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You know, the one good thing about being a Phantom, you can freely observe and explore the world without anyone's interference... When I stopped writing analyses for the Weekly Thread, it was more or less a decision to get some kind of balance in my professional and personal life...
Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi had consumed my life... Most of the time, instead of focussing on my work, I was more worried about the next chapter in our beloved Devakshi's lives... And, the discussions and the beautiful posts on this thread enraptured and captivated me even more...
Dev very correctly said that 'habit, whether good or bad is not good for us'... And, watching this show has definitely become a habit, or in my case, an addiction... There have been days (when I was active in this thread), that I skipped some meetings or work things, just so that I can rush back home and watch the episode... And, as soon as I watched it, my first thing was to come to this thread and express myself and be the first one to read some beautiful words said by some amazing people...
I am a night owl, so I used to work during night and sleep in the mornings... But, then when I started to write posts for this thread, this time became the time when I used to work on my posts... And, my posts (if someone remembers them) used to be quite long and content-intensive, I really started to face difficulties in keeping a grip on my addiction and then, soon, it spiralled out of control and started affecting my life, especially my professional one...
But, I have already told you these things... Today is 14th of June, a kind of Christmas for the loyal viewers and fans of this show... Last time, when this day came, I was an infrequent viewer who while interested in the show, was not a fan of it...
In fact, I joined this bandwagon after the confession scene... And, I watched the initial episodes, including the confession one, after the marriage.. So, I decided to use this occasion as an opportunity to express why I fell in love with this show and what I have observed in the past couple of weeks being a 'Phantom' who had the independence and the courage to venture out of this safe haven..
So, let's continue this story...
You know, the name of my favorite villain... It is 'the Joker' (from the Batman series) and my favorite dialogue is, 'why is everyone so serious?'.. And, I realised that in my obsession, I became too serious while watching this show.. I started analysing each and every word, moment or expression.. Decoding things which might not have been encoded or encrypted... In other simple words, I became too logical or practical while watching this show.. And, here's the thing, I didn't like it..
So, I am really glad that I 'went on a break' (Whenever I say that I went on a break, it reminds me of Friends.. Another show which I absolutely adored and still does... And, I am sure that KRPKAB has joined this list).. Simply because it reminded me on why I started falling in love with this show...
So, it is time for us to jump back one year to the beginning of my journey in the world of KRPKAB...
Like I have said thousand times before, I was fascinated with the show since the initial promos started airing but what made me sit down and watch this show was the light-hearted manner in which the makers presented this show...
This show's core strength was its focus on conversations, strong emotions being expressed in a subtle and soft manner... Sometimes, in all of its subtlety, we sometimes, forget that this is a daily soap being broadcasted in the primetime slot...
This is why, we all get so surprised whenever any sort of drama takes place (in some other people's words, Over-the-Top drama)...
So, today, on this anniversary of a very important day in the lives of Dev and Sona, I would like to present my views and the things that I have noticed from my time being a 'ghost lurking and stalking this forum' to confront the biggest demon present in this forum, this show's moniker or one of its tagline, of being a show which is 'close to reality'.
Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi is an Indian television daily soap and hence, it will have its fair dose of drama... In the last few months, most of the critics of this show have in different words have said only one thing, that this show is not 'close to reality' and the makers told us a big, fat lie...
Here's the thing, when the makers of this show claimed that this show is 'close to reality', they never meant that it is reality... They simply meant that this show, while having a habit of being dramatic, will never be melodramatic...
What they meant when they said, that it's close to reality, they meant that this show will try to capture and borrow some elements and scenarios from real life... This is why, most of the struggles that we see in this show, are mostly internal and not external... What I mean, by being internal, I mean to say that most of the times, the conflicts on this show revolve around things like acceptance, emotional baggage from the past, ego, burden of responsibility, etc...
(Unlike other shows, where they only show big events like kidnapping, forced marriages, deep and eternal plotting, etc..)
