Posted:
Hello everyone,
I am sure the news of our most beloved show, Jodha Akbar being pulled of air has hit many of us like a school bus. With the witch track in progress, many of us weren't expecting this sudden jolt of news. Whatever may be the reason, there are shows on Zee which have a lower TRP and thinking logically, need to be pulled off first.
JA began nearly two years back with fanfare and its fair share of controversy. The start was slow, but the show eventually caught on after Jodha and Akbar's marriage. I myself was very fascinated by the story of a Mughal Emperor and a Rajput Princess, and decided to give this show a try. The show not only blew my mind away, but also convinced me that Indian TV had progressed by some measure. Everything seemed perfect; the costumes, the art direction, the story, the characterization. It didn't take me long to get hooked. Every episode brought freshness, excitement and the eagerness to know what will happen next. I couldn't wait for 8 pm, and when the episode was over it left me craving for more.
The first year, from June 2013 to June 2014 is rightly called the 'Golden year of Jodha Akbar'. I also believe that the first year was truly spectacular in terms of plot, history, the beginning of romance between a warring couple and also accuracy. Apart from this, our leads, Paridhi and Rajat were etched in our hearts all thanks to their phenomenal acting and showing emotions so realistically. They showed the perils of a young couple, who hated each other at first, only to discover that they couldn't live without each other. Their relationship went through many stages and they experienced the most normal feelings and emotions, with them ultimately going to the next level. It all seemed fine there; couple in love were coming together and it couldn't be a more joyous moment!
P.S. A petition has been created, and the signatures will be forwarded to Zee and BT
I am sure the news of our most beloved show, Jodha Akbar being pulled of air has hit many of us like a school bus. With the witch track in progress, many of us weren't expecting this sudden jolt of news. Whatever may be the reason, there are shows on Zee which have a lower TRP and thinking logically, need to be pulled off first.
JA began nearly two years back with fanfare and its fair share of controversy. The start was slow, but the show eventually caught on after Jodha and Akbar's marriage. I myself was very fascinated by the story of a Mughal Emperor and a Rajput Princess, and decided to give this show a try. The show not only blew my mind away, but also convinced me that Indian TV had progressed by some measure. Everything seemed perfect; the costumes, the art direction, the story, the characterization. It didn't take me long to get hooked. Every episode brought freshness, excitement and the eagerness to know what will happen next. I couldn't wait for 8 pm, and when the episode was over it left me craving for more.
The first year, from June 2013 to June 2014 is rightly called the 'Golden year of Jodha Akbar'. I also believe that the first year was truly spectacular in terms of plot, history, the beginning of romance between a warring couple and also accuracy. Apart from this, our leads, Paridhi and Rajat were etched in our hearts all thanks to their phenomenal acting and showing emotions so realistically. They showed the perils of a young couple, who hated each other at first, only to discover that they couldn't live without each other. Their relationship went through many stages and they experienced the most normal feelings and emotions, with them ultimately going to the next level. It all seemed fine there; couple in love were coming together and it couldn't be a more joyous moment!
However, the plot and storyline went for a toss after the consummation as everyone rightly states. Negativity became the norm and disrespect to historical characters was a regular feature. Not only the leads were shown dumb, their grandeur was reduced due to the treatment. The Shahenshah e Hind wasn't aware about the double crossers within his own palace, and the Queen had just been reduced to a weeping state. She was carrying his twins, and all she witnessed was the love of her life slowly drifting apart. Though everything became all right in the end, with the couple being blessed with beautiful children. I knew that their death was a part of history, but what followed after that was deplorable and enraging in every sense. The mother, who had nurtured the children inside her for 9 months was blamed for their tragic death by her husband and lover, while the woman who was actually responsible, the chief queen who had hired the nanny in the first place, was allowed to go scot-free. The biological mother was made to feel the guilt of being responsible for the loss, while being snubbed by the man she believed loved her, while he himself was filled with pain and guilt.
