Friends, I must admit that I am a bit surprised after yesterday's episode because it threw some confusion into what I had expected would be the sequence of tracks going forward in the story.
I had somehow formed a feeling at the end of last week, when we saw the Khyber kidnap promo, that all the three other open tracks would be held in abeyance for the kidnap track to be over first. After the kidnap track was completed, I expected that we would then have the Chand Begum resurfacing track, the Maham exposure track and then the Ruq exposure track ... in that order.
Yesterday's episode however, and the one just before it, seemed to carry forward all four tracks parallelly. In the previous episode itself we saw signs of Ruq jealousy and her resolve that she would not "... let this Jodha baby happen!". Then in yesterday's episode we saw equal bits of the kidnap caravan progressing towards Agra, the announcement of the pregnancy jashn by Jalal, and the fear of exposure exhibited by Maham when Nigar was summoned to the DEK by Jalal to discuss the Chand Begum search issue.
I started wondering if thus all four tracks would somehow be shown intertwining and complicating the story in the next few weeks.
That was one possibility to consider. But that was not all there was to the confusion. The last DEK scene of the episode yesterday also left itself open to a lot opinions on whether it was a dream of Maham (fearing exposure) or if it was at least partially a dream of Maham.
The opinions I got from various people about the last DEK scene:
Some forum members I spoke to last night felt that the whole DEK scene of yesterday was all Maham's dream and she had imagined the summoning of Nigar to the DEK by Jalal, the discussions on Chand Begum between Jalal and Nigar, and then Nigar pointing to Maham as the cuprit who had brainwashed her such that Jalal condemns Maham to prison. Those who believed this whole scene to be a dream of Maham's also said "If it was not a dream, Adham would not have had the guts to talk of beheading Jalal".
However, others I spoke to had this "partial dream" idea. They felt that it was real that Jalal summoned Nigar to the DEK and then had discussions with her on Chand Begum's whereabouts. Then it was again real that Jalal asked Nigar who poisoned her mind against Jalal as her mother's captor. But the dream part starts when Nigar points to Maham and says "It was she!" Thus Maham was dreaming as if she had been accused by Nigar, and then as if she is begging for mercy and then also as if Adham was ready to behead Jalal.
My own prediction at this stage:
I must admit that after thinking through things for myself, I am of the opinion that:
a. The dream does not begin with the whole DEK scene, it begins with the first part of the DEK scene being real - and the dream of Maham starts when Nigar accuses her of being the "brainwashing culprit".
b. The four tracks (i.e. the kidnap track, the Chand Begum exposure track, the Maham exposure track and the Ruq exposure track) will all happen parallelly (and intertwiningly) and culminate together leading to a series of big bhandaphods like a domino effect. I don't think these four tracks will happen one after another.
This is how I see it happening:
My feeling is that when Jalal in the DEK scene asks Nigar "Who is it that poisoned you against me?" Nigar will in reality refrain from naming Maham much to Maham's relief. And the reason will be that since Nigar has come here to actually help Khyber kidnap Jodha and attack Jalal, Nigar would need the continued help of Maham to somehow smuggle Khyber into the Palace. So Nigar will not expose Maham (as Maham fears in her dream) but will actually say she got the idea of Jalal being her enemy from within her own mind.
Thus saved in the nick of time, Maham and Nigar will have that one-to-one talk that Maham wants ... and Nigar will then blackmail Maham of exposure on the Chand Begum/farman/khazana issue if she doesn't help with the Khyber kidnap ... and thus Maham will find herself embroiled in helping Nigar to get Khyber in and out of the Palace.
I also think that parallelly, Ruq will try to engage with Maham to devise some plan to prevent Jodha from giving birth to the baby and becoming the MUZ ... and thus Maham being of like mind with Ruq on this, may also get embroiled with Ruq in a separate "baby-prevention plan".
Maybe Maham will believe that the "kidnap trauma" itself will also act as the "baby-prevention plan" (although I don't expect Maham to tell this to Ruq). Maham may say to Ruq that she plans to get Jodha and the baby kidnapped by someone, but not state by whom. I think Maham will make sure that even if Ruq doesn't know what exact plan Maham has to get rid of the baby and Jodha, Ruq's permission for going ahead with the plan is sought and expressly given, so that tomorrow if the plan fails, Maham can nail Ruq along with herself.
