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The PR episode today divided itself neatly into three segments, and if we had been talking music, I would have called it a raagamaalika. Or else a triptych: a painting in three parts that are linked by a common motif and thus make a whole.
This leit motif is the love of Arjun and Purvi that colours and shapes all the three segments. A love at times doubted, at times denied, but now rising again like the phoenix - the fire bird that is reborn from the ashes of its previous existence. The parallel is almost exact: their love has been under a cloud for so long that many of us were unsure if the embers were still there to be fanned into a blaze, or the ashes were cold and dead.
Today, despite Purvi's recurrent fears and her trying hard to hold Arjun back, their love blazed forth afresh, even amidst the downpour that seems to be de rigueur (obligatory) for an Arjun-Purvi love scene. And the doubters were silenced.
Colour Red: Arjun and Purvi. If the first segment had to have a colour, it would be red. Red for passion rekindled, and red for the ardour with which Arjun fights for his love, even with his love herself. He advances and retreats and advances again, using variations of the same theme: How can you give up what we have for what some people might say? How can you sacrifice me to be mahaan? You are mine, and I will not let you go.
Inch by inch, he wears down her resistance, using all his powers of argument and persuasion, and not the least, the emotional pull of his nearness. He does not let her get away, pulling her back to him unhesitatingly. Finally, when she is sobbing in his arms, still gasping broken sentences of protest and worry, he soothes and cajoles her as one would a frightened child: No rishtas will be broken, no one will become our enemy. I will be there and I will fight the whole world for you.
He does not quite succeed in overcoming her fears, for Purvi runs away in the end saying that what they are doing is wrong. Nonetheless, it is a masterful display by a determined lover, and I see from a cursory look thru the posts that this has been hailed almost universally as a resurrection of Arjun (I say almost, because Janhvi seems to be a lone holdout, but we know, Archana and I, that she is doing it not out of conviction but out of a desire not to be stampeded into making a 180 degrees about turn!)
Purvi is both pathetic and vulnerable, mortally afraid of losing the trust of those she holds dearest, but yet drawn by the irresistible pull of love and of the lover she cannot give up whatever she might say to the contrary.
For the most part, one's heart goes out to her. The exception is when she starts talking about Teju being her best friend ( no matter that she is brusque and standoffish, and does not have even a single normal word for Purvi after the truth about Archana came out) and, what is worse, that Ovi Ma'am has unquestioning trust in her, and she and Arjun should never reveal the truth about themselves, for that would make Ovi Ma'am lose all her faith in love! This stuff got my goat so much that I almost lost all my sympathy for Purvi. What can one say of such idiocy? Arjun would have torn his hair in despair, but probably desisted as it was too wet and dripping.
Colour White: Archana. The second segment would be white, for the white heat of Archana's unbridled and hysterical rage. As I had guessed, it is not Punni who alerts Archana; she learns the truth through pure accident. I would say a happy accident, for if Archana had not seen Purvi in Arjun's arms, Purvi might, once she is removed from Arjun's proximity, have gone back to the sacrifice syndrome and tried to bury everything. Now that possibility has been knocked for a loop.
I would beg to differ from all those who admired the scene and Archana's acting.I felt that it was a very ugly and hysterical display all round. NOTHING can justify such behaviour – slapping your daughter thrice, shouting her down and not letting her get a word in to defend herself, and at one point slapping yourself and rolling about on the floor in high pitched hysteria. What is the difference between Archana today and any one of the harridans fighting for water at the pump head? Very little.
And what she is most concerned about is what she will say not just to Manav, but to Ovi. Ovi? Who hates her guts and makes no effort to hide it? The thought does not even cross her mind that Purvi might have something to say for herself. And this is her great love for her daughter?
We were all ready to criticize DK for not being there for his son for so long, when he was badly needed, and rightly so. However, if we compare the extremely dignified manner in which he took his son's confession, the very morning after his engagement, that he cannot marry Ovi because he loves Purvi, with Archana's fishwife like display today, it will show what class really is (and it is NOT a question of mere riches. DK would have been the same if he had been living in a chawl).
DK did not shout at and hector Arjun, and he ended up accepting the situation, no matter how awkward and embarrassing it was going to be for him, and despite his great fondness for Ovi, simply because he loved his son.
Archana's love for Purvi, in contrast, now seems to depend on whether or not Purvi can be trotted out as a poster girl for Archana's sanskaars and the excellence of her parvarish. Woe betide her the moment she steps out of this framework! She is vilified, slapped and pulled about, and summarily thrown out of the house, late at night. The last was the worst. Truly a master class in mother love!
One has to salute Sulochana, who is generally quick to pull up Purvi. In this acute crisis, she does not fail to speak up and ask Archana to listen to Purvi, and touches Purvi's shoulder in mute support. It was heart-warming.
