Mahakumbh 13-16: The plot thickens - Page 7

Thank you, my dear Maitreyee! You Terrible Twins (mentally, even if not actually!😉) are such morale-boosters for me!

I too think that a Dark Maya would be far more interesting than the milquetoast version of a TV serial jheroine that she is being presented as right now. Moreover, I have discovered a point from the Rudra at the police station segment that would buttress the theory that she is not just Balivesh's niece, but also his willing agent.

I remembered her saying, when she is making that call from the police station to her influential Mama, now revealed to be our Sinister Swami, Humne aapko bataya tha na. and then she only gives the details of the Sub-Inspector and the Police Station. She does NOT mention Rudra, or even the trouble he is in.

Despite this, when Swami Balivesh contacts a police higher up (the way in which the SI reacts to the phone call shows clearly that it is from a service senior and not from the Swami) and gets orders passed to release Rudra, clearly the correct details have been passed on by the Swami to the police boss.This can only mean that Maya has discussed Rudra with her Mamaji earlier, which in turn has sinister implications.

If, as seems likely, the apparently scatter-brained Greek girl is also a Rakshak, given that Prof. APG Rao wants to check her credentials from her bag, she must be having an entirely different persona with at least some supenormal powers. Let us see.

Shyamala Aunty

Originally posted by: VasusenaRadheya

What a fabulous take on the last week & Monday's episodes Aunty . 🤗 👏 👍🏼

And YESSS !!! We are indeed dancing a gig after knowing who Maya truly is . Her intentions regarding Rudra never seemed very clear & lovey dovey to me . She was too much into him from the very first second & never even minded when Rudra...in his explosive anger...was trying to throttle her . It was soo unnatural...but then absolutely natural if you think she was trying to get into his & Maimui's good books...which she did ! Brilliantly !

My dear happychappy,

I am very pleased that you liked this one so much, especially the parts about Rudra. And I give you full permission to like the Maya-Rudra passages as much as you want! I loved your crack about Rudra looking the more fatal of the two!

As for the Maya conundrum, while the jury is still out on her,I feel that a Dark Maya would be far more interesting than the milquetoast version of a TV serial heroine that she is being presented as right now. Moreover, I have discovered a point from the Rudra at the police station segment that would buttress the theory that she is not just Balivesh's niece, but also his willing agent.

I remembered her saying, when she is making that call from the police station to her influential Mama, now revealed to be our Sinister Swami, Humne aapko bataya tha na. and then she only gives the details of the Sub-Inspector and the Police Station. She does NOT mention Rudra, or even the trouble he is in.

Despite this, when Swami Balivesh contacts a police higher up (the way in which the SI reacts to the phone call shows clearly that it is from a service senior and not from the Swami) and gets orders passed to release Rudra, clearly the correct details have been passed on by the Swami to the police boss.This can only mean that Maya has discussed Rudra with her Mamaji earlier, which in turn has sinister implications.

If, as seems likely, the apparently scatter-brained Greek girl is also a Rakshak, given that Prof. APG Rao wants to check her credentials from her bag, she must be having an entirely different persona with at least some supernormal powers. Let us see. Poor Ketaki Dave, her thappadiya mata is a frightful caricature, but the veteran Surekha Sikri as Rudra's daadi is quite promising.

Shyamala

Originally posted by: happychappy

Thank you Shyamala, once again for a superb roundup of the "Week in MK!"

I must be a retro kind of person, I rather liked the overall Rudr-Maya theme in Week 4, (and even Punnu Tiwar's shirts!) though the pace of the R-M equation was very space-age for Varanasi! Ignoring such nuances, I especialy loved that song picturisation - some excellently framed shots in there! 😊

Nevertheless, am as much in the dark as anybody else about whether Maya will be femme fatale (at the moment Rudr definitely looks the more fatal of the two! 😆) or gold-plated heroine.

About GR's portrayal of the adult Rudr, your beautifully worded comments in Blue...are spot on!! Knowing what the actor is capable of, the first few days were a major puzzle...But later things got Much Better, thank you MrBabbal for small mercies... Re-reading your comments, it also seems clearer why MaiMui had to go, for Rudr would never have gone to Allahabad otherwise, and that is an inevitable progression?

About the teen Rudr's premonition actually coming real in MaiMui's death by Horror, that was a masterful touch by the writer... Hats Off to Mr Naithani!

My dearest Kunchu,

I am so pleased that you are staying with me and with Mahakumbh, but very sorry that you are so stressed out at work. Perhaps, as you say, this show can be a useful diversion.

I agree with all the points you have made here, and as for the Maya conundrum, do see my response to happychappy above. It can go either way, or first one way, as a negative character, and then switch to the positive side, though I am sure she is not a Rakshak.

The adult Charles is very disappointing in every possible way, and I only hope the other 5 are better cast! The Greek girl is clearly No.3, and her goofiness is put on as protective camouflage.

My knee still makes it difficult for me to write a post at one stretch, and the same goes for these replies,which is why I am finishing those for last Sunday's post only this Saturday!

Shyamala Aunty

My dear Arshi,

I see that we continue to be more or less on the same wavelength all thru, especially re: Maya - your phrasing there is lovely - and as for the adult Punnu and Charles, I have already said exactly the same thing in this post. Of the two, Charles is worse, especially since he will have a more significant role as one of the Rakshaks.

As for the Cardinal and the so-called Swami, neither is at all religious in the real sense of the word. They are just conscienceless and ruthless manipulators of all around them, and of the two, Balivesh seems to be the worse. The Cardinal at least says that he wants to benefit very large numbers of people, whereas Balivesh, who is more overtly a religious leader, seems to want nothing but raw power thru the amrit, at least so far as we know right now.

Of course the Swami and the Polish lot are in cahoots right now, with each ready to cheat the other and even to cut the other's throat if need be. For it is a marriage of convenience, with all that the term implies!

Moreover, the power equation between them seems a bit lopsided, as Balivesh deals only with Grierson, and that too not as a superior but as an equal, whereas the Cardinal is clearly Grierson's boss. It would be interesting to see how the aloof, patrician Cardinal interacts with the Swami when he lands up for the Mahakumbh. Interestingly, the Cardinal treats Shivanand as an intellectual equal, and as someone he admires and respects, regardless of the fact that they are on opposite sides of the fence. He is clearly a sound judge of men.

Shyamala

Originally posted by: Arshics

100% agree with you, esp about Maya! She doesn't fit in with the characteristics her name depict - that of someone mysteriously enchanting and someone irresistibly alluring, who entrances Rudra!

And the elders disappoint, both punnu and Charles. They do not have the punch their child actors had.

The swami and the bishop being hand in glove has a message - religious leaders all over the world are seeking self power, and use their positions to further their own ambitions, so their being hand in glove - not surprising!

My dear Preeti,

Hallelujah! At last someone spotted the Pallas Athena bit! Thank you, my dear!

As for Maya, as she is not going anywhere any time soon, I suppose we will have to endure her. In fact, as I have noted above, I would clearly prefer her as a Dark Lady (not Shakespeare's Dark Lady of the sonnets!) to having this unconvincing cross between a 21st century female and the pattern card TV serial heroine. But I am not at all sure what Utkarsh has in mind.