Ok, so let's say they go ahead with the plan and Khyber is successfully smuggled into the Palace and goes off with Jodha - and Jalal runs after him and Ruq watches with glee.
Now I also think the whole kidnap will become a fiasco for Mahchuchak, Abul Mali, Nigar, Maham and Ruq ... because as the Khyber handler has often said "Khyber is such an animal because his inner insaaniyat' has not been touched". I expect that Jodha will at first fear this kidnapper due to his size and ferocious looks, but in her typical fashion she will be able to soften him from an animal to a man by appealing to his "dil" (after all she has already rescued one jallad by showing him his "dil" and she can do it again.)
Thus Khyber instead of attacking Jodha may very well turn 360 degrees to become her protector and he may also spare Jalal when he comes to fight for Jodha. To give Jalal his herogiri moments there will be a big fight with Khyber ... but then Jodha will explain all and tell Jalal that Khyber has joined their side. Thereafter Khyber may well tell Jalal he chooses to become part of Jalal's arsenal rather than continue to be part of Mahchuchak's ill-treating household.
When the kidnap attempt thus becomes a "tain tain fiss", we may have the domino effect of this on Nigar, Maham and Ruq (in that order). Nigar will get caught for being in cahoots with Khyber, Maham will get caught for being in cahoots with Nigar, and Ruq may get caught for being in cahoots with Maham. To add to this there may be the discovery of Chand Begum (I would enjoy it more if she herself bolted from that surang) and she then declares that Nigar was never her daughter at all! And thus we may get a culminated ending to all the open tracks.
It is at this point I expect that Jalal will then try to make Jodha's pregnancy more pleasant by bringing in Tansen to soothe her frayed nerves and give her peace for the rest of the pregnancy. Maham could get imprisoned, Ruq could get sidelined and neglected by Jalal, and the foundation could be set for the Adham financial fraud track to start.
This is my hunch that I have tried to put down as a prediction, so let's see if it happens that way!
For all those who may like to read it, here's what all happened in yesterday's episode:
Jalal had expressed his anger against Jodha in the previous episode for not telling him about her pregnancy, and this episode began with Jodha's indignant reply.
"I had taken the decision as a Begum of the Mughal Sultanate, as the wife of the Shahenshah, and as the duty of a Rajvanshi stree. I took the decision so that you would not become weak. You didn't want to wage war on your own sister and if at such a time I told you I was pregnant, you may never even have entered the war. But I am a Rajvanshi, and we Rajvanshis are the "shakti" of our husbands and not their weakness. We women send our husbands off to war with the tilak of our own blood, we do not cry and release them from their duties. For us our duties have always been priority and will always remain so. That's why I had to hide this news from you."
"It's because I wanted my child to be the person who would give his life for others. I didn't want him to be saving his own life in the face of war like a coward. And I am glad my child learned his first lessons in bravery right from the womb, ready to give his life for others."
Jodha had been shouting loudly so far and Jalal was wearing an expression of silent disbelief at hearing all this. But now Jodha's voice became soft. "One night before you were leaving on war I came to know I was pregnant. So tell me, when a Shahehnshah is going off to war for his country and his praja, how could I give him this distracting personal news? After the win in the war I sure wanted to give you this news. But I just couldn't get the time or place to do it right."
"Did you think me so weak, Jodha Begum, that I would just retract from war if I heard this news? Didn't you not have that much faith in me?" Jalal asked her with pain in his voice. "Yes I did trust you Shahenshah. But I was afraid that after I gave you the news I myself would become weak. In fact, I was so looking forward to giving you this news in the DEK near the throne. I did try ... but suddenly then Nigar appeared, and the moment was lost ..." She trailed off in her speaking, feeling the strain of having said so much and feeling so much.
Jalal saw the sincerity in her face and put his forehead to hers and said in soft tones "I am not angry with you Jodha Begum. I was just going crazy and so worried about you and the child we are to have. What if something had happened to you in the war?" He just pulled her to himself with all the love at his command and gave her a tight embrace. Jodha felt the sanctuary of his hug and they both allowed themselves to feel the feelings of each other. The same news that had made them rile against each other was now pulling them together.
At Kabul, an entirely different type of scene was being enacted. The animal-man Khyber was being made to demonstrate his ferocity before an audience of three - Mahchuchak, Abul Mali and Faazal Beg. Khyber's handler kept cracking the whip menacingly, as Khyber proved to be more than even his handler could handle at times. Like a trapped and tortured animal, he kept chafing at the restraining bars of his cage, waiting to be let out to roam free and destroy everything in sight.
