In the convoluted and complicated mess of relationships in this show, I think we sometimes forget to appreciate the beauty of Adi-Imlie's bond.
The cloud of the forced marriage and subsequent complications obscure sometimes the organic way in which their bond has developed. I felt that the conversation in the hospital in today's epi was another one of those scenes that built up on the depth of the emotional bonding between Adi-Imlie.
They are both trapped in such a hopeless/helpless situation in many ways but the fact that they TALK through almost every stage of it is what makes them an interesting watch IMO. For the last 50 or so epis, Adi has oscillated b/w anger, frustration and helplessness.....and he has talked through all those emotions with Imlie. Imlie in turn, has responded by sharing her state of mind, the state of her emotions just as candidly.....there is a remarkable honesty between them at this point and that is what I like.
Unlike a typical story, they haven't started out with attraction or falling in love as a backdrop....so it doesn't make sense for them to fall into acceptance simply over being trapped together in a marriage. Instead, they have candid conversations about the nature of destiny....kismat. They talk about how kismat keeps throwing them together even when they try to get away from each other. They talk about their respective viewpoints about the validity of this marriage...and both of them stand strong on what they believe even if they disagree....for a long time, Adi has chosen to blame Imlie for putting him in this helpless situation, while Imlie has stoically tried to get through the situation one day at a time without any expectations since she really has no good choices at this time.
In today's scene, Adi once again asked Imlie what is the point of her believing in this rishta when it has no future....when she will get nothing out of it. And she responds candidly that she cannot overcome the conditioning she grew up with that taught her to value the sanctity of marriage and rituals. This is why she resisted getting entrapped in them....cuz she considered them to have a finality that traps a person in it. Now, even when she never wanted it, she has been trapped in a marriage, the sanctity of which she cannot question even if the man she is married to cannot accept it.
And let's be clear....acceptance or denial will not really decide the fate of this relationship....that is a storytelling device that is helping Adi and Imlie navigate through their complicated emotions.....their relationship in fact does not hinge on whether or not they accept this marriage.....the marriage is the tool of destiny holding them together on their path to discovering love eventually.
Which is why at this moment in time, it really isn't about when Adi will accept his relationship with Imlie.....what is more interesting to me is the way Imlie disarms him with her simple wisdom....when she tells him that rishton mein faayda ya nuksaan nahin hota...there is no profit or loss in a relationship.....that she isn't holding on to this rishta to get some value out of it....she is simply accepting what is the truth....that he is indeed her husband as per the rituals they performed together. Iske aage aur isse peechhe nahin soch rahi woh. And Adi has finally been worn down by fighting her on this point.....so he also candidly admits that he still can't accept this relationship but he won't stop her from accepting what she wants to for her peace of mind.
And again, to be clear....when Adi says that he won't stop her from accepting this rishta, all he means is that he will not try to deny her her own truth.....that doesn't mean they will become husband-wife for real....but he won't stop her from living the truth as she sees it....with the thought that he is her husband....even if she doesn't expect him to BE her husband. It is semantics on some level, but that's where they stand as of today.
I also found it interesting that Adi also acknowledged that Sita Maiyya has tangled up their lives so much so let's now leave it to her to untangle it and not keep dwelling on this....lol.....
Overall, Adi-Imlie's bond will keep deepening on an emotional level without both of them realizing it.....in a way, they are both still hung up on labels without realizing how much both of them have come to mean to each other.
Current Affairs
Anupamaa
