Maa Ki Mamta
I am going to start off by saying I love Naeem Bi. She could have let things be, but no, she had the presence of mind to record Babita dedicating the song and then to send it to Hanuman so that he would eventually hear it and understand what Babita had been wanting to convey.
As a mother, she wanted to reduce the period of longing her children were going through. She knew her son had looked forward to this moment for a very long time, she recognized when Babita had finally taken the first step that her son had so patiently waited for. As a messenger to both Babita and HS she ensured that she passed on the emotions from one to the other in the right context, and in a way that would make sense to the other.
She is the best thing to have happened to all three of them. As a mother and as a grandmother she is a wise soul who always guides them and stands by them in times of need. Her biological children are indeed unfortunate to be missing out on the immense love and generosity she has to offer, naaspitey! It is the smart ones like HS, Minnie and Babita who are holding onto this precious woman in their lives because they know how valuable she is, how rare it is to receive such unconditional love, that too without any blood ties.
She had known this moment of breaking down would eventually come for Babita as she had watched her control her every impulse and shut her heart out. She had known that Babita was at a tipping point. With HS away, Babita was even more exposed and vulnerable. Naeem Bi knew that all it would take was a little nudge to take her over the edge: playing back a few chosen lines from the song that was not just a dedication but a cry from Babita's heart to that of the man who was, across the miles, cradling the missing pieces of her existence in his gentle heart.
Main yahan tukdon mein jee raha hoon
Tu kahin tukdon mein jee rahi hai
Pyar Ke Rang
Minnie learned some important lessons today about love, that it was not something one could control or fight, that the pain involved need not be a destructive force, rather that it can be a beautiful emotion that binds you to someone while setting you free. The other day, she had looked at the colors flowing in the jug of water and had wondered if her Babes had any pyar ka rang in her life.
Today Minnie learned that it was not just pyar ka rang but pyar ke rang, as she saw her mother's tears of angst and desolation because of the very love that she had been against, but the context and the reason were so radically different. She learned that her mother had been trying to subdue her heart's desires because she prioritized her daughter's feelings and opinions.
Hearing Naeem Bi's words, and discovering not only that she had known about her mother's feelings long before Minnie had had any inkling, that she encouraged it, and that she was privy to Babita's suffering, surprised Minnie. I loved these words of hers:
Dekh li hai, sab dekh li hai maine.
Hanuman ke liye teri fikr, teri tadap, tera pyaar, jisse tu aaj tak khud se chhupati aayi, nakaarti aayi, apne dil mein daba kar rakhti aayi
Dekh na ab wahi dard teri ankhon mein pigal raha hai.
Inhein rok mat, beh jaane de. Yeh chhatenge tab hi tujhe saaf saaf nazar aayega.
It was the final straw for Babita, who could no longer hold back her tears or her words. She had fought hard but could not resist anymore, could not bear the pain and heaviness in her heart. The civil war between her heart and her mind was tearing her apart. Every moment she had lived the past few months, every emotion pierced her heart and as she cried in Naeem Bi's arms. Her broken voice told Minnie exactly how much HS meant to her and how deep the connection between them both was. Even then, her first thought was: what Minnie would think, which Naeem Bi assured her was not a matter of concern.
That Babita had come so far in life yet was unable to value herself the way she ought to, that she found herself unworthy of HS' love, came as a shock to Minnie. She could not have imagined the extent of the turmoil that her mother had been going through of late, once again suffering in silence just as she had previously done for 17 years.
Her mother had been feeling suffocated, unable to express her feelings to anyone, unable to do away with them. Unable to reach out and grab HS' outstretched hand, yet unable to keep herself away from him. I have a feeling this is one of the reasons why Minnie is in a hurry. She feels guilty for ever having thought of taking her mother away from HS and his love. She wants her mother to get a chance to experience happiness at the earliest possible, she wants her waiting to be over, and she wishes the same for HS, knowing what state of mind he has been in.
I am glad that Naeem Bi pointed out that some things ought to be left in Hanuman's hands. It was up to him to decide what place Babita had in his life and she had to trust his judgement. Like a little girl, Babita sulked at having heard nothing from HS all day. She now got a taste of how he must have felt all those times she had snubbed his little gestures.
