Personally .. and this is just my opinion and I may be wrong so please no bashing ...lol, but I was very happy with the way things went today. It was more relate-able and less a soap opera.
Annika: Let's start with her. Think about it. It's just been a day since the wedding. Of course for us it has been a week or more. I am glad to see parts of the old Annika bouncing back and I know if we patiently wait we will see the all of old one soon and this time she will be here to stay. Thank God Ms. Gul did not murder her character and I am thankful for that.
Break down no.1: This is the day after the trauma that Annika was put through which must still feel surreal for her. Kinda like when an unexpected bomb goes off at your house and you come back to find half your house is completely destroyed and your little handicap brother almost blew up with the house.
She is still coming to grips with what impact it will have in her life. She is a single girl, an orphan who is responsible for her little brother, who she almost lost and a Bua who is more a parasite than an elder
She was abused physically and mentally by a person she knew and trusted. She was stripped of everything she held precious - and was almost a victim (edited) threatened with serious physical assault without her consent. He only turned into a monster on her but also traumatized her by threatening to take away her most precious possession - her brother. He managed to, like she said, use her weakness to break her strength and did not bat an eyelid while he did all this. Considering this and all the humiliation he and some of his family members put her through if she looks and walks in a daze at times and blindly follows Dadi's instruction I would say perfectly natural and legit. Dadi is the one person she knows who genuinely cares about her and is not using her for her selfish needs. For Annika to follow what she says, with not much coaxing on Dadi's part right now, is not that surprising if you think about it. Think of any victim you might know and their relationship with a counsellor or sympathizer.
I loved that she told Dadi the truth and without shedding a tear at her house. She was strong and angry and she was not afraid to show that to Shivvay. She had had the whole night and the next morning to bounce back and sort herself out to find that inner strength. She called him out on every little thing he put her through and made him squirm because now he had to actually picture himself doing those things while she recounted them. The blood had subsided from his eyes and he was forced to see the monster he had become that day. His actions we despicable and he knew it that is why he asked her to stop. He did not want to fall in Dadi's eyes but Annika was not going to let him off that easy.
Break down no.2: The comeback with at Tia was great. Again, after the humiliation at not being acknowledged as his wife before the world she crumpled. That was another major blow not because she loved him but because she thought it would be made right even if it was for a short time till the divorce happened. She waked away dazed again after this second bomb attack. It was the second time her trust in him was broken. The trust that, somewhere inside him was the same man that comforted her after the stalker attack, but he managed to wound her yet again. Getting Tia's sandals was not a defeatist attitude but one that said, "how does it matter anymore. I am done here and never want to return anyways. So yeah! Here are your sandals" Again, in her daze the Annika of the old took over, the wedding planner, following instructions because she had stopped thinking till Tia asks her to put them on. That's when she snapped because she had had enough of this crap. That is the part I loved. That was the old Annika in a new package and I loved it. She was strong, elegant and absolutely eloquent even with the cheapde' bit... lol
Break down no.3: She tries to walk out yet again, the third time, and is led back once again to face another humiliation in his room. This is bomb attack number 3. She heard him out patiently, was classy enough to let him finish his gibberish without so much as a word and then when he was done spewing his garbage she spoke. Oh! how she spoke and how she predicted his downfall and destruction, not because she had a crystal ball but because she and she alone knew the truth about the wife he had so proudly announced to the world. She and she alone knew what he was going to subject his family to - the humiliation, the media frenzy, the pain, the disappointment and the loss of trust in his decision making ability. But in all this it would be unreasonable to expect that after off-loading all those emotions and recounting all that pain we would not expect her to break down and cry. Cry for her loss, for the damage he has done because in his arrogance he had forced this humiliation, destruction and loss of face on her as well. She would be attached to this mess.
OmKara: The more I say about this scene the less it will be. His disappointment at his brother's actions and words, his calling a spade a spade - no holding back, his challenging Shivvay whether it was for the good of the family or whether he was using the family to just make it better for him - bang on Om, his threat of the consequence Shivvay would have to face if he turned out a disappointment - which he knows will come true knowing the Shivvay he knows and last but not least letting Shivvay know that Annika is too good for him and that she deserves better. That brought his older brother down a notch or two about he being Annika's obsession I am sure.
This is the Om I was missing. He is Annika's most ardent advocate, friend and protector. I pronounce him Sir. Om - the Knight. The Om who has full faith and trust that Annika can never do anything wrong or go against her good conscience, unless she had been forced to. The Om who holds Annika in the highest regard even compared to his 'heartbeat' Shivvay. The sage and the wise man who truly knows the difference between the mind or the heart ruling ones judgement. He may love Shivvay more than Annika but his judgement never wavers about who he respects more.
Rudra: The other wise and very observant man. Don't get fooled by his easy going and charming attitude. There is nothing that escapes this guy's attention. He is straightforward and simple about life and its solutions. It is not complicated and confusing to him to show love if he feels it. He loves Annika Di and thinks the world of her and he is not ashamed to show it. He dislikes and distrusts Tia and is not afraid to say it. He thinks Shivvay and Annika are good for each other and does not understand why anyone would be upset with the marriage. He understands his older brother was compelled to make the decisions he made when he married Annika but he cannot understand what would have compelled Annika Di to agree to such a marriage arrangement. He is not afraid to ask it. Simple and uncomplicated - that is Sir.Rudra - The other Knight. It was HE who asked the simple but MOST IMPORTANT question I have been waiting for someone to ask. I have no idea why Shivvay is called the 'Brain' when it is obvious Rudra is the one who uses it the most.
Notice there are no comments about Shivvay because it is true there are "No Comments" as you would say to the media... lol
