Posted:
Is it just me or November and the rest of the year seems to be flying as does this year.
This week Star Plus ran a campaign for "Nayi Soch" and what I never knew was "Nayi Soch" could only be from women. What a discovery! Jokes apart, this week seemed to be about women power at least in the reel if not real (I live in the US and I am still coping. Enough said!)
I continue to enjoy Chandra Nandini for its fast pace and unique characters and situations. It has definitely been my entertainment central in what has otherwise been a "blah" week.
Anjali/ Harrybird also has kept the energy high with some great picture posts, though I am still waiting for one for Chandra for his wedding (beyond the precap) and all the war scenes as there were plenty. But, in the meantime , Anji, thank you for letting me make an attempt with a take to capture the highlights of the week (see, I put in the thanks to you).
And here we go for the take 5 ...
1. Biwi No. 1: this week was about the importance of the first wife, both old and new ones. Enter the one person Nand truly seems to fear, his first wife. I liked her spunk, her jibes at Avantika were well-grounded based on Avantika's past actions, and of course she was after Nandini, but it didn't seem malicious. As she argued, Magadh was definitely indebted to Malayketu so they and Nandini had to listen to his conditions. In any case, this new entry definitely adds some variety to the proceedings.
Now, I wonder why Nand cannot kill her. In this day and age, you can say if something happens to me, a letter will go to the police or an MMS will be sent to the world. How would any truth about Nand come out if she were to die? Interesting, there must be more truths to come out. I look forward to the twist.
In the theme of biwi no. 1, in another twist, we now know who is the biwi no. 1 in Chandra's wife trio- it is my new and upcoming favorite, Helena. When she told Malayketu she would play second fiddle to no one, she was right. She would be the first wife of Chandra and the Queen of Magadh. As Nand's wife said, first place is first place ... now who else knew that? Of course, Helena.
And that brings to my next take,
2. The other Biwi No. 1, Helena, who continues to be a very strong character. She knows her ambitions and wants to achieve them but also is smart enough to know she cannot achieve them on her own. She also recognizes potential and strength when she sees it, as she did with Chandra. She goes against her own dad - not only to have Chandra attack their army but also in agreeing to marry Chandra (which is a complete contrast to Nandini who neither see her dad lose in war nor go against his choice in marriage).
I thought the wedding scene, particulary Chandra's transformation and attire for the wedding stood out. Even though it is early phases of this couple, one of my favorite scenes was how she encourages Chandra when he felt defeated at his loss with Magadh again. The way she held his face showed a growing sense of apnapan and friendship.
While the ambition of winning over Magadh was hers, she knew Chandra would be an important part of that journey and respected his ability. A well balanced character as she is not only confident about herself but also places confidence in Chandra and others.
A special shout-out to her warrior outfit as she watched the war with Chanakya- it suited her. Also, it looks like all the women in this show have live commentary and zoom capabilities into the war. And so does, Chanakya.
And Nandini and Helena are not the only women who had some "soch" about war planning because ...
3. Raajneeti nahin ... "Rotineeti" hain. It was an interesting scene with the woman in the hut commenting on the war with reference to the "roti"- you must start with the outside first as the center is hot. Chanakya and Chandra also recognized they must attack and win over outside kingdoms first before attacking Magadh, and were successful in doing the same.
While it was surprising to show a villager came up with this idea, I also do think this is early years for Chanakya as well. He would have informed his Arthashastra based on things and lessons he would have learned from all walks of life.
This is when Chanakya says "nayi soch" as well!
On a complete side note, this scene reminded me of something. I may be one of those lucky souls who saw the movie Chandni Chowk To China in the theater - which I found hilariously funny to watch- but there is a scene where Akshay trains in martial arts by rolling what looks like a belan / rolling pin for a long time ... later that leads to him having strong arms, but frustrated during the training he says every woman who rolls chapathis must be fighting experts and boy, was that right here too!
However, coming back to Chandra, even this "nayi soch" of having outer kingdoms and the Greek army with them didn't do the trick as they failed again against Magadh (and if you wondered the army was a bit sparse, this must have been to save budget for multiple wars; that being said the actual fighting and Chandra's sword fighting was shown very well). But let's see but perhaps it will be ...