And, probably, this is why, the makers always struggle to resolve or deliver dramatic sequences and fail to connect with their target viewers when it comes to high-octane drama sequences.. I feel that since this show's USP is the light-hearted approach and hence, I feel that they don't know how to shoot those dramatic phases (which are part and parcel of other shows), without disturbing the core nature of this show...
Now, moving away from this show and focussing more on my real life...
If someone of you is a techie or has an interest in the tech world, they would definitely know that WWDC 2017 happened a couple of weeks back... If someone doesn't know, it is Apple's annual conference for developers about the technologies that they are currently working on and stuff..
Anyways, for the first time in my life, I attended it.. It was a fascinating experience, to say the least... So, like always after watching the keynote, I visited YouTube and like usual, there were individuals criticising Apple especially regarding one of their products...
And, I have watched so many videos where people are criticising Apple and everytime, I hear the same reasons (like the price of its products) that they no longer interest me.. But, out of sheer boredom, I clicked on a video where the creator of the video was criticising Apple for one of its decisions..
But, I was taken aback in a very pleasant way when I watched the video.. In fact, I completely agreed with all of his points.. And, I believed that his criticisms were not only very sound but also fair.. You know why... Because, this person has been part of the Apple ecosystem for the last 6-7 years and that means, he uses the company's products on a daily basis to earn his livelihood..
Since, he was an active user and had the resources to buy the new products yet still decided to not invest further money... So, his refusal to stop investing in the company must have been based on some really solid reasoning and doubts..
And, when I heard his criticisms and spend some time, I realised that his arguments held weight and instead of being negative, the video was indeed very positive because he criticised them in a constructive manner..
But, what me literally laugh out loud (Sorry, I am not a big fan of acronyms) was that the people who were defending Apple were not even using Apple products and had no intention of investing any kind of money on the upcoming products...
That was indeed a fascinating experience...
Another incident which was a learning experience for me was a conversation that I had with a lead Developer of one of the companies who spend million of dollars every year on building iOS apps...
So, while I was speaking to this individual, a person came up and showed Mike (for the sake of simplicity, let's call lead developer, Mike) his iPhone... To be more precise, his Games folder.. And, then, the gamer went on to speak about what he didn't like about the game and hence, wants it to change and if they don't want improve the app and resolve the issues then, the app will lose one of its most loyal followers...
After that most exciting conversation, I turned to Mike and asked him his views... And, he smiled and said, 'So, another person joined the list.'
And, then, he turned and ordered the waiter to quickly bring the snacks out quickly... And, I was completely stunned and being slightly nosy (blame this on my inquisitive nature), I questioned him what did he meant by the 'list'...
And, he looked at me and said in very a plain tone, 'List of people who are heard and forgotten'
And, when he looked at my clueless face, he went on and explained to me that in my life, I am going to meet people whose opinions doesn't even matter and I will be wasting my time catering to them...
And, then, he asked me on did I hear the complaints of the user... I nodded in affirmation and then, he asked me to list them and I did...
He said that X feature is available as an in-app purchase for $ 2.99 but the user doesn't want to pay anything more than $ 0.99 and still wants the feature... He further explained, that the X feature needed a complete overhaul of the-then infrastructure and costed the company, more than a million dollars...
So, for the company to still provide the X feature and continue to earn profit, they need to ask for the price (which has already been lowered from $ 4.99 to the above mentioned price, since this was a highly-sought feature)..
So, since, this person who is not even ready to invest 3 dollars is not someone whose opinion truly matters, even if he is directly spoken to the lead developer of the game...
And, then he questioned me that did I see how many games did the user had on his 'Games' folder and how many of them fell in the same category as the game that were in question...
While I did see a lot of games on his phone, I failed to recognise the names or genres of the various games, I told him so...
Mike told me that the user is not a loyal fan of his app since he is requesting features of the other games present in the genre and is only testing his game out and will most likely jump to the other games...
