Yudh 'My mistakes'

The 8th episode which I dived in to see after reading Shashishyam's (apologies it should be sashashyam) excellent takes on the first 7 was enough to whet my appetite to watch every next episode.

Thanks kmfan and Mandy. Yudh is going to be full of surprises.

My dear Cuddly Bear,

I am sorry for being late with my comments on this post- I do wish you would do one every day! - but then it is hardly the sort of thing that one labels "Good for only one day after posting"! It will hold for a week and more. In my defence, I must add that I did one earlier, but the line went just as I was getting ready to post it, and as I had failed to save it, it vanished. I was so exasperated that I did not redo it till now. Mea culpa.

I have marked the parts I liked best in deep blue. Your take on the Joker as a portrayal of Yudh's own mental acrobatics is brilliant and novel, and it would be valid on several future occasions as well, I am sure. But not last night; as you will see when you read mine of today Moral degradation.

However, I do not think Yudh was playing Russian roulette with his son's life when he told Gopal that it would have to be the money or the first set of conditions, not both. I think he is pretty sure by then that Gopal has cooked up the money demand - remember that there was nothing in writing as on the first occasion - and so he wants to call his bluff. Gopal's grim warning, contradicting all that he had been saying earlier, would have strengthened Yudh's suspicions about him.

Moreover, if the AILF had made the money demand, Yudh would be confident that they would come back to him for negotiations, and they would never kill the golden goose, Rishi. So it is not that he gambles with Rishi's life; it is a clear-headed call he takes based on the available information.

Later, when he announces a fake ransom payment, that is because all other options seem to be ruled out for one reason or the other. It is a last ditch decision that backfires on Yudh.

All this said and done, and as I have noted in my post of today, what strikes me about Yudh as a character is the stillness at the centre of his being, regardless of the whirlpools in which he gets caught. It is like what Lord Krishna says in the Gita, When you move but nothing moves within you.. Yudh's unshakeable calm under most circumstances is like the stillness at the centre of a spinning top.

Shyamala

Originally posted by: PadBear

The 8th episode which I dived in to see after reading Shashishyam's (apologies it should be sashashyam) excellent takes on the first 7 was enough to whet my appetite to watch every next episode.

This man Yudh. What is he. An institution? A megalomaniac? What does he want to be seen as? Known as ? Amitabh can comfortably move into silent spaces on screen and make me watch his mental gears whir and spin. Rishi's kidnap video watching may have stretched on for a while but it was worth every second. The joker could well be a picture of the mental acrobatics Yudh does when faced with any problem or crisis. Sometimes the process takes a physical toll on his already fragile body but he soon bounces back. Push him too far and he bounces back. Asking for 20 crore and changing the ransom demands suddenly made things clear in Yudh's mind. My son,my money,my mistake, if it ends up being a mistake. Doesn't he just revel in this brinkmanship.

Rishi was meanwhile rescued by two aadivasis who want to remain anonymous. Yudh's calculated gamble pays off - just! Yudh asks to meet the two who rescued Rishi and again, I could see his mind racing ahead of the game. Always probing, trying to find something, anything as leverage against known and unknown enemies. He throws in another grenade to smoke them out - announce on the news that Rishi was released after the ransom was paid. Let's see what fall out this causes. I doubt even Yudh knows.

All this while he kept himself outwardly composed. Until he is informed that there's a been a bomb blast at the mine. Now he's galvanized into action. He,Taruni and Anand arrive at the scene and try to give the rescue top priority. The mine workers accuse Yudh of being more bothered about his son and paying 20 crores for his release and threaten a strike. Little do they know that Yudh had played russian roulette with Rishi's life and the 20 crore is still in the bank. Again, Yudh plays the winning move by shutting down the mine till workplace safety can be guaranteed. The man always has a comeback.

Added to all this, Yudh wants to open a medical centre near the mine. I thought he was being impulsive but turns out that he has been planning on building one and he has the equipment stored somewhere to kit it out. But when he thought he could rope Taruni into this venture, he hits a snag...

A cracking episode.

Originally posted by: sashashyam

My dear Cuddly Bear,

I am sorry for being late with my comments on this post- I do wish you would do one every day! - but then it is hardly the sort of thing that one labels "Good for only one day after posting"! It will hold for a week and more. In my defence, I must add that I did one earlier, but the line went just as I was getting ready to post it, and as I had failed to save it, it vanished. I was so exasperated that I did not redo it till now. Mea culpa.

I have marked the parts I liked best in deep blue. Your take on the Joker as a portrayal of Yudh's own mental acrobatics is brilliant and novel, and it would be valid on several future occasions as well, I am sure. But not last night; as you will see when you read mine of today Moral degradation.

However, I do not think Yudh was playing Russian roulette with his son's life when he told Gopal that it would have to be the money or the first set of conditions, not both. I think he is pretty sure by then that Gopal has cooked up the money demand - remember that there was nothing in writing as on the first occasion - and so he wants to call his bluff. Gopal's grim warning, contradicting all that he had been saying earlier, would have strengthened Yudh's suspicions about him.

Moreover, if the AILF had made the money demand, Yudh would be confident that they would come back to him for negotiations, and they would never kill the golden goose, Rishi. So it is not that he gambles with Rishi's life; it is a clear-headed call he takes based on the available information.

Later, when he announces a fake ransom payment, that is because all other options seem to be ruled out for one reason or the other. It is a last ditch decision that backfires on Yudh.

All this said and done, and as I have noted in my post of today, what strikes me about Yudh as a character is the stillness at the centre of his being, regardless of the whirlpools in which he gets caught. It is like what Lord Krishna says in the Gita, When you move but nothing moves within you.. Yudh's unshakeable calm under most circumstances is like the stillness at the centre of a spinning top.

Shyamala