Friends, yesterday's episode did not bring an end to the Ben saga as yet, so a lot of us are surely disappointed. Yesterday, by evening, many of us were counting the number of Begum costumes that Benazir had already modelled in the spoiler pics ... and we were were counting them down one by one to see if the whole ghastly Ben track would end at least when there were no more spoiler pics of her with new Begum costumes to show!
Anyway for the record she seemed to have exhausted two costumes yesterday, which is what is giving a lot of us some angst today, that there is still one costume left to be worn and shown - and it looks like a nikah costume. If ithat is the case then what about that boat ride yesterday with Jalal (in the precap) when Jodha was shown sneaking from behind bushes on the river bank along with Salima, and shooting as many as five or six arrows in a single shot at the barrel-chest of Benazir? It sure looked like the end of Benazir isn't it? But then what of the nikah costume still to be worn? ULP!!!
And what of the fact that we all also saw spoilers of Salima wearing a baandhi costume? Does that mean Ben doesn't die in the boat after Jodha shoots arrows at her, because neither Jodha nor Salima are dressed like baandhis in that scene, they have full Mughhal costumes, both of them!
Somewhere our predictions of what is going to happen are hitting a roadblock and there are now as many as six different theories of how the Ben track will end (according to the phone calls and PMs I have exchanged with friends). So let me just quickly recap what else happened yesterday leading up to the precap, so that I can focus on the many possible interpretations that we now have regarding this precap ...
By the way, there were nine different conversations between sets of people, all leading up to the culminating moment of the precap when Jodha seemed to spring into action. Here's the parade of events ...
Convo 1: Ruq and Maham congratulate each other
The episode opened with Ruq and Maham both in a "pat my back" mode. Ruq kept insisiting that it was her pressure on Jalal (which he always listened to) that made him see the value of marriage to Benazir and helped him reach a decision. Maham, on the other hand, subtly interjected that it may all have happened exactly as they both wanted, thanks to Jodha. If Jodha had not thrown such wild accusations at Ben, and had not spurned Jalal that night making him so furious, they could not have swung this "marriage with Ben" idea past him! Anyway, now that the nikah between Jalal and Ben was in the offing, it was time to celeberate! Both these women, blissfully unaware that Ben was indeed a vishkanya, looked ready to celebrate the end of Jalal! What a pair of self-congratulatory idiots we have here!
Convo 2: Jodha and Moti talk about the "L " word!
Meanwhile Jodha and Moti were in discussion in Jodha's room. Jodha was ranting about how things had turned out so bad that Jalal was actualy proffering himself for destruction at the hands of Ben now with this marriage idea! Jodha said she couldn't bear this fear for his life, she wanted at all costs to save the one that was the symbol of her "patni-ness" and "good fortune". Sh even later said "I trust Kanha so much and even if he sometimes leaves me, I never leave him, so why is all this happening and why am I so unable to do anything?" But the more-romantically inclined Moti pounced in to set the trend of Jodha's thoughts straight. She said "C'mon Jodha, its not fear for Jalal's life, its "love" you feel for him. No don't demur, it is obvious on your face. You know what you feel for him is love and he too is no doubt turning his feelings for you to revenge for the spurning that night. He wants to hurt you with this Ben marriage, but you should have seen how alone, how shattered he was actually on that night after you spurned him!" Jodha was almost on the verge of accepting her love for Jalal, she almost said "No I fear for him and want to save him because I ..." - but the sentence tailed off tantalisingly, and instead Jodha resolved to go and meet Sharif again!
Convo 3: Atga Khan tries to awaken Jalal's self-questioning
Parallelly, in the garden, Jalal was having flashbacks of Jodha, even as he contemplated marriage to Ben. He seemed to remember the two religious sharths she placed befoore him before her own nikaah, that he had agreed to. The fact that he had done so much for her and yet she did not return any love or feeling for him a "as a husband" seemed to be on his mind! I wonder if he ever gave thought to the real meaning of the words "as a husband"? He had no Moti to tell him that his thoughts were also an expression of yearning for love.
But the ever-loyal Atga Khan who was near him did make a try. He asked Jalal "If I may please ask you a question here ... what is troubling your mind so much? Why are you so despondent?" Jalal winced at the question, and had a moment of acute awareness of his own tumultuous feelings - but couldn't quite feel ready to answer Atga. He said it was just the cold weather - and Atga could go. Poor boy, I wished Atga has said the "L" word to him as Moti had said outright to Jodha! Jalal sounded like he would have loved to hear it!
Convo 4: Ben discloses her love for Abul Mali
In another room Ben was admiring her own new Begum costume, which she had started wearing after becoming a marriage-prospect with the Shahenshah. She was seen telling Zakira, her baandhi, that this marriage to Jalal was never going to happen at all. If ever she wanted to marry an Emperor and become his Khas begum, that man would have to be Abul Mali who she really loved. All that Ben now wanted was a chance before the Jalal nikah to finish off Jalal, and then Abul Mali could come out of prison and become the Emperor, and she could marry Abul Mali and live happily ever after. The baandhi looked like she concurred with the idea that speed in finishing off Jalal was the immediate imperative. Nearer the nikah time, Jalal would be surrounded by too many people, so it was now or never!