Hence, even if he does decide to address to some of the complaints, the user will most likely would have moved on and hence, there is no reason to for him to take his views seriously...
That was the crux of the conversation, which really left a deep impression on me...
Now, coming back to the world of KRPKAB and IF...
Since, I was literally skipping while walking and was so happy after coming back from attending WWDC, I decided to explore some of the other threads on this site, with a pair of new eyes...
And, here is the thing which made me nearly facepalm myself...
The very first (or the second thread) that I read after coming back to IF, was a scathing post which was filled with vicious attacks on the characters of Sonakshi, Asha and even Dida calling them names (not mentioning them here, but let's just say, I was absolutely stunned by the harshness of the words)...
And, the moment that made me smack myself on the face was when on the very next page, the maker of the thread had mentioned that he/she had stopped viewing the show months back and now, he/she is glad that he/she only reads written updates because he/she can't tolerate this nonsense... (Sorry for the he/she... Not able to determine the gender on the basis of what was written)
And, the people who were agreeing with the point of view (of the creator) also belonged in the same category..
And, I was like SERIOUSLY... I was getting affected by the words of such people who were not even viewers of this show... Because, let me tell you that you are only a viewer if you either watch the show on television and if you watch it online, then, you need to watch at least 15-17 minutes of the episode (if its a 20-25 mins show), before it is counted as a 'view' by the website and hence, their views are totally irrelevant.
Other thing, reading written updates basically means that you don't have your own opinion but basically spreading the views of the author of the written update... So, reading posts from these kind of writers is always a waste of time and replying to them, even more so...
That is why, I like weekly analysis thread... Simply because, I know that people who are commenting on that thread, are actual viewers of the show who are following this show on a regular basis...
Their opinion might be completely different from mine, but I still want to know their views and accept them since I know that their perspective is because of their own experiences... And, hence, there is credibility and weight to their perspectives...
Now, finally coming back to some of the things which made my ears perk when I watched some of the episodes aired in the past week or so...
1. Dev calling Bijoy 'budhao'
To be honest with all of you, I didn't like it one bit when Dev called Bijoy 'budhao'. In fact, it reminded me of the times when Dev called Asha 'aunty' and I can tell you that I was slightly irked and angry with him..
But, I finally received my answer during the weekends.. And, like always, the answer is in the form of anecdote...
So, during the past weekend, I was staying at my uncle's house.. And, this answer came to me when I was doing my nephew's holidays maths homework..
(You know, I am so jealous of my nephew.. You know why... Because, everyone in the family (including me, even when I don't want to) aids him in completing his holiday homework...
When I say 'aid', I mean, we do the homework while the prince sits on his bloody throne, playing video games..
When I was in school, no one and literally no one (including my parents) came forward to help me.. In fact, I was the only one in my class who used to do his own homework...
And, I used to mentally scream at my teachers when they used to show other student's homework, which I know has not been done by them, 'They don't even know the bloody question and you have given them an A+ because of the amazing way, they have covered their file...
And, you have given me a B- since my cover is half-torn even when I was the one who told the answer to the kid that you are singing praises of...'
And, I will stop my tragic tale because by now, I know that all of you are crying hearing about the sorrowful life of a young, poor Suyash...
Well, now no one can say that Sona is the only one who can cast herself as a 'tragic hero'.. I also belong in the same category or well used to, during my school years..)
Now, coming to the story of how I plotted my nephew's murder.. I mean, found the answer to the question of why Dev called Bijoy 'budhao'...
So, while I was busy completing my nephew's Algebra homework, I realised that..
a = b and b = c => a = c (=> - implies that) holds true in the world of mathematics or science but it doesn't always hold true in the real world...
What I mean to say, is that just because you love or respect someone doesn't mean that you give the same level of respect or love to the people who are important to your special someone...
For example, I might highly admire or respect my teachers but this doesn't mean that I will adore or respect the people present in their lives (in the same capacity as I admire my teachers)... If I ever meet them, I will be cordial and civil but definitely not respect them...