Finally, after much reforms and prayer, they were blessed with a son. But, due to certain selfish motives, the chief queen began dosing him with drugs in order to make the child hate his mother. The child was sent by his father on military training, while the child nursed wounds of hatred and anger towards his parents all through his growing years.
In simple words, negativity and the wrong always won. The leap, news of which had been floating around since August last year had raised many eye brows. Fans were frantically calling the Zee office in order to make them think otherwise. But ultimately, they went ahead with their original plan, disregarding the number of fans they had let down in the process. They were presumably still over-confident about the success of the show, that they could show anything and get away with it. Their plan unfortunately backfired, and resulted in a chunk of the audience leaving the show for good. The new couple couldn't bring in the required appeal and charm, and to put it in harsher words, was not accepted by the audience, who was craving for the magic that the original leads had created. The TRPs were affected so badly, that the show, which reigned in Top 5 for a nearly a year slipped out of the Top 10 and even Top 15. Even the behaviour of the biological child towards his parents wasn't accepted and was considered in poor taste, majorly since they were under the influence of the cunning chief queen.
The production team and the crew only realised the severity of the matter when enough damage had been done. They started penning new tracks, though out of the historical timeline, centering around the original leads. The show for a while, seemed to have regained some of its old appeal, though not completely. Everything seemed to be going fine till this witch track commenced. Many were bored of the same repetitive non sense that occurred in the Benazir and Atifa track, but the CVs decided to thrust on the viewers another misery. The witch successfully has the onject of her affections under control, while the Malika e Hind has no idea about any of the occurrences, since she believes the person is her long-lost sister.
Honestly, I had lost all hopes for this show since the mega leap happened. I was hoping for some improvement since March but as usual, we got let down. When the show began, I was expecting a pure depiction of love with all its trials and tribulations. Though the kind of era the show was based in, it wasn't possible to expect complete faithfulness from the king...but the contradictory statements made time and again made him look like a fool. His Queen was made a mute spectator even when she was being insulted left, right and centre. After all this, I have only one thought in my mind; did Jalal in our show ever love Jodha? Or did Jodha ever love Jalal? Because, every point something ridiculous or horrible happens and I am forced to re-affirm my faith.
I would like to conclude by saying that I don't think that the love shown between our on screen Jalal and Jodha is true love. In fact, the very idea of true love between Akbar and MUZ has been made fun of and blatantly disrespected by Ekta and Zee equally. I have seen better descriptions of true love in certain Asian TV shows and anime, where the couple stays together throughout, thick and thin. The love story of Jalal and Jodha began on a promising note but ultimately became the biggest joke. The story which was meant to be epic, was reduced to a money-making scheme. Its not just about JA, every other show on television nowadays is making a mockery of the very concept of love and loyalty, apart from showing complete degradation of morals and values. Even in a normal modern setting, the 'supposed' couple is shown mocking the very vows they took together as man and wife.
No wonder the idea of love and commitment is so messed up these days. After watching the mockery called JA, I myself am doubting the existence of true love. It has been reduced to something so trivial and idiotic. Since actions speak louder than words and also because television is an important medium, these wrong tracks and ideas reach out to the masses creating their skewed perception about love. It is not only sending a wrong message, it is also creating a generation of people and who knows, even children who may be growing up believing whatever shown on the screen to be true. In short, television has destroyed the essence of true and pure love, while making over-dramatization as an acceptable part of normal life. Cheating and divorces are shown to be perfectly okay on moral and familial grounds, while a girl wearing revealing clothes is considered to be a threat to the very value system.
I love JA, mainly for giving me the beautiful pair of Paridhi and Rajat. But I can't bear the torture happening to it in the name of entertainment. So I feel, its best that it is taken off air with a peaceful ending. We will have beautiful memories etched in our mind forever, while hoping to see our favourite jodi on screen again!
Samanika
P.S. A petition has been created, and the signatures will be forwarded to Zee and BT
Ela has also posted a link on Pg 5
