Posted:
Howard Payne: Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a bomb on a bus. Once the bus goes 50 miles an hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50, it blows up. What do you do? What do you do? (Speed, 1994)
So essentially, THIS was the crux of today's episode. 😕
To be or not to be.
No really, that was the RESULT of the core question - HOW TO DRIVE SO AS TO MAINTAIN 60km/hr??? So that a bus full of kids and ladies doesnt explode to its shreds..so that an entire family doesn't get wiped out due to a deranged man's misplaced anger and sense of revenge.
I admit, all of us (including me) have been guilty of trolling the BUS scene and bashing it left, right and centre based on the promos and a couple of pics on Twitter. We took it to be CVs CONVOLUTED scripting to declare Ishita as Superwoman, as the saviour who possibly ends up sacrificing her dream, her baby for the sake of greater good or something (I stand by it. It STILL IS THE MOTIVE😕). But then I for the life of me, did NOT see it as remotely convincing...convincing enuff to digest Ishita taking the wheel and guiding the others to safety...until TODAY.
Yesterday was anxiety-inducing...yes...but it was Ishita's horror at realizing they've been stranded to die a gruesome death (in the end), with the driver jumping off to save his arse...that really GOT me. Its scary...it was goosebump-inducing...the contemplation that they may all end up being reduced to ashes if the bomb DID explode got to me. Really. It was scary...I was trying to imagine how effing petrifying it must be to find oneself in such a situation...you are happily out on a family trip and the driver (who you trust with your life LITERALLY) decides he'd rather have you dead and jumps off to the side of the road leaving you to die...
DT...HATS OFF FOR THE MINUTEST OF EXPRESSIONS NAILED DOWN TO THE T!👏 She hasn't been lapping up ALL the awards for nothing!!👏👏
What all do I comment on today? Am at a loss for words...for once😆
Everybody was TOP-NOTCH today..EVERYBODY acted their part well...👏
I'll prolly make pointers in that regard, to ease my confusion and not miss out on something crucial...
1. The few minutes after Chand jumped off the driver's seat...that the bus kept dangerously swaying left and right...in an ominous fashion...the women and the kids inside crying and howling, uncertain what was to happen next minute...and the way Ishita (who was standing in the front) could only stare ahead at the road and the gloomy deadly possibilities looming inside her, thinking of what could happen...if the speed came down, if the moving bus unattended by a driver rammed into someone/something. Perfect! 👏
2.Not finding another way to deal with the situation, Ishita jumps in the driver's seat and puts her knowledge of driving cars to driving this giant bus...she is not sure what she's doing (am sure the way the gear of a bus works is different) and yet, she wants to keep going, driving the bus to wherever she can...so long as everybody inside is safe...the desperation, anguish, occasionally, a steely will to not give up and do what she knows best...BRILLIANT!!👏 NOW I understand why SHE was shown driving the bus in the promos...that is because prolly only SHE knows how to drive a four-wheeler...makes sense...if I were in that kinda horrific situation, I'd do WHATEVER I could to keep everyone safe and sound. Even though I was a learner or something...
3. Honestly, I STILL dont get Chand's misplaced anger...and his decision of avenging Ashok Khanna by trying to kill Adi and his family😕..and yet, the man DID look kind of crooked and twisted and a complete goner. I guess the death of a kid can really traumatise some people. Only today there was a news item flashing on NDTV...A couple committed suicide when their 7 yr old son died of dengue (apparently coz all the hospital beds were taken and the couple kept moving from one hospital to another...grieving, they jumped off the terrace)...so yeah..,it DOES happen...some people kill themselves...others try to murder others
4. The to and fro conversation between Ishita and Raman...with him asking her to manage the speed at 60 and she saying it was slipping out of control...the despair and panic flashed in Raman's eyes for a brief second...but he obviously didnt want to scare Biwi further by showing how shaky HE felt inside.
5. CAN I EVEN EXPLAIN HOW TERRIFIED I WAS WHEN THE BUS WAS SPEEDING TOWARDS THE BARRIERS?? It sent me into a tizzy..Those cans at the barrier post seemed to be like mini oil tanks and I shuddered to imagine what could have happened had the bus collided into actual oil cans!! Raman and Romi (who were on the other side of the road) kept motioning to the guards at the barrier gate to move aside...I was almost sure the collision would end up in a casualty!