Convo 5: Jodha meets Sharif again in jail
This time even without an invitation Jodha went to the jail to meet Sharif, and surprised him no end that she had come of her own volition. She came straight to the point and told him all that had transpired at the DEK ... Jalal was about to marry Ben out of pity, her accusations of Ben being a viishkanya had been neutralised by Ben passing the milk test, so now how was she to protect the life of Jalal? Sharif was snide about the depth of her love for Jalal, but when she lashed back at him for such thoughts, he came back on track. He said unmasking Ben was a very dangerous game for it would have to be done in the nick of time. She would have to be caught red-handed, so to speak. And also, he advised, she needed to kept away from all sources of snake-poison, since if she were unable to get her daily supply, her colours would reveal themselves to the world! Jodha walked away with this bit of suggestion.
Convo 6: At Ajmer, Pirbaba Salim Chisthi has a dream
This was a crucial-seeming scene in the episode. At Ajmer, reclining on his bed, the Pirbaba of Pirbabas, Salim Chisthi wakes with a jolt and sits up. He has been visited by a divine sanket. He tells his sidekick that some khatra to Jalal's life is imminent. The sidekick suggests an immediate paigam to Jalal, but Chisthi Saab says that will not be needed. He says this khatra is nothing but some dark clouds temporarily closing out the sun. The khtara will go and Jodha will be instrumental - and the "two will become one". In fact, this is a moment when Jalal's mind will radically change and he will understand what is mohabbat and he will also understand also the real meaning of his second name Mohammed! It is a moment that will change the lives of these two protagonists and the world. It will all unfold on its own pperfectly, so nothing need be done. (For those of us who had been petrified that Jalal may actually marry Ben, this was Salim Chisthi saying God would change Ekta's script from going that way! The Pirbaba was telling all of us viewers "I have seen Ekta's mind. It may be temporarily clouded, as it often is, but God will see to it that this track is actually leading to that "epic love" she promised you all!" Thanks Pirbaba!
Convo 7: Ben tells Jalal she wants a cozy dargah trip
In the garden where Jalal was seated with Salima and Hamida in attendance, Hamida was asking Jalal to rethink this whole marriage issue, but he was seeing no way out of it - as it involved saving the lynching of Ben by the public. The Adham Khan affair with Tasneem had already shown how angry and irrational the public could become!
Just then Ben appraoched them all and made a request that, according to her own mother's wishes, she would like to offer prayers at a far-away dargah across the Yamuna river. She wanted to go there with Jalal before the nikah, if it was OK? Jalal, sitting duck that he is for her saazish, said an immediate and emphatic "Yes" and added "We can go tonight itself!". Ben smiled to herself in delight. She had the Shahenshah exactly where she wanted him. Ben then went away leaving Hamida and Salima a little uneasy!
Convo 8: Hamida tells Salima to save Jodha
Privately in her rooms, Hamida was twisting her hands into a knot. She was agitated by this impending wedding and was beginning to feel that Jodha must have been right about Ben - for Jodha never lied. She summoned Salima, who echoed the absolutely identical sentiments about Jodha not having a single chaal-related bone in her body. Hamida then said "Salima, I trust your advice as much as Jalal trusts it. In this case it looks like a definite life risk to Jalal from Ben! Jodha, we both know, would never wilfully defame someone unless she was sure of her facts! Salima, you have to keep a sharp eye out for Ben and her doings, and also help dear Jodha in exposing her, for the first DEK milk test has failed." Salima agreed to do just that, and departed the room with a look of determination!
Convo 9: Salima and Jodha line up against Ben
Salima then appraoched Jodha in her rooms and saw her at her lowest emotional ebb. Jodha at first thought Salima too would be against her, but soon found Salima to be a most trusting ally. She told Salima "We have to see that Ben never comes near Jalal", but Salima exclaimed "The exact opposite is now happening. They are both due to take a lone boatride tonight to this dargah". Jodha almost shrieked in fear and said "Oh, no, it's a chaal. Ben has to be stopped ... somehow!". Both women were seen churning their minds for a way out!
AND THEN WE HAD THE CONFOUNDING PRECAP ...
In the precap, Ben is waearing a new set of fine clothes (Costume No. 2) and sitting in the boat with Jalal. At the slightest pretext of the boat rocking a bit, she lunges towards Jalal, her face close to his, as if she has lost balance ... and he says "Sambhal ke!" as he seems a bit taken aback at her brazenness, and yet helps her steady herself! But just then the camera pans to Jodha and Salima on the river bank behind some bushes, while Jodha has a bow and arrows in her hand. She takes aim and despatches about five to six arrows in one single shot at Ben, and all the arrows find their destinations at various points of Ben's ample torso! All this while, as Jodha takes aim and shoots, we hear the rhythmic religious chant of Ambe Ma and Bhavani in the background suggesting that this is a divinely-directed moment. The arrows punch Ben, and Jalal is aghast, as Ben lurches alarmingly, on the verge of collapse.