Mauqa
Our beloved Hanuman Singh, on the other hand, was being his usual self. Lost in his own world! Yeh nahin ke haal chaal pooch le mother-daughter ka. I don't blame him. Due to the awkwardness with which he left home, he was not expecting anything. After all, why should he? He thought Babita had redrawn the boundary lines again so he was not going to think along those lines for now. Little did he know that while his phone had been switched off, all the emotions he had wanted to see in Babita had finally been switched on.
Naeem Bi swears even in her text messages! HS can be such a dumbo sometimes, not getting why she would want him to listen to the radio, not being able to make the connection between the news of natural disasters he heard on the radio with what his "goud li hui maa" had intended. He was just funny without trying to be, missing the whole point. He should know by now that she is anything but senile, and her next message proved it. I loved how he was quick to put on the headset the moment he heard Babita's voice.
Again, I will applaud Aniruddh for the way he portrayed HS' change of expression, the look in his eyes going from blank curiosity to complete understanding and appraisal of the situation within seconds. HS had often told Lala:
Mauqa chhota sa shabd hai aur aata thodi der ke liye hai.
This was his window of opportunity, the one he had dreamed of for so many months now. He mobilized right away as nothing could or would hold him back. That taxi ride must have been the longest of his life. By the way, I don't think he will hear the end of it if he leaves his phone switched off for so long next time he's away from home. The two lionesses will not spare him.
Meanwhile, Minnie walked slowly downstairs, giddy with happiness and wonderment at what she had just found out about her mother. I think she finally understood what HS had been trying to explain to her about her mother wanting emotional support. Ashnoor did a great job as Minnie smiling through her tears and overall bursting with eagerness to see her father, to see her parents under the same roof, to have their family complete.
By the way, I think this is going to open her up to the idea of love and I won't be surprised if she falls for Mickey because of the way she was shown to grab his hand, the way she looked at him when she nodded her confirmation of their plan succeeding.
As a side note, the whole scene of HS arriving and Babita turning to hear him should have made me happy but frankly, there was something off about the editing that made it seem out of sync. To me, the whole thing felt artificial but maybe it was deliberately done by the CVs.
Main Aa Gaya
In keeping with what we had previously seen, HS jumped out of the car calling out to his favorite, his Veer Balika, as soon as he arrived. He burst through the doors, extremely pleased that she was the first thing he laid eyes on. He had missed her too, in a way different from the previous trip because of what had happened between them and because they had grown so much closer.
This time it was tangible, he had missed his daughter. Also, he had left suddenly, without informing her or saying goodbye to her, which is never easy for fathers to do. Just like the previous trip, this time too he called for her upon his return, the way parents do when they have been away from their children. I totally loved how, having been as patient as he could on the ride home, he could no longer control himself when the car stopped outside his house, anxious to see his Veer Balika immediately.
I know HS came back a little earlier than expected because of Naeem Bi's message, but I don't think it was only because of Babita. As a duty-bound police officer he had reluctantly gone on this trip but he had missed everyone. There could be no better homecoming than what awaited him when he burst through the doors, seeing his Veer Balika, his daughter's mother, and Naeem Bi: family (and friends).
HS had no idea what had transpired in his absence but neither was he the same HS that had left home the other day, nor were his Veer Balika and daughter ki mother the same upon his return.
Minnie was not sure how to proceed after learning her mother's truth but when she saw HS come through the door she smiled in relief as she knew everything was going to be alright. She looked at him with so much hope and anticipation: her father, her hero, the balm to soothe her mother's aching heart, and hers, had come home. He would set everything right.
I LOVED the pure joy on his face when he stopped in his tracks as he looked at Minnie's facial expression at his early return. He absorbed the sight of his daughter and then looked up to see her mother. In that instant he could see in Babita's eyes what he had always hoped to see, the same longing he had felt in his heart for a while, the tears of joy at his return before she glanced away. It had been exactly what he had imagined. He could not contain his happiness as he looked back at his daughter and saw in her eyes the same tears of happiness that reflected his sentiments right there and then. He shared a smile of understanding with her before quickly looking back at Babita, and when Naeem Bi appeared, the look on her face told him everything. Aniruddh was mind-blowing in this scene.
They had been eagerly waiting for him, he finally had someone to come back home to. It was a long-overdue gift this man was more than worthy of, it was a long-overdue arrival of Minnie's father in her life in the truest sense, this time for good, a long-overdue entry of the man who had claimed Babita's heart, and a long-overdue return of Naeem Bi's prodigal son, whom she had once lost to his immeasurable grief. The picture was now complete.
