Exploring the Grey

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skar1984

@skar1984

Explorer

Posted: 9 years ago

Hi All,

Wanted to introduce myself and share some thoughts that I had while watching the first few episodes (i've watched the first 4). I'm Sumi, currently residing in the states and a hindi serial watcher from the 90s. I've watched quite a number of shows over the years and the basic storyline or backbone of this show is not exactly "new" - I'm sure many of us will draw similarities with various other programs where a single mother brings up her child/children through various hardships and for that reason the children harbor unresolved emotional issues, mother-son over protectiveness, insecurities etc - but what is drawing me to this show is the treatment.

So far the characters are just being set up - the stage is barely being set to give us an insight on why each character is the way they are - no one is black or white - every character - Dev, Ishwari and Neha even the Mami - Radha are all grey. This I am liking and its proving that writers are now more progressive and mature to write characters that are multifaceted and not uni dimensional. I really hope the writers are able to maintain this and not resort to uni dimensional characters for the sake of TRPs.

So far the show has established that Dev and Neha - Ishani's elder children were forced to grow up well ahead of their years in the face of adversity - this has left both of them emotionally scarred. Dev's scars are buried under his sense of duty and almost obsessive compulsion to not cause any hurt to his mother, where as Neha's scars are much more apparent - she's resentful, angry and bitter.

Neha's character is the most fascinating to me - I know many other members have made various posts about her and have tried to analyse her etc. Here's what I see when I see Neha - she's not jealous - she's resentful. Huge difference - she had to sacrifice so much at such a young age, that too with out any recognition - she's hurting which makes her resentful. She's not malicious - she doesn't want to go out of her way to hurt her mom and brother but she wants them to recognize what the result of their decisions/actions has had on her. As for why is she getting married when she has so many conditions - think about this for a moment - what is the prime focus of marriage - its 2 people coming together - husband and wife who become each other's priority. Marriage is just that - she wants to experience being showered with love and being number one to someone for the first time in her life - for that she's placing all these conditions to ensure that status. I hope writers can maintain this fine line and not turn her into an entitled brat.

The show looks promising - hoping it gets better and is able to maintain its focus.

Thoughts guys?

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naq5

@naq5

Rocker

Posted: 9 years ago

i loved your analysis of neha..

And i seriously hope the writers are writing grey characters & intend to potray them as grey. But if they take grey characters & want to potray them as mahaan them i cannot accept it. like for eg dev & ishwari. they are grey i cannot see both as entirely white & mahaan.

And i seriously hope they keep neha as she is and do not turn her from grey to -ve in an attempt to glorify ishwari & dev.

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@lovely_lady

Rocker

Posted: 9 years ago

Great analysis! And I really like your take on Neha! My thoughts on her are similar to yours. I agree in that she doesn't seem purposefully malicious. When you really think about it, she does have a reason to be angry with her mother. Ishani herself favours Dev and from Neha's dialogues about the past, it can be surmised that Ishani has been like that from the very beginning. And like you said, no one seems to recognize what Neha has done for the family. For me, what was telling, was the mami's story of how Neha took care of her younger sisters when they were sick and when they woke up, they asked for their mother. As children, I can understand why the children asked for their mother. But as Neha was a child herself, it must've been so frustrating to have had to spend her time and efforts looking after her sisters and then not even being thanked or recognized for it. Personally, I think Ishwari needs to make more of an effort towards Neha and not just sigh in defeat.

That said, I'm not quite sure with your assertion that every character is grey. I think the mami is a pretty stereotypically black character who just lives to create trouble and be jealous. She's actually my biggest complaint and annoyance with the show. I don't think such a character was needed.

Anyways, great post and hope to hear more from you! 😊

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skar1984

@skar1984

Explorer

Posted: 9 years ago

Originally posted by: lovely_lady
Great analysis! And I really like your take on Neha! My thoughts on her are similar to yours. I agree in that she doesn't seem purposefully malicious. When you really think about it, she does have a reason to be angry with her mother. Ishani herself favours Dev and from Neha's dialogues about the past, it can be surmised that Ishani has been like that from the very beginning. And like you said, no one seems to recognize what Neha has done for the family. For me, what was telling, was the mami's story of how Neha took care of her younger sisters when they were sick and when they woke up, they asked for their mother. As children, I can understand why the children asked for their mother. But as Neha was a child herself, it must've been so frustrating to have had to spend her time and efforts looking after her sisters and then not even being thanked or recognized for it. Personally, I think Ishwari needs to make more of an effort towards Neha and not just sigh in defeat.

That said, I'm not quite sure with your assertion that every character is grey. I think the mami is a pretty stereotypically black character who just lives to create trouble and be jealous. She's actually my biggest complaint and annoyance with the show. I don't think such a character was needed.

Anyways, great post and hope to hear more from you! 😊

Thank you for your response! Totally agree with what you have said - though as far as the mami's characterization is concerned - I see what you are saying but perhaps I see it differently. The Mami isn't totally black in my opinion - she's pretty real - the kind of jealousy she displays is pretty typical in families where one member is doing much better than them, with that said i don't see her as being malicious per se either - yet. She did let Ishwari and the kids into her home when times were tough on them and when Ishwari came to patch up - she conceeded. It didn't seem like the typical saas-bahu let me say i forgive u while i scheme and plot ur death kind of hug - it seemed more like - i'll let this one go and pick and choose my battles. On the contrary I think Mami's character is needed - Neha needs a mother figure to share her feelings with - with out mami in the picture - Neha is even more emotionally alienated.

lets see how it shapes up!

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