Friends, yesterday's episode was great in parts and so-so in other parts. I expect many of you also have some mixed feelings about it? I know we all love to see Jodha and Jalal together in love, but we also hate to see Ruq and Jalal looking cozy, and we were forced to see a bit of both!
The part I loved was the early part of the episode, where Jalal sees Jodha at work and enjoys watching the way she is all engrossed in the trials and tribulations of the harem. He silently watches her at work, without her knowing - and gives broad and proud smiles to see his wife so utterly absorbed in what she's doing. He then slinks out without disturbing her on her first day at work, only to bang into a double-tongued Maham outside the harem, who declares that not only has Jodha changed but he, Jalal, has changed a lot as well! To Maham's discomfiture, Jalal fully agrees that he has changed!
When Jodha later hears that Jalal had come to meet her and she had been too busy, she gets all upset with Moti for not telling her clearly enough. Oh my dear, why so upset at having missed meeting him? Could Jodha not bear missing even one small opportunity to be with him? She looks as if she's lost everything when she rants at Moti that she should not have missed seeing him. So then she goes in search of him pronto to apologise ... and interrupts his sword-fight practice. (That was an awesome moment when he comes to a standstill after some vigorous sword-practice moves, with sword horizontal in hand, its blade across her neck ... and sees her large luminous eyes looking at him. I could freeze that moment and look at it again and again!)
She says she's come to say sorry ... and then ensues a lovely dialogue between the two where he calls her beautiful ... and says its not the King, but the friend and husband who's talking. Then when he lets slip a small piece of convo about his "dil", she responds with a friendly ribbing saying she'd heard so much that he had no "dil" so where did it sprout from? Both blushed so coyly throughout this conversation you would think they were on their first date! I loved the way she then said "OK promise me that next time you come to meet me you will announce yourself and not go away without seeing me?" ... and he's so happy to give her that promise. Smiles are stuck on both faces that cannot be wiped out for their hearts are obviously beating hard for each other. I'll detail this convo in the second half of my post, for sure, because I loved this banter and expression of mutual love and utter bonding now between them. What a lovely phase of their relationship when they are both unable to stay away from each other and make promises never to miss a chance to meet up!
The part of the episode that I did not like at all was the way Ruq was now ingratiating herself with Jalal ... although he knew fully well by now why she had made Jodha win the election. It was because she wanted to prevent Jodha having any free time to be with Jalal and she wanted to give herself ample time with him. Anyway despite the scenes being tough to watch - for I hate to see Ruq getting all close up and personal with Jalal - I must admit that Jalal himself was rather lukewarm about Ruq, especially after seeing what her ulterior motives were. Giving in to her persistent pressure, he promised an outing with her after the evening jashn the next day, and Ruq planned shikar among other things ... but let's see what happens at that great jashn and whether Jalal is in any position to keep his date with Ruq!
Meanwhile of course in an ugly later scene, Ruq went to the harem and rubbed Jodha's nose in the dirt saying she was going out with Jalal with all her free time available now, and poor Jodha couln't accompany them for she had too much work to do. The only good part of this Ruq-Jodha confrontation was that Jodha looked a bit jealous to hear Ruq talk of her outing with Jalal, so at least we know Jodha has started feeling more and more possessive about him!
The part of the episode that was neither bad nor good was the Sujamal bit. Meandering through the city, on his planned way out, he stops at a shop when he hears of the impending jashn. When he enquires he is told how Jalal is honouring his pledge to his people and Jodha, and inviting the whole praja for the jashn in thanksgiving to God for saving his Jodha from death after the snake posionn episode.
Sujamal is happy that his sister is being lovingly taken care of by her husband, but unfortunately as a result of the same jashn, the soldiers plan to seal the ingress and egress to and from Agra, and so Sujamal is caught unable to leave the city. This we all expected ... for we are all agog now for the jashn, aren't we?
The precap is another angle that is likley to hit the high spot on Monday. Jodha has already had an altercation with Maham over the ill-treatment of thr ghulam baandhis at the harem, who despite illness are harnessed to work without any relief. Jodha sees (to Maham's consternation) that many of these baandhis want to work no more and just want to go back to their families. Jodha wants to release them from bondage and slavery, but Maham is against.
In the precap we see Jodha's clever plan of taking Jalal on a tour of the harem's most squalid baandhi quarters so he can see for himself how bad things are. I have no doubt she will also introduce Jalal to Babu. On Monday I fully expect that Jodha will win the day and Jalal will agree to abolish slavery and will also perhaps agree to help locate Babu's mother!
