The episode was lackluster for me. It advanced the storyline a little bit, brought us the much-awaited Poonam, and gave Babita the much-needed moment to introspect.
HS’ reaction when he found out that all that effort he had put into flirting had been for nothing, was priceless! 😆
Tu bhi ke karti hai Veer Balika.
Khaya peeya kuch nahin aur glass toda bara aana.
We saw Poonam as this lively person who had also faced problems in her first relationship but had decided to move on and was now happily married. As Babita’s childhood best friend, she knew her inside out, and through her we got a glimpse of another side to Babita.
Minnie had her oops! moment when Poonam mentioned what HS had been doing earlier.
I don’t know, kitna jaanti ho tum unhein.
Kuch hua to nahin. Mujhe thoda flirty sa laga. Meri itni tareef kar raha tha, mujhe impress karne ki itni koshish.
Of course, it bothered Babita, but she was quick to say she did not trust anyone anymore. Also, that they were moving out in a couple of days. Minnie did not want her mother to have yet another excuse to distance her, in fact both of them, from HS. It had all been a misunderstanding.
Main nahin jaa rahi Hanuman Uncle ko kahin bhi chhod ke.
Tu kyon aise conclusions pe aa rahi hai yaar. Tu kyon impulsive ho ke react kar rahi hai.
Tu jaanti hai na Hanuman Uncle kaise hain. Woh aisa nahin kar sakte. Tu itni easily Hanuman Uncle pe give up nahin kar sakti yaar.
Babita was adamant. She had only returned to the haveli in order to even out their score of ‘ehsaan’ with him but now that things were resolved, she would move out. Again, Babita refused to see that she was hurting her daughter by depriving her of HS’ love. This was her final decision.
Minnie had come a long way, indeed. Who would have thought, that the girl who was desperate to leave the haveli with her mother a few weeks ago to keep her away from HS is now desperate to live there with him?
Naeem Bi Cutie Pie
I have a feeling something is going to happen to Naeem Bi. We saw another caring side of HS’ that for all his sarcastic comments to NB, he adored her and would risk embarrassment standing at the tailors despite his reputation as an Inspector. Still, he looked at her fondly, pulling her cheek.
Ek to aise hasti ho na, aap itni pyaari cute lagti ho, gol matol si.
I really love their dynamics and hope nothing happens to her. HS can’t take any more grief. She was pleased to see him happy after so many days. He had promised Minnie that she would get her old Hanuman Uncle. She took the opportunity to ask him difficult questions:
Aur Babita ko?
Chhodo na Naeem Bi. Bhai aayi gayi baat ho gayi woh. Theek hai, he said, trying to sweep it under the rug again.
Naeem Bi, ever the wise, insightful woman, did not agree. What did he want?
Main yeh chahunga na ke bhai mother-daughter jo hain dono khush rahein. Prashanshit rahein apni life mein.
He genuinely wished them well, with our without being part of their lives.
Dusri baat jo hai, woh ye hai ke bhai mera rishta joda hai dekho Veer Balika se.
Ib compulsory to na hai ke bhai uski maa ke saath bhi jodoon jodoon. Samajhna mhaari baat.
Theek hai bhai, jaise life chal rahi hai bohot acchi baat hai.
As we had been saying, his relationship with Minnie was independent from that with Babita. While this was good in a way, it also created additional complications, and was possibly the source of his insecurity regarding his daughter. He wanted to tread carefully and not upset the apple cart.
Ek baat aur hai jo Hanuman Singh ne bohot zyaada clear kar li hai iss baar. Bhai chaahe kuch ho jaaye main aage se pehel na karne waala. Na bilkul na. Main na karunga.
Accha, marey, tu ne jo usse itni kadwi baatein sunayi, woh? she asked, which he challenged by saying:
Accha, usne jo mhaare se kadwi baatein kahin uska kuch na? Maine to moonh na phula liya. Dekho Naeem Bi, aisa nahin hai ke usne manne kabhi koi kadwi baat na boli. Boli hai.
Just because he had not made a fuss about her words, did not mean he hadn’t been hurt by them. Yet he chose not to let them affect him in the long run.
Main socha ki bhai, kabhi chalo kissi baat ka koi aur stress hoga, koi aur pareshaani hogi, koi chinta mein hogi. Bhai bol diya so bol diya.
Maine to usse dil se na lagaya. Maine to apne honth na sil liye. Yaar aisa na hota prem ka rishta.
