Alexander: Meri shakhsiyat hi kuch aisi hai

Originally posted by: Vicariously

I just left out a little huh when Alexander impeccably pronounced Anusuya's name in a span of a single line and breathe 😆 So how's my boy going to stutter on Roxanne's name that's only composed of 2 syllabus and rap a tight 4 syllabus name as if it wasn't a big deal 😆 ?

Originally posted by: inlieu

Alexander has a great understanding of human psychology and he has read the situation here accurately. Has understood that they feel they have nothing to lose after Sumer's death and that they have lost "respect" too, which Dasyurani confirms.

He started off by talking to Dasyuraj about siyaasat, but when Dasyurani confirmed that they felt they had lost their "respect" too, he walked right up to her to continue the conversation. I wonder if he was telling the truth when he said he had just found out about Sumer's death. It could be, who knows? It was another great wordplay where he referred to their pain in one moment and followed that up with a somewhat nonchalant comment about how this was all part of politics anyway.

The way in which he said this, though, gives the impression that to Porus it was no big deal and will be brushed under his big blue carpet as "just another day at the office", that the memory of their son had no meaning for king Porus, that he had forgotten the generosity shown by Dasyurani many years go when she gave him shelter that saved his life, that he had forgotten the people he had grown up with, further fuelling their fire. At the same time, he managed to indirectly convey, without words, that he did not feel this way and that he understood their thirst for revenge, for Sumer's could not just be forgotten.

He also aimed straight for Dasyurani's maternal feelings by saying that Porus sided with the mother that would help him remain on the throne of PR. At this point Dasyurani cut him off and asked him not to interfere in their personal matters and to speak of the real reason for his visit, to which Alexander replied that he liked people who went straight to the point. He realized that she's a no-nonsense person.

I had written in an another post that I would love it if Alexander began to see glimpses of Olympias in Dasyurani and could relate to her - he can, in all fairness, sense her devastation and the fire within her that just wants to spill out and destroy everything but is held back by lack of strength against PR. He can imagine how a proud and fierce woman like her would feel if she had lost her son, as Olympias would feel in her place and how desperate she must feel, being unable to seek retribution.

There was a silent connection there, especially the last bit where Alexander glanced at her. It was fleeting and Rohit and Shraddha portrayed that beautifully, and I won't be surprised if this turns to respect at some point in the future. That last look he gave here was spot on, and was exactly what I'd been hoping for.

@Vicariously, as you said elsewhere, maybe he already put her on a certain pedestal. He recognized that she is no ordinary woman/queen.

He has also figured out the dual-rule/hierarchy of Dasyulok, that both the king and queen are equally powerful and figured out that though he made the verbal appeals to Dasyuraj's authority, he reserved a few silent appeals.

I don't want to get too excited about this, but I'd love to see him interact more with the Dasyus now. Ambhiraj is super boring. Now I know why the CVs didn't have Cleitus join him there. Aside from the fact that we wouldn't have been able to see him in the dark because of his black robes 😉 it would not have had the same impact as Alexander walking fearlessly into unknown territory all alone, unarmed and still holding his own. This is Alexander! 👏

Also, the fact that Alexander appeals to Dasyuraj's sensibilities as a Shah and not some potential

satrap shows that he gives him some form of respect while not-so-subtly warning him that he would be in trouble if he doesn't show up at the banks of the Jhelum next morning. 😆

Shraddha is fabulous! I have always loved her - she portrays real strength and is a great role model for women empowerment and freedom of choice in the way she treats her subjects and carries herself. I wish wish wish we'd get more scenes of her, especially in terms of interacting with Alexander. CVs are you listening?????

Shame he won't stay the night there but, oh well. I am not sure, given the loss of Sumer, if she would go so far as to consider Alexander as her son the way Queen Ada did, but she's has already seen a spark in him that intrigues her and possibly makes her question their initial impression of Alexander based on his "reputation" as a bloodthirsty ruthless conqueror who does not care about people's feelings. She knows very well that he's capitalizing on the situation and making a deal, but she has also realized that he does genuinely understand their sense of loss. Again, she is going to question how far the Dasyus have been doing things the PR way and letting Porus' decisions cloud their own judgement too. Both Dasyuraj and Rani are revisiting their perspectives on many things at this point.

I also loved that little snippet even before leaving Taxila, where Alexander learned about Porus growing up in Dasyulok, including the interesting fact about them being so comfortable in water and being able to hold their breaths for long periods of time underwater. Methinks all this will play a part in the final pre-battle Jhelum crossing.

This Dasyu-Alexander alliance is also quite fascinating in terms of the bigger fire versus water debate:

Alexander aag se khelta hai kyon ki usko aag par qaaboo karne ka fann aata hai

Dasyu paani ke saath ek hain kyon ki unko paani mein jeene ka fann aata hai

Originally posted by: sashashyam

Absolutely beautiful and acutely perceptive posts, child. My felicitations!

I have exhausted myself doing a response to you on another thread, basically about Olympias and Alexander as performances. But I wanted to tell you how much I loved these. Especially the opening part of the first post and the closing couplet in the second one.

Shyamala Aunty