His handler then gave this animal-man a piece of blood-soaked rag to sniff. Three human-sized dolls were placed before Khyber and he rightly identified the doll wearing the same blood-soaked clothes that matched. He then proceeded to pulverize the doll before everyone, and Mahchuchak clapped in glee that he has passed this "puthla" test. "He is now ready for the real world. Get him ready for his Agra trip," she ordered. "But Huzoor, we need the blood sample of Jalal if he is to attack and kill Jalal," the handler said. "That will be arranged" said Abul Mali.
At Agra, a very happy-looking Jalal was holding Jodha by her her hand and her shoulders and telling all the assembled ladies present in the room the good tidings."I called all of you here today because I wanted to share some good news," he said. "This is that kind of good news that we have all been waiting so long for. Jodha Begum has given me such a huge reward and reason for loving her. I wanted to tell you all that Jodha is to become a mother and give birth to our child." The absolute surprise and delight on the faces of all the women present who wished Jodha well was a sight to behold. All except two women were shown in transports of delight. Ruq was totally absent from the gathering ... and Maham was putting on an act of looking surprised.
Hamida of course was in raptures, thanking God for this good news. She hugged and kissed Jodha and presented her a haar from her own neck. Salima then hugged Jodha unreservedly and wished her well. "When the news is so big, there's going to be a big jashn to match as well, within one week, when I want all of you to please attend," said Jalal. Then, turning to Jodha, Jalal added "You have given me the most beautiful gift of my life. Now I will give you the kind of gift you'll never forget!"
The voiceover then announced that even as a jashn was being planned at the Agra Palace, the caravan of Khyber, the animal-man, had already started from Kabul towards Agra with Mahchuchak's army in attendance. Khyber's only goal was Jalal's death. To loud cries of "Fateh" the soldiers of Mahchuchak marched behind the rolling cage of Khyber.
Jalal and Jodha were still with the women of the palace, one by one offering her their good wishes . Maham stood sulking in a corner of the room thinking, "Oh my God, what next? We are to now have a Rajvanshi standing in the queue to become the next Marium Uz Zamani? No, this can't be allowed to happen!" Nigar too was standing in another corner but she at least wore a happy expression for Jodha.
Meanwhile the caravan of Mahchuchak's men kept moving along towards Agra, as Khyber made loud and restive grunts and groans in his cage.
In her own hojra, a little later, Jodha was stringing flowers for Kanha, when Moti Bali and Zakira tried telling her to stay off her workload. Jodha made a fuss to drop her work and said she had no intention of acting as an invalid. Just then Jalal entered the room and told Moti Bai "It's no use talking to her, for you all know Jodha Begum is such a ziddi. She will do exactly only what she wants always. To worry about her is like banging your own head on the wall." Jodha, acting miffed, put away her work and said to Jalal "OK, I won't do this. But why do you have to keep tana-maroing me?" She then plonked herself on the bed as if in anger and a sulk. Jalal tried to pacify her saying "OK, now don't be angry. I was just trying to joke with you". He smiled and laughed in good humour. "Allah is great, you have indeed given me so much happiness" he said to her and Jodha began to smile back.
Moti, seeing the couple together in a private moment, asked for leave to go, when Jalal told her "Moti Bai, you are in charge of the care of Jodha. I hope she's taking all her medicines that the hakim gave her? Good. I will hold you responsible for Jodha's welfare!" Moti nodded delightedly and left. The couple then keep smiling happily at each other when there was another visitor. Hamida entered asking after Jodha's health. She then gifted Jodha some chatpata edibles to suit her tastes in pregnancy ... some mangoes and other savoury tidbits ... saying "These are not gifts fit for a Queen, but you yourself have often said it is not the gift but the intention of the giver that matters?" Jodha rose to give Hamida a warm embrace as Jalal looked happily on. "I have to go now" said Hamida presently, " I have work to do as a grandmother-to-be. And we have to send invitations even for your parents".
When Hamida left Jalal asked Jodha "How do you manage to do this every time? You are so ziddi and yet the pet of the whole household?" "It's because there are people in this palace ready to be pleased. And that also explains why you are more liked by all than me" said Jodha. "Just think then Jodha Begum, when the parents are so good, how will our child be?" said Jalal teasingly. Jodha replied "Oh yes, our child will be as good as you and me."