Colour Blue: DK. The colour for the third segment would be blue, for DK's calmness and reassuring wisdom.
DK turns up trumps finally, after having failed us and Arjun for so long, but once he IS there, he effortlessly dominates the scene. He loses no time in overriding both Arjun's hesitation in going against Purvi's express wish, and Purvi's unwillingness to go ahead.
He is candid enough to confess that if he had spoken to Manav and Archana before he left for Australia, things would never have come to this pass; this makes one admire him all the more.
He sees clearly that there can be no more procrastination, for whatever reason, and also that unless Manav and Archana are convinced that Arjun and Purvi truly love each other, they will never be able to accept their love and its consequences.
His support for his son is total, irrespective of what he might personally have preferred, and his determination to get him his heart's desire brooks no opposition. This is the kind of parent a child needs when in a tight corner.
DK sweeps Arjun along, and they land up in the precap, where Arjun, initially hesitant, steels himself, looks Manav full in the face, and tells him that he does not love Ovi.
With that, Arjun Kirloskar finally crosses the Rubicon.
What lies ahead is going to be no bed of roses for Purvi. Arjun will get away relatively easily; when things get too unpleasant, he will walk off, just like a man, whereas Purvi will be tormented by conflicting pulls. One hopes that the rift between her and Archana is overcome soon, for Purvi could never be happy, even married to Arjun, unless she has Archana's forgiveness and acceptance.
As for Manav, it is not clear why he asks Arjun that question; it clearly shows some foreknowledge. Did Archana tell him, or is he just guessing? Nor can one predict how he will react to his blind faith in Purvi and Arjun having been shattered. One again hopes that after the initial burst of anger, he comes around, if only because he believes that one should marry for love. This too would be vital for Purvi's peace of mind. And for Arjun's as well, for he can hardly be at ease if his love is eating her heart out for the acceptance of her parents.
For starters, let us see tomorrow where Purvi has landed up in the middle of the night. Arjun knows nothing of her being thrown out of the house, or he would have immediately come looking for her, as he did late at night after the Vinay engagement fiasco. Those days, when the Arjun-Purvi romance was still in the embryo stage, were a wonderful period for us all. Here is hoping that we get those days back very soon!
Shyamala B.Cowsik
PS: I do apologise for the inordinate length of this post, but it practically wrote itself, and now I really have no energy left to edit it! I do hope you will bear with me.
This leit motif is the love of Arjun and Purvi that colours and shapes all the three segments. A love at times doubted, at times denied, but now rising again like the phoenix - the fire bird that is reborn from the ashes of its previous existence. The parallel is almost exact: their love has been under a cloud for so long that many of us were unsure if the embers were still there to be fanned into a blaze, or the ashes were cold and dead.
Today, despite Purvi's recurrent fears and her trying hard to hold Arjun back, their love blazed forth afresh, even amidst the downpour that seems to be de rigueur (obligatory) for an Arjun-Purvi love scene. And the doubters were silenced.
Colour Red: Arjun and Purvi. If the first segment had to have a colour, it would be red. Red for passion rekindled, and red for the ardour with which Arjun fights for his love, even with his love herself. He advances and retreats and advances again, using variations of the same theme: How can you give up what we have for what some people might say? How can you sacrifice me to be mahaan? You are mine, and I will not let you go.
Inch by inch, he wears down her resistance, using all his powers of argument and persuasion, and not the least, the emotional pull of his nearness. He does not let her get away, pulling her back to him unhesitatingly. Finally, when she is sobbing in his arms, still gasping broken sentences of protest and worry, he soothes and cajoles her as one would a frightened child: No rishtas will be broken, no one will become our enemy. I will be there and I will fight the whole world for you.
He does not quite succeed in overcoming her fears, for Purvi runs away in the end saying that what they are doing is wrong. Nonetheless, it is a masterful display by a determined lover, and I see from a cursory look thru the posts that this has been hailed almost universally as a resurrection of Arjun (I say almost, because Janhvi seems to be a lone holdout, but we know, Archana and I, that she is doing it not out of conviction but out of a desire not to be stampeded into making a 180 degrees about turn!)
Purvi is both pathetic and vulnerable, mortally afraid of losing the trust of those she holds dearest, but yet drawn by the irresistible pull of love and of the lover she cannot give up whatever she might say to the contrary.
For the most part, one's heart goes out to her. The exception is when she starts talking about Teju being her best friend ( no matter that she is brusque and standoffish, and does not have even a single normal word for Purvi after the truth about Archana came out) and, what is worse, that Ovi Ma'am has unquestioning trust in her, and she and Arjun should never reveal the truth about themselves, for that would make Ovi Ma'am lose all her faith in love! This stuff got my goat so much that I almost lost all my sympathy for Purvi. What can one say of such idiocy? Arjun would have torn his hair in despair, but probably desisted as it was too wet and dripping.
