Posted:
Here is my response to the CVs new promo as one of the Presidents of the Todarmal Fan Club:
Dear CVs,
I need to applaud you for this masterstroke promo of having Shehnaaz accuse Todarmal of taking advantage of her. I am delighted that you have finally decided to dedicate screen time to one of the Navratans, Todarmal, a critical person in the court of Jalal/Akbar. I also find Shaurya Singh to have a very strong screen presence- good job selecting him.
With Jodha-Jalal's milan, at this point, you know it is highly unlikely that Jodha-Jalal can misunderstand each other as victims of a conspiracy ... And you very well know, our love and sympathies lie with Jodha and Jalal more than any other character.
Hence, you very brilliantly made us like another character: Todarmal. Kudos to how beautifully you introduced this character ...
- Who was brave enough to gave Badal-Kajri shelter
- Who did not allow his guest to fight the dacoits at first out of respect
- Who was alert enough to recognize his guest was special and found out he was the Shehenshah
- Who was tactful enough to not directly reveal the Shehenshah's identity, but earned his respect by giving him his father's seal
- Who had won praise across the Mughal sultanate (even while working for an enemy) by returning the women of the harem safely to Humayun
- Who was kind enough to run an ashram that was a refuge to those who needed it
- Who was gracious enough to accept Jalal's invitation to work for him
- Who was at the same time brave enough to set his conditions directly to Jalal and knew he did not want any middle-men
- Who was confident enough to stand up to Jalal on taxes and corruption when Jalal was sceptical
- Who was intelligent enough to realize the benefits of abolishing a tax as it sould bring stability and peace across the region
You made me like the character so much that I finally wanted to start a fan club. I never was part of a fan club let alone started one.
And, then you forgot about him for a while to my sadness... As a Finance Minister, I thought he would at least have a role with the new coins but no ... Then finally, this promo struck us again and you brought his character to the forefront but under attack! Sheer brilliance! People like me are up in arms about Todarmal. You have caught our excitement!
It is natural we are upset- obviously it is hard to see a person who is respected so much in both history and the show accused of such a heinous crimes by someone who is supposedly of royal lineage.
But then, it was an era of political intrigue and conspiracies where people who were rising in power and important were often targeted by such allegations. So, perhaps, you are paying a backward compliment to Todarmal through this track, that he was important enough for a conspiracy? And Gold always has to be refined in fire ... Perhaps, Todarmal will come out stronger after this track?
I don't know the purpose of this track - but at this point as a viewer I am used to such accusations. I have seen them hurled at Jodha - from a miscarriage to infidelity thanks to beautifully planted evidence. In terms of crimes against women, everyone has long forgotten Adham Khan's attack on Moti, Tasneem, and many others. So, what is the big deal? Obviously nothing, you know we are used to it and can deal with it.
I know Todarmal will come out unscathed of this one and perhaps you will take this opportunity to give him more dialogues as well as show Jodha and Jalal lead a true investigation. Maybe that is your point.
What I am sure of is you must have considered all the things in history books about Todarmal and chosen this one as the most exciting one over the wars he helped win, reforms he helped pass, rehaul of the revenue system, and all his social work in renovating temples etc. You must have considered the following:
- You probably considered Todarmal gathering evidence against Adham Khan Or an encore of a sword fighting duel between Todarmal and Adham Khan? I mean we always hear about how the bad guys plan to raise forces against the bad guys ... We could also hear about how the good guys plan against the bad guys. But, you probably thought that would be too boring.
- You probably considered an opportunity to send Jalal and Todarmal off to a war where they both discuss the approach to consider the enemy ... I mean I have heard Maham Anga discuss the strategy to get the Delhi Ka taqt so much, you must know we like to hear about strategy. And if you want to throw in some romance, how about Jodha and Jalal having sweet flashbacks of each other and see Jodha imagining Jalal in a few places across Agra. But, you probably thought that would be too boring.
- You probably considered having news of some unrest among peasants due to land rights and taxes and corruption ... Where you can send Jalal and Todarmal in disguise to investigate and develop land and tax reforms ... Oh, what about Jodha? Well you could have her dressed up as a man and join them for some investigations ... Or as Kajri again. You know we love Jalal-Jodha as commoners and out of Agra, don't you? But, you probably thought that would be too boring.
- You probably considered Todarmal renovating a nearby temple and inviting Jodha-Jalal to visit it? We could have a sweet picnic on the way ... And some nok jhok between Jodha and Jalal on the way and them appreciating Todarmal's hunars. But, you probably thought that would be too boring.
So, obviously, the best idea was to have Todarmal under fire for taking advantage of Shehnaaz. However, perhaps, you may want to store these ideas in the future- just in case things start getting even more boring than my ideas.
But, even if you choose to never show this in the show, one tv show cannot erase what history books say about Todarmal, or that being said, any historical character.
While TRPs may value conspiracies and false allegations, history and time will respect only the achievements of historical leaders and nothing will change that.
CVs, you are very lucky. You have an amazing cast and a loyal fan base that will watch anything you show ... You also have our trust, which I am sure you will try everything in your power to maintain.
Sincerely,
Divya
President-e-khaas of the Todarmal Fan Club (Yes, I gave myself the title)
In conclusion:
First, I hope you can see I am being sarcastic ... Apologies if you thought I was seriously lauding the CVs. That being said, I truly appreciate the effort of all the actors and actresses who are trying to bring dignity to such a trying script.
Second, I have noticed every weekend either the CVs or the media do something to ruin it. This time it is the Todarmal promo. We can protest as much as we want but it will fall on deaf ears and they know when we hate something we tune in all the more as we obviously know Todarmal comes out of this unscathed. I think the best way we can protest is to recognize and appreciate all the greatness of Todarmal and the other navratans and truly enjoy history and show the CVs the richness they are missing.
I am sure wikipedia is not the most trusted source but loved reading about Todarmal here: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todar_Mal
I have found some more sources that I will share later.
But, fellow members of the Todarmal Fan Club, and all others, please join with your thoughts to support the character of Todarmal in these trying times!
Who knows the promo may be totally misleading and I just wasted all this time! šIn any case, I am glad Todarmal is finally getting screen space
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Anupamaa