6. Ruhi innocently asking Toshi, "Kya hum marrne wale hain?" Gosh! Kids can really ask uncomfortable, agonizing questions sometimes! But then that kinda mirrored what Ruhi HERSELF was feeling at the moment...hard not to...how many people have been known to survive the predicament they were all facing?
7. Poor Iyers...Amma and Appa looked STRICKEN with grief already...Mihika looked harried too..she was the only one who was still clinging on to hope and trying to get thru to Raman and Ishita...even in that brief spell, the Iyers did their bit well!👏 Amma did the first thing she could think of - rush to Murugan and pray for the Bhallas' safety...I teared up at that one...
8. I cannot even begin to describe HOW hard my heart was thudding inside my chest...the ENTIRE time Raman spoke to Simmi and the others and told they'd have to pass the kids first, and then try and hop into the jeep...goodness...the bus was at 60 km/hr and more, the jeep was also running at the same speed since it had to keep pace with the bus...and the kids and the ladies had to jump to safety without pausing for a second. THAT IS A FEAT IN ITSELF.😳
Romi was BRILLIANT! In how he took reins of the open jeep while Raman stood teetering on the edge trying to get his family members to safety...its hard enuff balancing one's body atop a racing vehicle and trying to hold on firmly to someone and bring them to safety...I guess Neelu was the first one to hop into the jeep...since she had to also take care of the kids...
I liked how Raman as well as Toshi sent people priority-wise...Sarika and Rohit were sent next...and then came Ananya..I guess then came Latha...it was nice to see how even in times of crises the Bhallas maintained the safety of the two maids, who were no less than family to them!
9. Liked ACP being in his form today...calling up the bomb squads and following the bus at the same time...liked how the first thing he did when he met Sarika was HUG her🤗 it was so touching..he wanted to make sure his sister and the baby were both fine...so cute!
10. I wished we could have had Mr.Bhalla in a more proactive role...but then he was busy keeping the Iyers informed, collaborating with the media...he looked clueless...but I felt we could've got finer, more urgent expressions from his end. Khair. It wasn;t bad...but theek hai..chalega!
11. I even liked AH's acting chops today...she wasn't there for too long...but when the news flashed on TV, it really sent her spine chilling...she looked worried and very, very concerned. And that cant be laughed off, coz all said and done, she IS Adi and Ruhi's mother...she kinda berated Manoj, asking him why he had to allow Ishita to go for this trip...it was so risky...to be honest, I felt the same when Manoj didnt bat an eyelid when Ishu wanted to go for this trip...I mean, after time and again saying she had major complications and all, he seemed to have brushed it off and found nothing risky in the idea of taking a long journey. On his part, he did his best to console Shagun...
12. When Romi and Raman called Toshi to come hop into the jeep, she tried to refrain from doing so...Toshi ka dil hi nahin maan raha tha...after all, her DIL and both her grandkids were still in danger...how could she herself move off to safety??
She sent Simmi instead...and then later made the move to safety...
I did not want to sound repetitive, so I am going to hold it true for EACH time Raman pulled someone to safety...especially the kids (my breath was caught in my throat when I saw Ananya dangling off a pair of hands and transferred to another shaky, jerky pair of hands...) ...If I had to put fear and palpitations and racing senses aside, then KP was looking the HOTTEST today...clad simply in white kurta-pajama...and black sunglasses, with the wind racing through his hair...he looked like B-town's fav poster-boy😊
Awesome execution of the scenes which had everybody being pulled to safety in the open jeep...the director has kept the minutest emotion alive and intact and true down to its last...👏👏👏 it didnt look smooth and was v chaotic in its essence, which is good...coz that's how it ought to be when shooting with moving vehicles!
13. Ruhi insisted she will not leave Ishima and the baby...Adi said the same..the kids both CLUNG ON FOR DEAR LIFE...to their Ishima...it was heart-rending...I think the one other time I was almost bawling shamelessly was during Raman and Ruhi's frantic search for Ishita during the earthquake scene...😭😭😭 Raman got in to see to it that his kids would be shipped off safely...and just as he somehow manages to hold up a reluctant, crying, frightened Adi out to Abhishek (who by now was tailing the bus at perfect pace and was ALMOST about to get Adi)...Ruhi saw a speeding truck moving towards the speeding bus...and in horror pointed out to her Ishima, who in the nick of time swerved the bus so hard it changed direction and left ACP and the other police vans on a divergent road...