At this point folks, only one thing keeps me surviving thorugh all that is happening between Jodha, Jalal and Ruq. I would normally be very put out if I see Ruq thus getting a load of time with Jalal and falling all over him, while Jodha's time is reduced and she has to keep juggling her work, Ruq's nastiness and Jalal's absence from her life. But thankfully for me here is what our dear historians and others who ring Zee often have told us ... they have alll confirmed to us more or less that while Jodha and Jalal get closer and closer amid all the high activity of the oncoming episodes, this Ruq will grow so much desperate that she will overplay her hand and lose the friendship of Jalal, so much so that he even stops talking to her and completely sidelines her.
I would expect that Jalal can tolerate any nastiness to himself personally from Ruq and still forgive her. But if she hereafter does any harm or saazish against Jodha, Jalal is going to be a furious and protective lover. He will not be able to stand any diabolical intentions towards Jodha, and now I think Ruq is going to have so much free time that she's going to spend most of its plotting against Jodha.
So the same free time she craved to spend with Jalal is going to herald her downfall. As the proverb goes "An idle mind is the devil's workshop" and that's exactly what Ruq may become in the eyes of Jalal - a devil that he would like to keep Jodha safe from! I am excited at the prospect of that day when Jalal severs all ties with Ruq. Earlier when Jalal wasn't in love with Jodha I could tolerate somewhat these physical overtures between Ruq and Jalal. But now that Jalal knows he loves Jodha, I am unable to bear watching even one second of Ruq rubbing her body on Jalal's! Yech, blech, God help me, but I can't take it!
Okay, now that all that is off my chest, let me sit back and enjoy detailing the Jodha-Jalal convo for my dearest "thread gang". You guys are the best ... and you are are the loves of my life! One day, because I am spending so much time with you all on this thread, I know I'll lose my job ... but I am sure my "thread gang" will all contribute their mite to see that I am not on the streets typing my daily posts!
"You looked beautiful" he says! "You have a dil'?" she asks!
Jodha is so busy learning about the harem and its accounting system, and hearing the complaints of the disgruntled, that she misses seeing Jalal silently entering the room. He stands back from the crowd around her, grinning from ear to ear to see to see her beseiged by the haremites she now has to control. Moti sees Jalal's entry from the corner of her eye and tries to bring it to Jodha's notice, but Jodha just shushes her up saying "Can't you see I'm attending to important things?". Jalal waits to have more than an eyeful of Jodha on her first absorbing day at work and when he feels he's had enough, he slowly slinks out of the room.
Just outside the harem, Maham is standing by the entrance. "Looks like Begum Jodha is a bit too engaged in harem work, isn't she" says Maham, a touch sarcastically. Jalal replies with as much calm as he can summon "Yes it looks like that!" The vile Maham then brings up memories of the days when Ruq used to similarly be engrossed in harem work when Jalal had to wait to meet her. She was obviously trying to hint that his visits to the harem to meet his wfe had not changed, but the wife whom hewanted to meet had now changed! She also told him "The Shahenshah should be above all other work, shouldn't he?" implying Jodha has screwed up her priorities. "Jodha is new and probably doesn't know, so I'll tell her you've come to meet her."
"Oh no please don't disturb hher" says Jalal, "Its her first day at work and she'll get used to it over time. In fact it makes me very happpy to see give her work so much attention and respect. See she didn't even wait to celebrate her election win, she just went straight to work. That's why I don't want to calll her out". "Then let me also say this Jalal", says Maham with her mouth twisted into a caustic smile "you too are changing a lot before my eyes these days!" The Amer music starts playing as Jalal looks like he's blushing a bit as he understands the implication of Maham's comment. "Yes time does change a person" he admits, as he then takes leave of her. Maham's face changes from a smile to a tight narrow-eyed expression of evil after hearing his words.
Later in her room, an agitated looking Jodha is asking Moti "What? The Shahenshah had come to see me? Why didn't you tell me, Moti?" Poor Moti tried to say "I did try to tell you, but you never even gave me a chance to talk! And then the Shahenshah himself signalled to me that you should not be disturbed, so what could I do?" "Oh God, I thought you were trying to talk about something else. How was I to know you were trying to say the Shahenshah had come to meet me?" Jodha said even more palpably agitated than before. And then she changed her voice into a compplaining tone " ... and lookat this Shahenshah, arriving like this without any announcement. Now God only know what he's thinking about me! He must think I am acting as if I have no time for him! He must have taken that badly!"