4. Three times the charm, to win over Magadh. I don't mind Chandra fighting more as seeing Chandra's swordmanship and Chanakya's different attack approaches is one of the highlights of the show. However, it looks like three may be the lucky number, both with winning over Magadh and the number of wives in Chandra's life.
And this time, Chanakya and Chandra didn't lose because of an error per say but because they found a black sheep amongst them. Experiences like this are probably what make Chanakya extra careful of enemies from every corner in the future.
The way Nandini's brother, Dhananand spoke to Nandini, about how Malayketu had saved Magadh once more and they might not be as lucky next time suggests Chandra's victory may be near.
And that is when Nandini decides she will get married and bow down to Malayketu to make sure Nand and Magadh do not have to bow down to Chandra. Which leads us to ...
5. Nandini's woes. The week started off with Nandini on a very strong note. In her swordfight with Malayketu, Nandini did take "Durga Maa" (courtesy the background music) style revenge on him for trying to embarass her and injured both his arm and his ego. The irony that what Malayketu said he respected in Nandini became a sore spot.
So, he is on a vow to break her ego, and used her weakness, her Dad, to achieve the same by first taking her ability to use the sword, and later the pen and book.
And Nandini for all her strong words is limited by her weakness for her Dad. It is surprising how much she still trusts her Dad- his weakness in front of his first wife should be enough evidence that something is wrong.
This week Nandini and Chandra were shown to share a bonding of sadness ... the tear of sadness of nature was reflecting both of their sadness. Both were facing compromises with marriage. Both were facing defeat- Chandra in war, Nandini in marriage to Malayketu. Ironically, Malayketu was a common adversary.
Yet, so far, the bonding between Chandra and Helena seems stronger so it will be interesting to see how Nandini makes her place. I hope Chandralena (as Chitti coined it), stays intact throughout. In any case, I will enjoy it while it lasts.
So, with that comes a wrap on another happening week. Hope you enjoyed it and look forward to your thoughts.
This week Star Plus ran a campaign for "Nayi Soch" and what I never knew was "Nayi Soch" could only be from women. What a discovery! Jokes apart, this week seemed to be about women power at least in the reel if not real (I live in the US and I am still coping. Enough said!)
I continue to enjoy Chandra Nandini for its fast pace and unique characters and situations. It has definitely been my entertainment central in what has otherwise been a "blah" week.
Anjali/ Harrybird also has kept the energy high with some great picture posts, though I am still waiting for one for Chandra for his wedding (beyond the precap) and all the war scenes as there were plenty. But, in the meantime , Anji, thank you for letting me make an attempt with a take to capture the highlights of the week (see, I put in the thanks to you).
And here we go for the take 5 ...
1. Biwi No. 1: this week was about the importance of the first wife, both old and new ones. Enter the one person Nand truly seems to fear, his first wife. I liked her spunk, her jibes at Avantika were well-grounded based on Avantika's past actions, and of course she was after Nandini, but it didn't seem malicious. As she argued, Magadh was definitely indebted to Malayketu so they and Nandini had to listen to his conditions. In any case, this new entry definitely adds some variety to the proceedings.
Now, I wonder why Nand cannot kill her. In this day and age, you can say if something happens to me, a letter will go to the police or an MMS will be sent to the world. How would any truth about Nand come out if she were to die? Interesting, there must be more truths to come out. I look forward to the twist.
In the theme of biwi no. 1, in another twist, we now know who is the biwi no. 1 in Chandra's wife trio- it is my new and upcoming favorite, Helena. When she told Malayketu she would play second fiddle to no one, she was right. She would be the first wife of Chandra and the Queen of Magadh. As Nand's wife said, first place is first place ... now who else knew that? Of course, Helena.
And that brings to my next take,
2. The other Biwi No. 1, Helena, who continues to be a very strong character. She knows her ambitions and wants to achieve them but also is smart enough to know she cannot achieve them on her own. She also recognizes potential and strength when she sees it, as she did with Chandra. She goes against her own dad - not only to have Chandra attack their army but also in agreeing to marry Chandra (which is a complete contrast to Nandini who neither see her dad lose in war nor go against his choice in marriage).
