sweetness" or "aggressiveness" so that the clever enemy will get alerted that something else is coming!
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