MUST say..Ruhanika and Gautam were FAB! Just FAB! Ruhanika, especially had her towering moments...in bits and pieces...hats off!👏
14. And as Ishita drives down to the bypass (where ACP asked them to come - all necessary arrangements had been made there...thick mattresses had been piled up one atop the other on the side of the road to make for safe landing) ...Raman asks Ishita to come too...she says she cant..she'll be fine...if she leaves the wheel, they'll all explode ...
THAT LAST BIT WAS GUT-WRENCHING..Neither was willing to leave the other to face this danger...for Ishita her husband and kid's safety were all that mattered to her..for Raman, his wife and kids..and for the kids...their Ishima...it was v v overwhelming...by this time I was crying...
Raman screamed to her to jump off the bus...and she screamed back, "RAMAN GO! GO RAMAN GO!" it was desperate...coz by now Ishu knew the bus was running out of diesel...a tyre was damaged...she couldn't afford to leave the while even as her husband and the kids were still in the bus...a few more moments and something nasty could happen...At her assurance, Raman jumps down to the side with both the kids in tow...it takes so much courage to do that from a speeding bus! Man! I did that once (it wasnt at 60km/hr though..but still,dun ask me why) ..it nearly broke my hip
And then...Ishu realises she wud have to get down too...and she clutches one last time at her tummy...prolly apologizing to the tiny life inside of her for the step she was about to take...or prolly a feeling of self-pity washing over her for not being able to save her baby...or a last ditch attempt to tempt a god to spin a miracle and save her baby...but it was CLASSIC! One of THE BEST MOMENTS IN YHM today!!👏
There! I may have missed a few points...am sorry...there was just TOO MANY brilliant bits in the scene today..you may not find it in a sequence, since I wrote it down from memory!
I am feeling v v sad now...The precap shows that the bus races ahead a few metres and then explodes into flames...for our sanity, I would like to believe Ishita MADE THE FATAL jump...but if not, then I DREAD what comes ahead..😲
It was overwhelming to see her ENTIRE family running towards the spot where the flames erupted...it was so real it still makes my blood turn cold. An entire family would be left shattered and lost if something were to happen to Ishita..and I hate to think creepy stuff...but what would become of Raman, Ruhi and Adi?
There were little moments where Ishita was trying to console Adi the same way she does with Ruhi...it made my heart melt...
A quiet moment of understanding...a single look the couple shared..with Raman nodding that everything would be fine, though he prolly feared otherwise himself...heartbreaking...how can I love ANY OTHER telly couple the way I love THESE TWO??
AT LAST I FELT TODAY - IT WAS ISHITA, RAMAN, RUHI AND ADI..👏 They looked like they BELONGED to each other...They would be lost without Ishita...and we, too, as an audience would be lost without her...😭
Yes...CVs attempt to make Ishita superwoman has prolly succeeded...but to THEIR credit, I am gonna say - that they DID manage to infuse some logic in a ripped-off, ADAPTED indie version of a really old Hollywood flick...And we have no option but to believe it..coz its true...in the end, what a mother does for her kids and how a woman's instincts shape her actions in times of crises is UNMATCHED by rationale alone. I dont know if Ishita can now be labelled Superwoman...but I KNOW for sure...that she is what ANY woman madly in love with her family is usually like...👏
P.S. After Chand jumped off the bus and Ishu took over a good 30 seconds passed by where d bus could easily have exploded😆
But khair...in d name of drama we will let that pass😃pass
But khair...in d name of drama we will let that pass😃pass
P.S. ishu downing a bottle of water towards the end seemed more like DT was tired n thirsty of crying hoarse asking pppl to jump off the bus and driving the bus haphazardly...😆mere toh praan hi sookh jaate aise situation mein...pani peene ka khayal hi nai aata :p
AB TV show hai...jitna mila utne mein khush hona chahiye :D
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