We finally heard his take on the situation and on how Babita had reacted. He had been hurt by her wanting to leave, but more important by her silence. He had overlooked her misbehavior and harsh words in the past because he had tried to understand that maybe she had been troubled by something else and had taken it out on him. He had not seen that in her and his opinion was that when two people truly loved each other, they did not take such matters to heart. He had wanted her to understand why he had done so, but apparently she had not. She had not even spoken to him for a few days, even after everything he had been through, she had had nothing to say. If she was happy to leave things this way, so was he.
Main khush hoon apne aap mein. I’m very happy. Life is so good.
Manne koi chinta nahin hai. Sab accha hai Naeem Bi.
Through this we got an insight into what his take on the current state was and why he had decided to back off. I think he also just wanted a little bit of peace, a break from the mayhem. He wanted to go back to the simplicity of life, focus on his job and on his Veer Balika and her needs. I think he is in denial about the extent to which he has gotten used to having Babita in his life. It's only if she leaves the haveli that he will actually feel it.
Poonam tried to give Babita a different perspective on the situation. I loved how she included Minnie in the conversation, because whatever Babita decided would impact her too. Minnie was her best friend, who had given her wings. She was no longer the child that Babita made her out to be. She was almost 18 and Babita had to accept it. Minnie had her own bond with HS and Babita had to consider that.
Poonam called her out on the fact that she had known Babita’s nature since childhood. Her anger and ego were getting in the way of her love, and she would only end up harming herself because of it.
Iss baar tu fail nahin ho sakti, kyon ki agar tu fail hogi na, to Minnie fail ho jayegi.
Bhool ja Babita. Gussa tujhe aa sakta hai to kissi aur ko bhi aa sakta hai. Gusse mein bol diya kuch. Mitti pa, bhool jaa sab.
Minnie’s attention was arrested as she observed what Poonam was trying to say and how. This was what she had always wanted her mother to understand but had not managed to convey as well as Poonam could. Babita could not let her ego get in the way of her happiness.
Par unhon ne maafi bhi to nahi mangi na mujhse, she protested.
Jhukana chahti hai? Tere pairon pe gid jaaye, tab maaf karegi?
Yeh to pyaar nahin hua Babita.
Zindagi dobara mauqa nahin deti. Tujhe mila hai. Thaam le isse.
Riston ka Karz
So Lovely and Sukhi had sent some money from Dubai. Finally Sukhi is living up to his but NB’s children had stopped sending her money. Dadu and Beeji wanted to help her out financially, but she refused, as I had expected she would.
It reminded me of the time Ashok had started scrutinizing Beeji’s medical expenses. Their own son had mistreated them so, yet here was this lady who was somehow making ends meet in this old age but refused to take money from them. How would they repay the debt they owed Naeem Bi?
Karz chukane ka mauqa zaroor milega. Waise bhi, rishton ke karz to chukaane hi padte hain. Uske bina nijaat nahin milti.
That sounded ominous if anything. I am afraid something bad is going to happen to her. Don’t even want to think about.
Pyaar Koi Trophy Nahin Hai
Poonam and Minnie had a heart to heart. As a maasi, she provided much needed-insights into Babita’s psyche but also about the kinds of things that happen in the big bad world out there. Again, I am really happy for Minnie that she is getting to see so many facets on life and various perspectives. This would help her broaden her outlook as she enters adulthood.
Minnie finally said out loud what we’d been wanting her to think about, that she should not pressure Babita about choosing HS and that such a decision should come from Babita herself.
Poonam said that sometimes we are not able to listen to our hearts, because of our responsibilities and that Minnie was that responsibility of Babita’s.
Na, she said, like her father. Main woh zimmedaari nahin hoon. In fact, Hanuman Uncle to mujhe already apni beti maan chuke hain, yaar. Irrespective of unka Babes se rishta juda hai, nahin juda hai.
Babita had known all this, but it was important for her to hear it. Unlike in many causes, HS did not have to accept a child as his own because he was marrying her mother. He had already accepted her as his daughter without Babita being in the picture, in reverse order if you like.
Babita stood there listening to them talking about her. Poonam explained that if HS had no problem with Babita’s past, she shouldn’t have a problem with his either. Then came a very important point. Minnie had still been looking at things as black or white, that Babita never loved Ashok, but HS still loved his late wife. It wasn't about hatred versus sweeping love every time, there were other feelings along the spectrum too.
But Babes never loved Papaji, na?