I know that it is a lame example... So, let me find another one which I am sure will make more sense...
My mother and my Bua doesn't exactly share a great personal equation... In fact, I am surprised that they haven't killed each other off and the only reason that they accept each other is simply because both of them recognise that the other person is an integral part of my father's life...
In fact, I am pretty sure that if God forbid, something happens to my father, then that will be the end of their relationship...
Similarly, my father might do all of the duties that is expected of him as a son-in-law, but I don't think that my father has ever called my Nana or Nani on his own volition... He only caters to them simply because they are my mother's parents..
He does call them Papa and Mummy and while he definitely cares for their wellbeing, it is very evident that he doesn't consider him his parents and only sees them as his in-laws...
On the other hand, he shares a fantastic bond with my mother's cousins whose family is not exactly fond of my mother's family... Similarly, my mother shares a fantastic bond with my Chacha, even though she has issues with his wife (my Chachi) but I share a fantastic equation with my Chachi and consider a very close friend, if not a second mother. And, she thinks the same about me...
So, I don't think I need to further explain what I mean by my above statement.. I am not saying that the above scenario is ideal.. In fact, it is nearly hundred miles away from being perfect...
But, this is why we call life reality... Since, reality is flawed and inconsistencies are a part of life... No rule or principle is absolute and everything is relative and fluidic in nature and form.
But, what I am trying to say that all of us (especially critics) are demanding that the makers show us what they have promised.. A show which is close to reality... And, when they are showing us something which we see all around us, we call them names and start calling this show unreal...
Because, what the critics of this show (who threaten to stop watching this show or bash characters left and right on a daily basis) mean by 'close to reality' is not reality but to show them a perfect world or 'Utopia', their very own version of 'Utopia'...
And, here's the thing, real world in neither an 'Utopian' world nor a 'Dystopian one'.. Neither it is heaven nor it is hell... It exists somewhere in between...
In the real world, even though practicality and logic runs and shines freely, it doesn't mean that fairy tales and love hide in shadows... Both of these two contradicting worlds interact and mix with each other, like Yin and Yang...
And, now coming back to this show...
So, in simple words, we can easily create or start a relationship but our personal equations play a very important role in building and sustaining these relationships in our life..
So, here's the thing...
We have seen Dev and Asha having an excellent equation among themselves... And, while I feel that Dev's relationship with Saurabh, Dida or even Ronita is not as strong as the one, he shares with Asha, they are still filled with a lot of warmth and adoration for each other...
But, even if we remove Sonakshi from the picture.. Even then, while his relationships with the other Bose members will be affected but I am pretty sure that his existing relationships will more or less, be similar to what it is being currently being shown...
On the other hand, Dev's relationship with Bijoy is only because of one person, Sonakshi.. You take her out and I am pretty sure both of them will take a sigh of relief... Both of them, if given the choice, will avoid each other like the plague...
The same could be said for Dev's relationship with either Vicky or ex-GKB...
And, yes, Dev did mention the fact that he can now understand Bijoy Bose, not as a person, but as a father of a daughter... He can definitely understand that why Bijoy Bose is so aggressive against him because he also feels the same kind of protectiveness for Soha...
This is why, we no longer see him holding any kind of animosity or anger towards Bijoy.. He has accepted the fact that Bijoy might never come to like him and he is okay with this fact... This is why, he has no intention of winning him over..
The only thing which concerns him is the bad equations shared between his and Sona's family, simply because it affects Soha's future and also, his and Sona's unnamed relationship to an extent (but I guess, this situation is also improving rapidly)..
After Khatri's track, we have seen Dev openly calling out Ishwari's mistakes... This was why he was angry with Sona when she agreed to his mother's 'stupid' decision or why he is annoyed with Bijoy's talks with Sona where he asked her to let Dev get engaged (Bijoy's talks with Sona in the office).