"That's exactly what I want, Jodha Begum, if it's a daughter I want her to be as pretty and lively and very brave as you." Jalal said. "And if it's a boy, I want him to be exactly like you," she replied, "a great Shahenshah and a great warrior".
In another hojra in the palace, Gulbadan was reading out to Nigar about her mother. "She loved games and especially watching chaugaan and even playing it", Gulbadan said. Just then Maham appeared, hidden behind the curtains and cursed her luck. "What the hell, every time I try to get Nigar alone to talk to her, someone or the other is with her," Maham muttered.
"It's lovely hearing about my mother" said Nigar to Gulbadan. "But the last time I met her she was in such a bad mental state unable to even recognise me. I have no idea where she is right now, how she is ... or even if she's alive". Nigar was all weepy as Gulbadan rose to comfort her. "Stay patient my child, by God's grace Jalal will soon find your mother for you" Gulbadan said gently. Maham, however, still behind the curtains, said to herself "This is exactly what I don't want. At no cost should Jalal reach Chand Begum. And what if Nigar opens her mouth about me to Jalal, where will that leave me? I have to try and talk to Nigar as fast as possible."
Just then a summons for Nigar comes from Jalal. She had been summoned to meet him at the DEK. Maham didn't like the sound of this one bit. "Oh this is worse," she said to herself. "This session must be to talk about Chand Begum, and if Nigar tells Jalal that in this whole matter I came to her help, the whole Pandora's box will fall open."
In an encampment on the way to Agra, Mahchuchak in in her khema, As she says "We are now not far from Agra, our destination is nearing", Abul Mali and Faazal Beg come to her with a blood-soaked piece of cloth. "Here is Jalal's blood" they say ... and Mali confirms it was taken from the cavern where Jalal was kept and tortured during the war. "Excellent", says Mahchuchak!
At the DEK, Jalal is then shown holding court and telling Nigar in front of all his family and courtiers, "Nigar Apa, believe me I want to help find your mother. But I need more information from you. When was the last time you saw her, how was she and where exactly did you see her ... and how did you get there? Because later I sent my soldiers everywhere but couldn't find her." Maham and Adham listen to all this with expressions of deep guilt and fear. Nigar starts talking "It was the night of your wedding anniversary with Jodha Begum. That night you were going to distribute sweets to the jail inmates. Sitting inside one of the food containers I reached to where my mother was kept incarcerated." All this was coming as news to Maham!
"After I saw the mad and tortured state of my mother, I got very angry with you" Nigar told Jalal. "My mother couldn't even recognise me". "Don't worry Nigar Apa", said Jalal, "I will very soon find your mother and sternly punish whoever reduced her to this state. But tell me this ... who told you that I kept your mother incarcerated?" Maham by now started looking alarmed at the trend of questioning.
"I came to know that my father Humayun had left a farman and a khazana for me to inherit, but I was also told you would not like to share your inheritances with me as per this farman." Nigar explained. Jalal then quickly asked her "And who told you this lie about me?'' Nigar without moving a muscle on her face said "It was the same person who was once very close to you".
"Tell me the name of that person who's been spreading canards about me!" yelled Jalal in impatience. Maham started sidling away towards the door thinking "Oh my God, that moment has arrived that I have been dreading." Nigar then raises her hand in answer to Jalal and points at Maham and says "It was Mahamanga!" The whole court rises in shock to hear this, and as Maham tries to work herself out of the door Atga stops her saying all options are now closed. Maham's face is a picture of dread and dismay.
Jalal then rises unable to contain his anger. "All my life I have given you love and respect and instead you have tried to hurt me through my family, through Jodha Begum, and now you have thrown mud on my character? You don't even deserve a death sentence. Atga Saab, put her in jail for life" he shouts.
Maham drops to her knees in pleading "Mercy, please Shahenshah! You know I have loved you more than my own son," she begs. Jalal replies "But in return you have given me such deep distress?!"
Her son Adham though is disgusted to see his mother beg. "I will behead this person who has used you" he says pointing to Jalal. But as he unsheathes his sword, all the courtiers at the DEK draw their own swords and checkmate him. Jalal continues to stare in disgust at Maham.
In the precap, Jalal and Jodha are sitting together, when a hakima says to Jalal, "Aaapke bacchey mubarak ho". Jalal is amazed that she has said referred to "children" and not just one child. The hakima then explains to them both that Jodha is going to have twins. Jalal's mouth flies open in utter surprise!
