Posted:
...and before you clobber me for claiming exclusive rights over these two where none are available, let me hasten to add that by "my" I mean how I see them in my mind's eye.đ
Paro
A slight, slender, beautiful girl, tender and pure of heart, stubborn and single of mind. She has faced the ultimate tragedy a child can imagine...that of losing their parents, with remarkable strength and fortitude, bouncing back from it under the loving care of her Mamisa and Thakurainsa. She is not one to wallow in self-pity, or use her tragic past as an excuse to be anti-social, or cruel. Quite the opposite. If anything, she is more empathetic to others' misery and feels for all, man or animal. Being an orphan, she is quick to forge relations, specially with those elder to her.
Belying her slender frame, is her formidable strength of character that comes from a pure heart and uncompromising principles. This, when coupled with her unstinting faith in her Bholenath, makes her incredibly strong emotionally, and she is able to bear the sundry knocks of fate that are thrown her way by the writers, with relative equanimity. That is not to say she is this wonder woman who does not hurt...she does hurt...heartbreakingly so...but she also possesses the strength to get up, wipe off the battle dust, and move on.
In a nutshell, my Paro is a fighter - not a soldier with arms, not a wrestler with muscles, not a gladiator with bravado, - but a fighter all the same...with a hearty heart, spirit and moral certitude. She used to be afraid...chiefly on account of not being exposed to much else than the small village where she grew up...and the recurring nightmares that plagued her shut eye. But not anymore...the recent developments in her life have tested her faith and all that she stood for so comprehensively, that she has come out on the other side completely independent, certain and unafraid. Her baptism by fire has succeeded in banishing her fear of fire once and for all.
Rudr
A tall, handsome, manly man with a child's heart and liquid pools of pain for eyes. Like Paro, he has faced a tragic childhood filled with desertion of a most beloved mother, and bitterness and anger of an abandoned father. The most painful and stinging part of his mother's departure is the entirely voluntary nature of it. Not for him the solace of knowing that an unconquerable act of nature or war snatched his mother away from him. For such events, tragic as they may be, bring with them the comfort of knowing that nothing could be done about them. They were beyond our control, and thus make it a tad easier for victims to find some closure. At least, there is little or no regret of wondering if this would not have happened had they done something or the other differently. There is no blame to wrestle with.
And Rudr wrestles with that very same blame and guilt ...that his mother had unknowingly planted in his heart by threatening to leave everytime he did not listen to her. That little boy never did grow up, mired as he was in this guilt and regret. And on top of that were the bitter father's bitter, misogynist rantings. "Khoobsoorat auratein kisi ki nahin hoti..."
Brilliant. We wouldn't find a more effective anthem for Misogynist Mahasabha anywhere, were we to look for it.
All this pain, guilt, bitterness, hatred, faithlessness, has hollowed out his heart and rendered it void of any love. The only fine emotions left in it are those of patriotism, and valour. The physical strength is unquestionable, but mental and emotional strength is seriously lacking. He is hot headed, unstable, and prone to making emotional decisions, without thinking the ramifications of his actions through. There is little that he views without the filters of his past distorting the vision.
My Rudr is also a fighter, but only of the soldier with arms kind. He is unable to fight his inner demons, and move past them to lead a healthy, wholesome life. He is mired in his past, and mentally and emotionally trapped inside the head of that fourteen year old boy whose mother deserted him that fateful night so many years ago.
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So there you have it...this is how I see these characters and how this show is making sense to me. Not as much sense as I would like, but some sense all the same.
Paro is definitely the stronger of the two, and Rudr will need all her gentleness, steely nerve, and compassion to break free of the chains. Till then, he is the hunted, while she is the anchor. On the face of it, she is seeking his forgiveness, but in reality, it is he who is seeking that cool, calming gentle rain that will bank the fire in his heart. And it is only she who can provide it. Subconsciously he knows it...he just hasn't acknowledged it.
Now off to watch tonight's showđ