If there hadn't been so many people around, I am sure Minnie would have run to hug him tight, but in a way all those words left unspoken and those emotions unexpressed made the situation seem poignant to me.
Minnie did not care about anyone right then. She just wanted her immediate family, and like most kids are wont to do, grabbed her father and took him upstairs to where her mother had been waiting. Naeem Bi was such a tease:
Hanuman, tu aa gaya?!
As he gently asked Babita through Naeem Bi how she was, Babita could not bring herself to look at him, overcome by shyness and afraid her eyes would tell tales she did not want him to hear yet.
Minnie was overly eager to make them both talk to each other and shooed Naeem Bi away. Ashnoor was fabulous in that scene as Minnie tried to talk to her Hanuman Uncle a mile-a-minute upon his return, while her heart was bursting with all sorts of emotions that were new to her. She tried to narrate what had happened during the attempted theft, constantly pointing to that space that had now officially become their space, their family space. It was where her parents had shared the beautiful experience of making pots together with the promise of more to come, where her mother had openly expressed her longing for HS by maintaining their connection through pottery, where chasing the thief had led to the smashing of pots made by HS that Minnie had discovered were precious to Babita.
The usually confident girl who knew her mind was struggling to make coherent sentences, overwhelmed by her emotions. HS had captured a place in her heart a long time ago, but finding out that he occupied a complementary place in her mother's heart made her see him in a new light, and possibly love him even more.
I think he knew what she was going through as he saw her faltering and feeling out of her depth, because she was a kid after all. He was unprepared for this situation and did not quite know what to say. It had not sunk in, and everything seemed surreal. As Minnie went into her room, leaving them alone, HS wondered how to proceed. After all the ups and downs in recent times he was not sure how to respond to Babita's move. There was so much he wanted to say but he had been caught off guard and did not know where to begin. He knew she had been waiting for him to respond to her, for him to come back to her, for him to take the next step now that she had opened up.
Minnie was peeking from behind the window, looking at her hero with admiration, expecting a dhain proposal as he said:
Kiraayedaarni ji, woh... aapse kuch kehna cha raha tha ji mein.
but nothing of the sort came out. Like Babita and Minnie, many on this forum have been wanting to hear HS say the three magical words.
Well, he did. "Mein aa gaya"
There was a world of meaning and emotions behind those three simple words: he had understood her message, had heard the call of her heart, and had come to claim his rightful place next to her. He was home.
With that he left, a gentle smile on his lips as he knew he had answered the questions in Babita's eyes, unaware that he had left new ones in his daughter's. She had not understood how HS could leave with such a simple statement after the storm of the past few days because she did not know the nature of their relationship. She knew nothing of the way they communicated with each other through silences rather than words.
As Babita and HS prepared to settle everyone in for the night, they paused for a few minutes to silently check on each other before going to bed. HS looked at her standing at the top of the stairs. Where previously she had drawn invisible lines between them that she had stepped behind, this time there was no such barrier. They demanded nothing from each other in that moment, except the reassurance of each other's presence.
Seediyon ka faasla abhi tak tha, par dono ko pata tha ke dilon ka faasla thoda kam hua.
During this time, Minnie was wondering how the confession would happen without Switzerland, soft breeze, music, etc. I personally think this was a dig at the cliched romance that is shown on ITV. It makes me confident that the real deal will be completely the opposite with Babita and HS.
Tum Pukaar Lo
While the world was asleep HS woke up to the sound of Babita's anklet. Quietly, he decided to take advantage of the solitude of the morning to spend some time with her on the balcony. With the sun barely up, she seemed to him as morning dew, a soft scent carried to him by the gentle breeze. This time, he did not look away and took in the sight of her freshness, and she let him drink in her beauty. Where yesterday she had not been in the mood to dress up without him around, today she had dressed, albeit simply, for him. This was a different Babita, and he could sense it.
There was a time when HS' emotions would overflow through his eyes and words, but she would not want to hear them. Yet, today when it was all she wanted to hear, even if it were just a few splashes, he was not forthcoming. Babita became a little more confident, a little bolder because of his words the previous night, but he was still shy and awkward around her, especially after what had happened during their pottery experience. I do think he was being extra cautious and trying very hard not to overstep any boundaries.