He doesn't want either Ishwari or Bijoy to interfere in his relationship with Sona... That is why, we saw him telling Ishwari that while she has still has a right to order him (since she is his mother), but at the same time, this doesn't give her any right to interfere in his relationship with Sonakshi (his conversation with Ishwari after he came back from the office after talking with a sleeping Sona..)
But, he still knows that Sonakshi is still heavily influenced by the words of both Ishwari and Bijoy.. This is why, he told Ishwari that she might be a reason why Sona is still resisting her inner desires...
He knows that he can influence Ishwari and guide her but doesn't have any kind of hold over Bijoy (since he doesn't any kind of personal equation with Bijoy) and hence, is completely dependent on Sonakshi and other Bose family members to stop Bijoy from interfering in his daughter's relationship..
On the other side of the story, Sonakshi and Ishwari had shared another relationship of being a doctor and a patient (or in Ishwari's words, relationship between her and her 'nutrition').. In fact, we have seen how their relationship as a nutritionist and a patient was filled with warmth and a sense of camaraderie...
In fact, Dev and Asha's current relationship is quite similar to Sona's relationship with Ishwari (in the initial days).. And, if we remove Dev from the picture, then Sona and Ishwari's relationship would have been in a much better state...
Due to Ishwari's over-possessiveness and deep-rooted insecurities, this beautiful relationship could never really translate into a beautiful relationship after the marriage... Hopefully, this relationship will finally get its lost lustre back and we can watch some scenes similar to the ones that we saw in the earlier episodes...
2. Culmination of a Journey of one and the Beginning of another
(This point is partially to answer @grace's question on Elena's behaviour in yesterday's episode (when I say yesterday, I mean the one aired on 13th June, 2017))
I call Elena's behaviour yesterday, (when she questioned Sona's torment during her marriage) as 'Neha Syndrome'..
(Before all of you start Googling the hell out of this term, it is not an actual psychiatric term..)
During Dev and Sona's marriage, Neha witnessed the Dev-Sona at their happiest and hence, always assumed that their relationship is like a walk in the rose garden... This was why, she was jealous of Dev-Sona's blossoming relationship..
She was never able to see the problems that were faced by Devakshi because they hid it so well from the outside world...
The same thing happened with Elena.. We have to realise that while Elena's maiden name is Bose, she was never really close to her birth family (simply because I have never seen her real parents) and after Dev-Sona's divorce, her remaining connections with the Boses ended...
So, that means, she has never seen Sona crying or being emotionally vulnerable (like Asha did during the separation) and while she has been a direct witness to the two major incidents (I frankly, don't remember if she was part of it or not) but in both cases, she was once again not aware of Sona's true emotions/feelings...
But, she was, in some way or form, aware about Dev's state at the time... And, after the separation, while Ishwari was hostile towards Sona, she welcomed Elena into her home and made her feel comfortable since Dev was not part of the equation (between Elena and Dev)..
In the past 7 years, she had witnessed how a family has been completely broken after Sona walked out.. She has seen the torment on Dev's face and also knows the depth of his pain... She has seen, how even though, she had been a Bose, neither Dev nor Ishwari disrespected her and instead welcomed her even though, her real family never even bothered to call her...
(We have to realise that while Dev left Boses after the divorce.. So, did Boses abandoned Elena after the divorce..)
She has seen how Dev, even though, just being an Uncle, has been a better father figure for her son than her own husband...
While all of us can witness the torment of Sona at the hands of Ishwari, none of us ever witnessed the agony that Elena went through during her marriage years...
Even after 7 years of marriage, her mother-in-law (ex-GKB) calls her a 'Bangalan'... She is still taunted for supporting her birth family and her loyalty to her marital home is constantly in question...
And, we have to realise the first thing that both Vicky and Elena connected was how they both felt inferior to their respective close ones (Mamaji in case of Vicky and her parents in case of Elena) due to the presence of Dev and Sona respectively...
