Dear Shilpita,
Wonderful post Shilpita....You reminded me of many of my own threads where I have, constantly, depicted Dutta's psychological and emotional journey and the many barriers stopping him from making that ultimate leap, that of child to man. I will, however, deviate slightly from the gist of your thread in the beginning to write about my apprehensions on the turmoil that I have seen on the forum lately. It is great to see members of the forum (such as yourself) who are able to gauge the level of discomfort that the recent events/non-events in LTL or the "MR saga" has produced. Being a member of the fourth estate for sufficient years to warrant a very critical view of the Media, particularly TV which barring the Internet, has assumed gigantic proportions and importance in our lives, I can safely say that concepts, ethics and delivery are not, necessarily, the best of friends in an industry driving on billions in terms of revenue worldwide. Colors is but a speck in this vast landscape and Mishal Raheja just one of the thousands actors working hard to find a foothold in an uncompromising and ruthless world. The only difference, being that unlike many, he has immense talent and sensibilities that have allowed him to make Dutta a larger than life character, but also the good fortune of having landed a part which will transcend our memories in ways very few among the current crop of TV actors will do. But being a member of the fourth estate, I will also champion the cause of all those who seek to voice their opinions in a rational way, let us all remember that having freedom of speech does not give anyone the liberty to have gratuitous assumptions than can only harm a product, a show or any tangibles in our daily lives.
"Character, not circumstances, makes the man.", Booker T. Washington wrote. Whilst this may not always hold true in reality as human beings cannot always dissociate their personal circumstances from decisions that impact on their whole lives, this, definitely, holds the key to the success of any TV/Film actor and this is something that all enthusiastic/loving/(crazed fans) should understand and appreciate. No artist is bigger than the show or the medium that gives him/her the freedom and the platform to ply his/her trade and any decision they take or any third party perception of a decision that is deemed to have been taken should be a matter best left to the discretion of the parties concerned. I have moved away from the gist of your thread to a great extent but I feel that it is necessary for all of us to allow MR/Dutta and the makers of LTL the space which would enable them to move the story forward. The "Growing pains" is, tragically, not limited to Dutta but also members of the forum who can feel the stress of a shift in focus from the show to elements best left to the makers and actors involved in the show. We will assume for the sake of Dutta's character, that we all love, that MR knows best.
And now to your post.
LTL for most of us has been a beacon in terms of the development and evolution of each character and the different tracks. They have offered us a vision of love/hatred/ relationships in a way only a handful of shows on Indian TV, have been able to portray/depict. And that was lauded. We hated and yet accepted all the aberrations (such as the unnecessary dragfests or their many bloopers). My interest in the show has never bordered on the predictive aspect of this love story but rather its power to enthrall so many viewers for its novel concept of the "kind" and "generous" Don and the unfortunate poor girl ostracized by the society because of her appearance which was a curse whichever way she chose to flip the coin. This had never, really, been attempted on the small screen before LTL's inception, hence its success.
The credits go to the main protagonists, i.e. Dutta, the archetypal dashing yet grey character who evoked fantasy for the generosity towards Nakusha, or the latter with her "doomed looks" who found in Dutta, the most unlikely saviour. From there onwards, started a journey of gratitude which became love to the point of reverence for Nakusha and in the case of Dutta, appropriation of a soul who could find no wrong in his otherwise cruel, violent and sad world. Indeed, in Nakusha, he had found the balm and shield to his inherent sense of loneliness in a life marred by betrayal. It was not going to be long before this sense of gratitude acquired an unhealthy and dangerous sheen that would turn their world upside down and take our lovebirds down the spiral of guilt and despair for the pain caused to Dutta by Nakusha and a sense of revulsion for Dutta vis--vis the wife who had committed the ultimate sin by not acknowledging all the favours of the better life and love he offered her and her family. Add to that, the fact they fell in love with each other without really attempting to get to know each other beyond what they chose to reveal about their respective lives and almost reverent attitude for each other. I will not add more for the sake of brevity as you have written enough about the whole journey. The one thing that I would like to say though that this journey of growing pains does not belong, exclusively, to Dutta but very much Nakusha's as well, as depicted in the most fatalistic way possible on TV.
The present track has had the merit of re-building the bridge between Nakusha and Dutta, Dutta and Baaji, Dutta and AS (We have not seen it yet but it is surely going to be one of the high points of the future tracks post JMM2). Many among us viewers and devoted fans watching the show have established an almost unhealthy connection with a screen character (Dutta), screen couple (TASHA) and have lived as much as they have depicted it on TV, their sense of emotional bereavement and were anxious to see how they would re-connect. It was no longer just the story of a man and woman having overcome many hurdles together or separately to become one in the real sense (whatever bits were shown or left to our fertile imagination) but also a fictionalised yet practical aspect of a union of a man and woman who finally had the possibility of meeting at the same level, in love, in day to day life and rationalise their links with all those who surround them to be able to savour the sanctity of marriage, of the union of two souls in an earthy environment which will allow them to connect to the lores of nature. Dutta has finally overcome his inability to separate love in its most cerebral form from the earthy form and affection he should have shown and given to Nakusha long ago. Their near tragic circumstances have brought them to this frugal yet happy state today. And it is only because Dutta has, finally, been able to make peace with himself, castrated that shield of self-protection, delusion, grandeur, rage and warped sense of gratitude that had marred his existence and that of people he loved/loves the most. You have mentioned in your post that he came across a child with growing pains which is very true but this child has now grown in a man who is ready to take on the world once he gets his eyesight back. We can, already, see the will and that strategic neck movement when he embraces Nakusha that he will not let go of this positive confidence which has replaced the shell of negativity that plagued him for a decade.
Shilpita, here you are. I hope that I make sense....It is 2.54 am but your thread deserved a long post.
Luv,
Kavita😊
Edited by KavitaDR - 14 years ago
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