So he did what he felt most at ease with, he fell back to being a cop, picking up the subject of the theft. It seemed to be a relatively "safe" topic to discuss, but he could not resist showing his concern for her well-being by assuring her that she would no longer be troubled by the thief. Acknowledging that he was talking about silly things, he changed gear to ask what was foremost on his mind: had she too spent a sleepless night after the theft as he had? She knew what he was asking but shifted the focus away from her and on to him for a change. What had he been feeling? How had he fared that night away from her? Had the memories of the pottery session haunted him the way they had haunted her?
Hanuman replied that he had not been able to sleep because of Lala's call, but it was that video call with Babita that had made him lose sleep, since he learned she had been agonizing about failing to save his pots, and by extension, their session together. She had opened her eyes to what he had been trying to show her - she had been agreeable to having the ball in her court, to giving life another chance. Just as he was getting warmed up, trying to breach the topic at the tip of his tongue, he was rudely interrupted by a newspaper flung on to his balcony, the delivery man bearing the brunt of HS' frustration.
I am not sure which idiot blasts the radio from his bicycle early morning in the neighborhood, but I'll go with the flow on this one, just because of the lovely song that was playing the tune in Babita's heart:
Tum pukaar lo
Tumhara intezaar hai
Tum pukaar lo
Khwaab chun rahi hai raat beqaraar hai
Tumhara intezaar hai
All this time, he had been waiting for her. Now it was her turn.
Honth pe liye huey, dil ki baat hum
Jaagte rahenge aur kitni raat hum.
He knew what she wanted to hear but could not bring himself to oblige her. She understood his hesitation. Perhaps he needed a little encouragement? A clear sign that she was eager for him to reveal the inner workings of his heart?
She began to fidget with her bun, as if to free her hair from the restrictive coils she had wound it in. It was Hanuman's turn to feel shy as he looked around to see if anyone had woken up. What was she doing? Was she planning to drive him crazy this early in the day?
As she dropped her clip, he was quick to retrieve it. I loved the little details such as him blowing on it and dusting it against his kurta, over his heart, then gently handing it to her before appearing to be engrossed in the day's headlines. As she turned around to tie her hair up again, he dared to look back at her, enthralled by this glimpse she had allowed him into her personal space, unable to believe that she was giving him this privilege unequivocally. I am quite sure a scene with HS running his fingers through her hair is coming up. It is going to be spellbinding.
Having waited for rain during many months of drought, HS was overwhelmed when flooded with all these gestures. As she continued picking up the clothes to indicate that her morning routine was almost up, as was their time together on that balcony, HS conceded defeat to his shyness. The best part was that Babita understood his state of mind, having been in that position herself. He had told her last night where they both stood. It was enough for now. She would wait for him, give him the time and space he needed.
I loved that they were both color-coordinated in this scene, as if to signify that they were finally on the same page. I am also loving HS in that haircut.
Calm After the Storm
Minnie could not understand how her parents could be so calm after the storms and raging fires they had both been through. I loved her scene with HS as she tried to extract from him what had happened after she caught him daydreaming. He continued to read the newspaper as he had on the balcony, thinking back to what he had just witnessed and going through all the possibilities in his mind. He must have been thinking that he should travel more often, if this was the outcome. Feeling at peace after so long and after the beautiful start to the day he just wanted to chill, but his Veer Balika was not having any of it.
HS skillfully evaded all her questions, but even in that playful mood he spoke a few home truths. He wanted her to be happy during her entire lifetime, she did not need his permission to be happy. This was an indirect reference to the other night when he had scolded her for not taking his permission before enjoying her "art and culture". He was also right that one does need a reason to be happy, "One should be happy at your own will". With his fingers he gestured to her to smile, as he had done in the hospital, and upon being rewarded with her beaming smile he complimented her on how good she looked in that state and went away.
He finally accepted to listen to her, willing to tell her whatever it was that she wanted to hear. His entire demeanor with her was different, very indulging. She dumped her glass next to his cup, and told him on his face that he was boring. Boring?? He was right that he was the reason for the brightness in Patiala (and in the show).
Chori, tanne ke pata thara father ke cheej hai!
Precap:
Minnie wants HS and Babita to speak up about their feelings but I think she needs to leave them alone. So what if they are both shy? They will find a way to communicate without words, in simple ways that no one else can understand. CVs, if you are reading this, then please stick your philosophy of simple = beautiful.
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