But, then the same husband compared her to Sona (the person he supposedly hates the most) and calls her inferior (of being just a 'simple photographer' while her sister went on to become a 'successful entrepreneur'.
He also considered her to be an inferior mother figure in comparison to Sona (since Vicky called Sonakshi, 'super-mom')..
On the other hand, she has seen that despite being separated, Dev still considers Sona 'perfect' while her husband still doubts her loyalty and questions her love, even after she stayed with him for the past 7 years...
This was her life for relatively 7 years... Now, compare marriage with that of Sonakshi..
And, now let me ask you a question, which person had a better married life? Elena or Sonakshi?
And, if you are looking at things in an objective manner, you would realise that both of them suffered in their respective marriages..
One of my favorite dialogues of all time (It is from the movie, 'Once Upon A Time In Bombay'), 'That it is very easy to choose between right or wrong but it is very difficult to choose the right one out of two wrongs.'
And, @grace, the answer to your question was given in the next scene itself when Ishwari answered that Elena doesn't know the pain that Sona went through in her marriage because her mother-in-law was not Ishwari Dixit.
I don't think that Ishwari ever considered Elena to be the ideal bahu... But, she accepted Elena for whom she is which she failed to do big-time, in case with Sona...
I really liked how makers very intelligently showed that the only people who has the right to question someone are the ones who have experienced the struggles or have first-hand experience...
I felt that it was a nice throwback to the scene when Asha told Sonakshi that the only person who understands Bijoy as a husband is herself and no one else's opinions matter...
Similarly, only Sona has the right to judge Ishwari as a mother-in-law... Not even Dev can judge Ishwari as a mother-in-law... In the end, the only person whose opinion matters is Sonakshi herself..
And, accepting that in front of both Elena and Asha clearly shows that the redemption of Ishwari has finally come to an end...
I am sure that even if differences occur between both Sona and Ishwari in the future, the way they'll tackled will be similar to our expectations...
This is why, I said that in my earlier post that the end result of this track will be similar yet different.. We never realised that by the end of this track, not only Sonakshi will confess her feelings but also Ishwari's redemption will be complete...
And, after witnessing the near disastrous consequences of her over-eagerness to bring Dev and Sona together, will be the last time that she will try to interfere in this relationship..
And, in this track, Bijoy's redemption has also started... So, yes I am really excited on how they'll proceed the story forward after this week ends...
I think that the last phase of the show has finally begun but I guess, we have still have a couple of months (at least till the end of August) for this show to finally reach its proper end..
-Suyash.
P.S:
1. (Okay, I had watched today's episode and I adored it... Well, except the part where they can both say that they love each other to another person but not to each other.. What's wrong with both of them.. But, I guess, that's what make them so unique, in a weird sort of way...
And, I am extremely sorry for the people who were expecting Sona to get drunk..
And, we finally got a much-awaited monologue from Sonakshi... It was so funny when she defended Dev for the same things that she once accused Dev of...
Reminds me of my relationship with my twin.. We can call each other anything but if someone else comes in between... Then, they will end up in the hospital..
I am also including my parents in the list.. In some ways, I feel sorry for our future spouses... Because, instead of in-laws, they need to be more worried about us... But, considering how my sister loves anyone who makes my life hell in a good sort of way (in short, someone like Sona.. She is a big fan of her character), she would adore her more than me...
And, I absolutely loved Nisha... Both Dev and Sona, please learn from her what it means to be 'strong' and 'independent'...
Will post my detailed opinion as a separate post, most likely this weekend or early next week..)
2. @dreamy.tiara I absolutely adored your letters... Your thread was my favorite one out of the all the ones that I have read outside this thread...
3. @grace, I hope that I have been able to answer your question. And, I absolutely love reading your threads..
4. Just saw the post from Survika... I am really glad that she is okay.. Loved to see her back..
Can't wait to hear from all of you and hear your opinions..
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