Colour White: Archana. The second segment would be white, for the white heat of Archana's unbridled and hysterical rage. As I had guessed, it is not Punni who alerts Archana; she learns the truth through pure accident. I would say a happy accident, for if Archana had not seen Purvi in Arjun's arms, Purvi might, once she is removed from Arjun's proximity, have gone back to the sacrifice syndrome and tried to bury everything. Now that possibility has been knocked for a loop.
I would beg to differ from all those who admired the scene and Archana's acting.I felt that it was a very ugly and hysterical display all round. NOTHING can justify such behaviour – slapping your daughter thrice, shouting her down and not letting her get a word in to defend herself, and at one point slapping yourself and rolling about on the floor in high pitched hysteria. What is the difference between Archana today and any one of the harridans fighting for water at the pump head? Very little.
And what she is most concerned about is what she will say not just to Manav, but to Ovi. Ovi? Who hates her guts and makes no effort to hide it? The thought does not even cross her mind that Purvi might have something to say for herself. And this is her great love for her daughter?
We were all ready to criticize DK for not being there for his son for so long, when he was badly needed, and rightly so. However, if we compare the extremely dignified manner in which he took his son's confession, the very morning after his engagement, that he cannot marry Ovi because he loves Purvi, with Archana's fishwife like display today, it will show what class really is (and it is NOT a question of mere riches. DK would have been the same if he had been living in a chawl).
DK did not shout at and hector Arjun, and he ended up accepting the situation, no matter how awkward and embarrassing it was going to be for him, and despite his great fondness for Ovi, simply because he loved his son.
Archana's love for Purvi, in contrast, now seems to depend on whether or not Purvi can be trotted out as a poster girl for Archana's sanskaars and the excellence of her parvarish. Woe betide her the moment she steps out of this framework! She is vilified, slapped and pulled about, and summarily thrown out of the house, late at night. The last was the worst. Truly a master class in mother love!
One has to salute Sulochana, who is generally quick to pull up Purvi. In this acute crisis, she does not fail to speak up and ask Archana to listen to Purvi, and touches Purvi's shoulder in mute support. It was heart-warming.
Colour Blue: DK. The colour for the third segment would be blue, for DK's calmness and reassuring wisdom.
DK turns up trumps finally, after having failed us and Arjun for so long, but once he IS there, he effortlessly dominates the scene. He loses no time in overriding both Arjun's hesitation in going against Purvi's express wish, and Purvi's unwillingness to go ahead.
He is candid enough to confess that if he had spoken to Manav and Archana before he left for Australia, things would never have come to this pass; this makes one admire him all the more.
He sees clearly that there can be no more procrastination, for whatever reason, and also that unless Manav and Archana are convinced that Arjun and Purvi truly love each other, they will never be able to accept their love and its consequences.
His support for his son is total, irrespective of what he might personally have preferred, and his determination to get him his heart's desire brooks no opposition. This is the kind of parent a child needs when in a tight corner.
DK sweeps Arjun along, and they land up in the precap, where Arjun, initially hesitant, steels himself, looks Manav full in the face, and tells him that he does not love Ovi.
With that, Arjun Kirloskar finally crosses the Rubicon.
What lies ahead is going to be no bed of roses for Purvi. Arjun will get away relatively easily; when things get too unpleasant, he will walk off, just like a man, whereas Purvi will be tormented by conflicting pulls. One hopes that the rift between her and Archana is overcome soon, for Purvi could never be happy, even married to Arjun, unless she has Archana's forgiveness and acceptance.
As for Manav, it is not clear why he asks Arjun that question; it clearly shows some foreknowledge. Did Archana tell him, or is he just guessing? Nor can one predict how he will react to his blind faith in Purvi and Arjun having been shattered. One again hopes that after the initial burst of anger, he comes around, if only because he believes that one should marry for love. This too would be vital for Purvi's peace of mind. And for Arjun's as well, for he can hardly be at ease if his love is eating her heart out for the acceptance of her parents.
For starters, let us see tomorrow where Purvi has landed up in the middle of the night. Arjun knows nothing of her being thrown out of the house, or he would have immediately come looking for her, as he did late at night after the Vinay engagement fiasco. Those days, when the Arjun-Purvi romance was still in the embryo stage, were a wonderful period for us all. Here is hoping that we get those days back very soon!
Shyamala B.Cowsik
PS: I do apologise for the inordinate length of this post, but it practically wrote itself, and now I really have no energy left to edit it! I do hope you will bear with me.
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