Will Ben die as a result of these lethal arrows that arrived in a volley of fire from Jodha? But then how will that unmask ben if it will only look like an assassination attempt by a jealous Jodha?
Or will ben live but be desperately wounded so that there are more episodes to this saga before the track ends? Will Jodha and Salima get to the Sharif "stop-snakes" plan, even as a wounded Ben clamours of her daily fix of poison?
Will Ben survive long enough to take the saga right up to the nikah moment (for which Ben has already modelled her nikah costume in a spoiler!) and therefore will Jodha will have to make a repeat attempt to unmask her by taking the "bite herself" moments before the "Qubool hai" to save Jalal?
How will Ben now be unmasked?
Theory One: If Ben was hurt by the arrows, will her blood turn colour instantly, thus alerting Jalal in the boat itself that she is indeed a vishkanya? In that case what would happen next? Will he try to save ben or try to stay away from her and jump into the water to save himself? This doesn''t square with the "nikah costume" spoiler that Ben was seen wearing. So she probably did not die or even get unmasked in this boat attack perhaps?
Theory Two: Or if Ben is merely hurt, but not dead, and her blood colour is not visible, will they all ferry her to a sick bed ... where the Hakims of the palace will see that no medicine is "taking" on her - and thus deduce her blood to be full of poison? Is that how she will be unmasked before the nikaah itself? This again doesn't square with the "nikah costume" spoiler that Ben was seen wearing. But it does allow for the possibility of Salima in her baandhi costume trying to disallow snakes near Ben sick bed ...
Did Jodha have a dream? And does Jalal know her role?
Theory Three: There is a legitimate question in people's minds that maybe the whole precap was just Jodha's dream. That could be possible that she sees a dream of saving Jalal by shooting arrows at Ben. But look at the facts here. One, there was some rhythmic chanting of Ambe Ma prayers while she was taking aim and shooting. I doubt that sound effect would have been part of the dream? It looks like there was a sanket of the scene being real if the Creatives gave it that religious sanctity? But this theory still doesn't explain Salima's baandhi costume ... when did she have to wear that and why? Did Jodha's arrows, if they were real, do no major damage to ben? Did Salima act like a baandhi when a wounded Ben was at the Hakim's sick room ? And was she trying to be a bandhi on guard to prevent Zakira bringing any snakes into ben's vicinity (a la Sharif's plan) to expose Ben as getting withdrawal symptoms without the snake poison?
Theory Four: Did Jalal instantly know that it must have been Jodha who shot the arrows since he already knew of her talents to shoot multiple arrows in one shot (from his Amer visit days)? How many people does Jalal know who can do that with such prowess? So the question is: Did Jalal look around and spot Jodha near the bushes - or did he suspect Jodha of being Ben's assassin just by the way she shot multiple arrows at Ben? If Ben hasn't died, will Jalal have another MU with Jodha or even jail her as the possible assassin of Ben, thus compounding Jodha's problems? But on the other hand, Salima was with Jodha, and Salima is helping Jodha with Hamida's knowledge. So will Salima give Jodha an alibi against Jalal's suspicions about Jodha trying to eliminate Ben from jealousy? Will Salima say "Jodha was with me all evening at the palace" and will Jalal have to believe Salima, whom he trusts anyway?
What of the Sharif plan to remove all snakes?
Theory Five: The whole "death in the boat" theory also doesn't stand scrutiny if we consider that the Sharif idea of keeping snakes away from Ben was said with a definite reason in the script. That suggests that Ben survives the boat ride, perhaps, and is then in the palace in the position of needing snakes to stay "well-poisoned up" - and Jodha and Salima are forced to go to all lengths of surveillance on her and on Zakira and to prevent the smuggling in of all snakes.
What of the Zee confirmation of no marriage?
Theory Six: Zee have confirmed to many people (including me) that while there will be a marriage scare, there won't be an actual marriage between Jalal and Ben. Abhay has also confirmed that historically there was no such marriage. To some people Zee have also confirmed that Ben may last out another episode or two next week but that will end her cameo. And we still have to see her in the nikah costume and Salima in the baandhi costume. So could it be that the boat ride either did not see an arrow situation at all (was just Jodha dream) or the arrows happened but Ben did not die - and so Ben lived till the date of the nikah, whereby Salima and Jodha had to keep snakes away from her and also try to sabotage the nikah. But all attempts of their may go in vaiin till the "nth" hour, when just before saying "Qubool hai" Ben rises to bite Jalal, Jodha dives between them taking the lethal bite (but not quite dying herself - like Zakira didn't instantly die) and in that epiphanic moment Jalal sees that Jodha was right about Ben and had saved him from making a grave mistake? And thereafter saving Jodha's life becomes Jalal's preoccupation, and reveals to him his own love for Jodha?
I don't know if there are other interesting theories floating around. Do let me know folks if there are any other possibilities. We have all weekend to think about this and self-destruct! Let's go for it!
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