"No he wouldn't have taken it as badly as you think" said Moti "for he was smiling when he signalled me not to disturb you. I am sure he will meet you later!" "No" Jodha cut in "I have to meet him rightaway and apologise ..." and she goes off in such a hurry as if her feet could not keep her one moment longer away from him. Who was Jodha kidding? She was not really agitated that he would take her absorption in work amiss ... she was, in truth, unable to bear the thought that he had come for her and she had missed an opportunity to be with him. There was desperation in her voice to make amends immediately, and she hurried to him like someone possessed!
We were then witness to an amazing display of swordfight practice by Jalal. He was in fulll and resplendant form, swishing this way and that, making his macho rolling and swaying and rocking moves, his hair all windswept, when Jodha came upon him. What a sublime moment when she stood still before his sword blade, the weapon almost touching her neck as he came to a halt and realised she was there. Two large, innocent and luminous eyes were looking at him from above the sword blade. "Oh, forgive me" he said as he came to his senses after that assault on his heart by Miss Big Eyes ... "what has brought you here to me?'
Jodha said in haste and sounding a bit breathless "I have come here to say sorry, Shahenshah. You had come to the harem to meet me but I was all caught up in work. Moti just told me" ... and then her voice changed into an accusation "... and why did you signal her not to tell me.? You should have informed me that you were there!"
Jalal said "I did want to tell you I was there, but when I saw you so engrossed I didn't want to disturb you and leave you with no "fursat" at all and with a work backlog." Jodha found herself replying in a torrent of words "Oh, no , it was just because its my first day at work. At first I was so overwhelmed. In fact I should praise Ruq for so ably managing all this for years and never so much uttered even an "uff". She never showed her tiredness, whereas I am all exhausted just by one day at work." All this was just pouring from her lips, so a smiling Jalal said "Bas, bas, bas, I was just teasing you, Jodha Begum. To tell the truth, it feels wondeful to see you so attentive to your work."
Jodha's voice became all remorseful as the real reason for her agitationn dropped out of her mouth "All that is well, but you came to see me and I couldn't meet you, that was not right!" she said plaintively. Jalal tried to set her at ease. "If you had dropped your work to meet that would have actuallly made me feel bbad" he replied "I don't like people who are lackasdaisical about their work. And I want to tell you one thing ... in spite of being so into your work, you were looking so beautiful!"
(I have a doubt here, folks ... did he really mean she looked all glowing and pretty when she was engrossed in work? What was the connection he was making between work and looking beautiful? Sounded to me like the Shahenshah was so wanting to say the "beautiful" word and he managed to fit it into whatever sentence he could muster up!)
What could she say to this sudden compliment? She could not raise her eyes to look into his own eyes that were brimminng with soft senntiments. In the end she said something for the sake of saying something "You are so different when you are in the Diwan-e-Khas!" "Yes" he replied "for there I have to be the King. But here ... I am ... your friend ... your husband ...". He haltingly added the word "friend" first ...and then with more courage the word "husband". All the time he was watching her expression as he tried to see what word she was more comfortable with. She was staring at him so hard as she heard his words that he faltered while trying to continue the eyelocks ...
"In that case" she then said "take it as a request from a friend that the next time you come to see me, you must not go away quietly. You have to go away only after surely meeting me." "I will definitely do that, Jodha Begum" he answered, wiith his eyes now showing extreme eagerness. "But still my "dil" will not allow me to create a block in your work."
"What did you just say" pounced Jodha in mock surprise, "... did you say the word "dil"? I was always told that the Shahenshsh had no "hriday"?" He was trapped. He looked a buit sheepish as he covered up "Jodha Begum, let's discuss some other time if there is a "dil" inside me or not. For the moment, there's a lot of work waiting for me, and I suggest you too go back to your work."
She laughed unreservedly at him and he smiled back, unable to hold back his automatic response to her laughter. The girl had really got under his skin. He smiled sardonicallly to himself after she had left, remembering her swiftness in ribbing him aboout his "dil" remark. Then he too went on his way.
What a sweet encounter! Friends, we have now firmly established two things. He finds her beautiful and wants an excuse to say it. She will not let him forget he has a "dil" no matter how much he covers it up. We love it.
Who cares what Maham thinks? Who cares what Ruq does to ingratiate herself with him?
He is hooked, booked and cooked. And he is a delicious dish!
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