Aisa tum soch rahi ho. Ek rishta to tha tumhare parents ke beech mein, tabhi to tum aayi ho iss duniya mein. Aisa to nahin hai ke Ashok aur Babita ne ek duster ke liye kuch feel hi na kiya ho?
Agar tumhare Hanuman Uncle uss past ke baare mein soch kar Ashok se jalte rahein to kya yeh sahi hoga? Hmm?
But Human Uncle still loves Imarti ji, Babes doesn’t.
To iss mein bhi kya Hanuman Uncle ki fault hai, jo apni feelings ko lekar imaandaar hain?
HS had hidden nothing from them, why should he be ashamed of his feelings for Imarti? As I keep saying, there’s a difference between how one feels for an ex versus a late spouse.
Tum teenager samajhte ho, ke kisse se pyaar karne ka matlab uss par poora adhikar. Poora kabza. Kissi she share nahin karna. Haan bas woh tumhara aur tum uski. Ye sab filmy baatein hain.
Pyaar koi trophy nahin hai, jo jeet kar laana hai. Pearls of wisdom. Again, hearing it from an unbiased person drove home these points very well.
Babita and HS were not teenagers. They had other lives and relationships before meeting each other. You could not just wipe those relationships, they would always remain. Rather than running from the past, one should accept it in order to enjoy the present. Life was giving Babita a second chance. It would not be perfect, there would be compromises. But there was hope.
Babita noticed the smile spreading across her daughter’s face at this. Poor Minnie had been doing this all by herself and she wished Poonam had been there earlier. I hope we see more of her from time to time. Babita can do with such a good influence in her life, who can explain things to her from the point of view as a mother and as a woman who grabbed the second chance life gave her.
Poonam’s words disturbed Babita as she thought through everything she had overheard. She realized how much effort her daughter had been putting in to help her move on but to hear all those things from a neutral person opened her eyes. It was time for her to address her own fears insecurities, her own extremely high expectations of perfection. It reminded me of what Naeem Bi had asked her in the previous episode. Did she want a saint or a real (flawed) human being as a life partner, who was not perfect and would make mistakes? They would both have to compromise but in all that, the happiness and the hope of a beautiful future together would shine brightest.
Then came my favorite part, where Babita remembered the harsh words she had told HS. She thought back to the time when she had told him he had no right to interfere in their lives or make decisions for them, to when she had rejected him because of what Minnie would think of her and their "relationship", to when she insulted his character and his affection for her daughter, rather his daughter, by accusing him of using Minnie and bribing her to get to Babita by buying her a camera.
She finally understood his point of view, that he must have been very hurt by her words from time to time, just as she had been by his. Yet he had never left her side, had never retaliated, and had never given up on her. He had not let Babita’s behavior affect his equation with Minnie, either. I loved the way they showed her realization, and how they tied it back to events in the past. Kudos to the writers!
Of Bonds and Freedom
Minnie tried to scare HS from behind but of course that was not going to word. The radio was on particularly loud. I loved this scene for two reasons.
First, it showed that HS was still making his own tea, and did not have to wait for Babita or Lala. Also, how realistic is this show that he does actually pour the steaming tea into the cup. There’s some special connection between tea and the dynamics on this show. Second, HS was teaching her new things as usual.
Chhori pehli baat to na, ye Republic Day na hai ye. Independence Day hai chhori.
Tumhaari generation ko itna bhi na pata.
I started thinking that if Minnie had come into his life as a small child, things would have been different. He would have watched her and been part of her growing up years, and would have had a huge impact on her childhood. Besides, younger children are innocent and their cuteness is hard to resists. However, he met Minnie when she was close to becoming an adult. That he still began to love her as his own daughter in such a short period of time and have a positive influence on her outlook in life was remarkable. Minnie had never had a father’s love or attention. She had no benchmark to compare against. What she received in abundance from HS, she grabbed with both hands. Likewise, HS had never had children and did not have prior experience with parenting. What he tried to give Minnie was likely a result of what he had missed in his childhood and had observed her miss out on after he had assessed Ashok through and through. As he accompanied her in her journey, he himself got back admiration and respect manifold, and now fierce loyalty and selfless love from his Veer Balika.
Now that he knows he’s her hero and idol, he feels even more responsible about setting a good example but also not letting her down as their individual biological fathers had. He had finally decided not to become her sharaabi bapu because he knew what that did to children. She was going to be his first priority, above all else and I don't see this changing even after he marries Babita. He hadn’t brought Minnie up, but he would continue to “raise” her now as children do need their parents’ guidance no matter. He did not have a chance to set her foundation then but would do what he could now to ensure it was solid.
