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The past few episodes have given us such rich insights into the complex inner-lives of the Dixit family, especially with regards to Dev, Neha and Ishwari. I love the way the stories that were running parallel thus far, are now merging once again with the issue of marriage rearing its ugly head. The Dixits maintain a very delicate balance of goodwill in their family, mostly by avoiding discussion of real, and sensitive issues; they all try to keep each other free from worry and it was working as long as Dev was happy in his work with this deal nearing completion, Neha was given time, freedom, and guidance to do something for herself, and Ishwari was happy with the satisfaction of her children. But with Mr. Gujral's proposal, they are all thrown into chaos once again.
*sigh* Ishwari: I have never encountered a character that I feel so much sympathy and exasperation for all at the same time. On the one hand, she is mature, compassionate and wise, but she can also be so stubborn and childish, and is also mired in some very arcane attitudes about the correct protocol for raising male vs. female children. It always amazes me how well she can read her kids' feelings and then irritates me to no end that she often does nothing with the knowledge she has. This is especially true with Neha. She is always able to sympathise with Neha in front of others (e.g. Ranveer today and Dev in the past) but is unable to apply that knowledge in a way that is productive for Neha herself. I think that's because the Dixits simply don't discuss anything real or profound with each other, which creates this constant hypocrisy in the way their household runs.
Dev benefits the most from this hypocrisy because it allows him to believe that he is doing everything he can for his family just by providing for them materially; he can throw himself into his work and see everything as black and white, right and wrong without often having to consider the grey area of feelings and emotions. Ishwari has worked very hard for a long time to maintain this facade for Dev so he can concentrate on becoming a man of means, but as a result, it has distanced him from the emotions of his loved ones, as well as his own feelings to the point where he sees emotion as a luxury he can't afford. After all, there's no emotion that can't be bought out for the right price!
Neha bears the heaviest burden of the hypocrisy on the other hand, which is why she keeps trying so hard to dismantle it with her cutting, cynical truth-bombs. I am not at all denying that Dev suffered, but his suffering yielded tangible and gratifying rewards, both personal and professional, along with the hardships. Dev had a chance to discover who he was, what he stood for and be recognized and appreciated for it. That's what Neha wants a chance to do and even now, all she is really being offered in the form of a future is marriage. Since she doesn't want to assume the responsibility of marriage and a household right now, the condition that Dev will only marry after her feels like another instance of the family demanding her happiness in exchange for Dev's.
Into this complex mix, three different people are introduced: Sona, Ranveer and Natasha. Ever since she was introduced, we see Natasha noting minute details of the Dixit family in order to endear herself to them, but these are all superficial observations, part of the facade that the Dixits put up, even for themselves. Sona, on the other hand, notices and caters to things about Dev that even Ishwari doesn't totally understand, like his sleeping pills. If Dev were to marry Natasha, she would become one more person for whom he'd feel compelled to be a super-hero, one more person to protect from the ugly realities he faces. Sona on the other hand, as evidenced by the phone call in the precap and so many instances before, is someone who he has come to trust with the part of himself that doesn't have all the answers all the time.
That's what Sona and Ranveer have in common. Just by being themselves, and with wit and patience, they managed to break down some of the Dixits' defensive walls without Dev or Neha being any the wiser; if they had known it was happening, they never would have allowed it! But what makes this moment in the story so interesting is that each love story has battled its way into the very emotional core of the Dixit family, where Neha knows she likes/loves Ranveer but holds herself back from expressing it because of practical concerns and Dev expresses his affection for Sona freely (I believe he's been lattoo for quite a while now) in tangible ways but doesn't question the feelings that drive his actions, choosing to hide behind easy explanations. In acknowledging their respective feelings, The processes that Neha and Dev need to undergo to accept their respective feelings will rock the foundations of their family and signal a major paradigm shift.
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