I thought the wedding scene, particulary Chandra's transformation and attire for the wedding stood out. Even though it is early phases of this couple, one of my favorite scenes was how she encourages Chandra when he felt defeated at his loss with Magadh again. The way she held his face showed a growing sense of apnapan and friendship.
While the ambition of winning over Magadh was hers, she knew Chandra would be an important part of that journey and respected his ability. A well balanced character as she is not only confident about herself but also places confidence in Chandra and others.
A special shout-out to her warrior outfit as she watched the war with Chanakya- it suited her. Also, it looks like all the women in this show have live commentary and zoom capabilities into the war. And so does, Chanakya.
And Nandini and Helena are not the only women who had some "soch" about war planning because ...
3. Raajneeti nahin ... "Rotineeti" hain. It was an interesting scene with the woman in the hut commenting on the war with reference to the "roti"- you must start with the outside first as the center is hot. Chanakya and Chandra also recognized they must attack and win over outside kingdoms first before attacking Magadh, and were successful in doing the same.
While it was surprising to show a villager came up with this idea, I also do think this is early years for Chanakya as well. He would have informed his Arthashastra based on things and lessons he would have learned from all walks of life.
This is when Chanakya says "nayi soch" as well!
On a complete side note, this scene reminded me of something. I may be one of those lucky souls who saw the movie Chandni Chowk To China in the theater - which I found hilariously funny to watch- but there is a scene where Akshay trains in martial arts by rolling what looks like a belan / rolling pin for a long time ... later that leads to him having strong arms, but frustrated during the training he says every woman who rolls chapathis must be fighting experts and boy, was that right here too!
However, coming back to Chandra, even this "nayi soch" of having outer kingdoms and the Greek army with them didn't do the trick as they failed again against Magadh (and if you wondered the army was a bit sparse, this must have been to save budget for multiple wars; that being said the actual fighting and Chandra's sword fighting was shown very well). But let's see but perhaps it will be ...
4. Three times the charm, to win over Magadh. I don't mind Chandra fighting more as seeing Chandra's swordmanship and Chanakya's different attack approaches is one of the highlights of the show. However, it looks like three may be the lucky number, both with winning over Magadh and the number of wives in Chandra's life.
And this time, Chanakya and Chandra didn't lose because of an error per say but because they found a black sheep amongst them. Experiences like this are probably what make Chanakya extra careful of enemies from every corner in the future.
The way Nandini's brother, Dhananand spoke to Nandini, about how Malayketu had saved Magadh once more and they might not be as lucky next time suggests Chandra's victory may be near.
And that is when Nandini decides she will get married and bow down to Malayketu to make sure Nand and Magadh do not have to bow down to Chandra. Which leads us to ...
5. Nandini's woes. The week started off with Nandini on a very strong note. In her swordfight with Malayketu, Nandini did take "Durga Maa" (courtesy the background music) style revenge on him for trying to embarass her and injured both his arm and his ego. The irony that what Malayketu said he respected in Nandini became a sore spot.
So, he is on a vow to break her ego, and used her weakness, her Dad, to achieve the same by first taking her ability to use the sword, and later the pen and book.
And Nandini for all her strong words is limited by her weakness for her Dad. It is surprising how much she still trusts her Dad- his weakness in front of his first wife should be enough evidence that something is wrong.
This week Nandini and Chandra were shown to share a bonding of sadness ... the tear of sadness of nature was reflecting both of their sadness. Both were facing compromises with marriage. Both were facing defeat- Chandra in war, Nandini in marriage to Malayketu. Ironically, Malayketu was a common adversary.
Yet, so far, the bonding between Chandra and Helena seems stronger so it will be interesting to see how Nandini makes her place. I hope Chandralena (as Chitti coined it), stays intact throughout. In any case, I will enjoy it while it lasts.
So, with that comes a wrap on another happening week. Hope you enjoyed it and look forward to your thoughts.
Jhanak
Shiv Shakti