Minnie tied a rakhi on for HS on behalf of his cousin, but it seemed more like Aniruddh and Ashnoor in that scene. HS found out that both mother-daughter were missing their brothers on this day, and that look on his face told me exactly what he was going to do. Khatri can finally call HS saala after Kammo decided to do Rakhi with the Enemy. Just as Babita had never called HS bhai saahab, Minnie did not tie a rakhi on Mickey’s wrist. The scene between Mickey and Minnie made me suspicious that something was bound to happen between them eventually. I really hope not, but there have been too many scenes of late hinting as such. HS to Hoshiarpur ke hoshiyar ki acchi si khabr lega.
Minnie realized her mother must have been fasting as she missed her brother on this day. You could see the influence of HS and now Poonam’s words on her. Let bygones be bygones, pick up the phone and call your brother, she urged Babita. I could also see Babita had been affected by her friend’s words. She did have rights over her brother after all. How long would the fight go on for while brother sister waited for one another to call first? Someone had to end it. Things could not get any worse that they currently were. After initial hesitation and nudging by Minnie, she did pick up the phone to make that call, only to hear rings from downstairs.
Unable to contain her happiness, Minnie ran to greet her uncle and aunt. HS stood to one side, observing her, pleased that he had done something to make it possible. Babita, emotional, and overwhelmed, incredulous at what, rather who, she was seeing slowly came downstairs. Her heart in her eyes as she was overjoyed at seeing her brother after so long.
HS looked at his beloved’s eyes and found in there exactly what he had been looking for, surprise and tears of happiness. Minnie knew how all this had come to be as she gave her Hanuman Uncle a sideways glance. I loved the background music they played here - it was uplifting and emotional and signaled a coming of home of sorts for both Babita and her brother. It was the same tune that played when HS had reunited with his father-in-law too.
Babita had reunited HS with his father-in-law and he had in a way returned the favor (though not with the intention of keeping score) by reuniting her with her brother. As always, he stood to one side beaming as he watched how one small step of his had brought smiles on their faces on such a special day. Pinku had not forgotten the day, he had also been fasting as his sister was, he had sincerely missed her over the past few months as she had. Again, the PB touch was visible. No need for melodrama or major dialogues. People often hesitate to reach out to one another, but once they make up their minds to, family members patch up just like that. It was simple, but beautiful.
As Saroj mentioned that HS was the one who had approached Pinku, Babita turned to HS in wonderment and he lowered his gaze. I love how he can be so humble, and a little shy too, yet go and do these amazing things. His sensitivity regarding relationships is wonderful and he never shows off or tries to take credit. Silent execution more his style, just as he had done with the dosa stand or the bags of mangoes.
He looked across at his Veer Balika to indicate.
Chhoti chhoti koshishon se aisi badi badi batein ban jaati hain.
Babita had earlier mentioned that by standing by HS in his time of need their hisaab was baraabar. By the same token, now that he had brought Pinku back, did she owe HS again?
Precap
I am fine with the way he proposed to Babita but not with the timing, as most of you know. The Imarti track was much-needed so that both could reconcile his past and find a way to move on with each other. It was important for both Minnie and Babita to see what HS is capable of, the depth of his emotions, and to also see and accept him for who he is.
I would prefer that the wedding not be rushed because these two need some time to get to know each other, but I doubt this would happen. I am hoping to see them both apologize and speak their hearts out to one another first, at least. They have had enough help from friends and family but now they need to help themselves and each other come closer.
Again, I will ask, is his wish to keep Minnie in his life permanently one of the reasons why he asked Babita to marry him? I would want his decision to marry Babita be mainly because he wants her but I don’t think can think of his equation with mother and daughter separately. Regardless of what he has said to Naeem Bi, I think it is a package deal.
Will he find out that she was planning to move out in a couple of days or will she cancel those plans after being reunited with Pinku? Also, will she actually have a bidaai, maybe from Pinku’s or Naaem Bi’s house, or will she remain in the haveli during the wedding preparations?
I am not sure where the story goes from here since this looks more like the end of the show but if Aniruddh’s recent tweet is anything to go by, yo to bas beginning se. I just hope we continue to get this much screen time for HS. I am now hoping to see him become ACP and Lala also getting a promotion, both in terms of marital status and career!
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