My comments on this episode:
Since I have already given my prediction in the opening remarks there is one other comment I want to make here about the "Jodha-Jalal baby-happiness equation" after the angry talks he had with her and the answers she then gave him. I especially want to comment on Jalal's face and the subsequent joy (or absence of it, according to some) when Jalal was talking of Jodha's pregnancy.
I got a lot of PMs saying people were quite disappointed with the "lukewarm way" in which Jalal was reacting to Jodha being pregnant - especially in comparison with the way he had over-reacted during Ruq's first genuine pregnancy and her subsequent fake one.
Folks, I think we have to see Jalal in the context of all three successive pregnancy-related events he has been through as a person, and as one who has evolved through the three experience - instead of comparing how he behaved the first and second time with how he is behaving this third time.
Did you all notice in this yesterday episode, after Jodha gives him all her reasons for hiding the pregnancy from him, she says crucially that she was not so much afraid he would back off from war, but that she would herself weaken if she didn't have that baby in her pushing her to win the war. At that point Jalal says to her "I am not angry with you. But I went crazy, I guess, from worry for you and the baby."
I thought that sentence was very revealing. In the first two pregnancies of Ruq (genuine and fake ones) I thought he seemed more concerned and happy about the baby and saw Ruq as the "carrier" of the baby than as somebody in and of herself (however crass that sounds). In fact Ruq herself even added to this perception that she was more about the audha and he was more into the baby.
The big difference to me here in Jodha's pregnancy is that Jalal is equally worried about both - the mother and the baby. In fact he is more worried about the mother than the baby, if we can say that. His reactions are not that extreme about the baby and neither are they so at the cost of his feelings for Jodha ...
... and further, when Jodha has already proved that she has been careful enough with the baby to even fight a war without damage to herself or the baby, Jalal must be feeling relieved that he has a partner of solidity and not a frothy woman who cannot take care of herself. All he needed to do was to tell Moti to be extra-careful with Jodha. He did not need to summon twenty-thousand bandhis or fuss over Jodha's kaada as he did over the less responsible Ruq.
He knows that while the Ruq-types will even smoke hookahs irresponsibly in pregnancy, here was a woman who went through war and came out with responsibility well carried out!
Jalal has now in his own words been led through "one pregnancy and two expectations" and he knows better than to jump up and down with a light head as he did before. He is a seasoned man now, relatively speaking, and is seeing the solidity of this pregnancy in a serious, non-frivolous way ... and in a way his own behaviour is also influencing his mother and others who may otherwise tend to get carried away with the "news" and the "jashn" etc.
I think Jalal will be very refreshingly different this time and show his care and joy of his baby differently. He will be less "baby-enamoured" and more genuinely caring about Jodha. He will not pamper her with bouts of just sitting beside her and holding her hand (as he did with the monopolising Ruq) but he will do really worthwhile things like bringing Tansen to delight Jodha with soothing music, he will give her a serious title maybe at the jashn, he will surprise and delight her with the way he cares for her and takes her for long walks and exercise - all of which will not be his usual pampering style.
I want to wait and see the new Jalal-as-father and I do not want a repeat of the same Jalal-as-father that I saw when he was with Ruq during those pregnancies. I want him to be doing things for Jodha that are exclusively for her and not a repetitive drama of whatever he did for Ruq. I didn't enjoy him going cock-a-hoop about the baby before with Ruq, but I would like him to really sit with Jodha and do valuable things like planning the upbringing of their child.
He has two more "jolts to take" in this pregnancy now and so I expect him to be even more of a chastened but delighted mature dad-to-be and not behave like a teenager-dad. He still has to manage the kidnap event and then bring Jodha back from trauma, and then he has to adjust to the idea that there are going to be twins and not just one child.
Folks, please let us not hope to see the same old Jalal that was with Ruq during pregnancy. Please let's hope we get a new kind of Jalal we have never seen before - and let's hope to enjoy the new ways in which he enjoys the birth of this child from a woman he loves even beyond the love of his child.
I have read a quotation somewhere and I am glad I remembered it just in time. It had come out in the Reader's Digest many years ago but it stuck with me. It says "The best thing a father can do for his child is to love its mother!" I want Jalal to give that gift of beautiful warmth and security to his child by showing that child how much he loves its mother!
CID
Cricket
