I agree with the that Aastha is not a well thought out character. I have seen Aastha's version in the original and there too I didn't find her motivation too convincing but despite that I love her. I have tried to defend her many a times. The Aastha that we see today does not match with the Aastha of the past who left her son with the Sabharwals. She is a fighter. She is not coward, neither is she irresponsible. Nor is she devoid of motherly emotions. So it is really difficult to explain what made her take such a decision. I do think the CVs did not think it through. Still I will try to put forth certain points which I have done earlier also.
I agree with @AnokhiShaurya that when she married Shaan, she was not mature enough and took the decision from her heart not mind. Something Anokhi is also going to do. At that age people think they can change the world. So Aastha might have thought she could change the family's orthodox views with time.
When she became a part of that family she actually accepted it as her own and she still does somewhere. The toxic nature of that family that we are aware of is because we can see them behind the surface. Their conspiracies, their insecurities. Every person has good and bad shades but to what extent they can go we are not aware. So I think Aastha was also not aware how manipulative or how insecure they could be despite being a part of that family for 5 years. She thought of them as just another orthodox family who wanted their bahus to stay at home.
Shaan has grown up fine in that house. He is not a misogynist but could not stand up against his elders. That did not mean he would let his son being misguided by Devi. He could have cleared Shaurya's doubts if he tried. Aastha expected him to do that much, but he did not. I think she was not aware how bad Shaan's depression was.
In the only flashback scene we got, Aastha says to Devi that she would go to any extent to get back her child. But we are not shown what she did. I would like to assume that she went to a lawyer who gave her a picture of what a court case would involve. That included dragging Shaurya through the emotional trauma of having to witness character attacks on his parents, being forced to choose between his parents and so forth. Not to mention the exorbitant fees of the lawyers. She realised that she had little chance of winning and the stakes would be high. So she thought letting Shaurya be with the Sabharwals would be the lesser of the evils.
Plus life with her would also not be easy for Shaurya. He would have to face many taunts from the society because his mother was staying away from her father. It is always the woman who is blamed. In small town India people are very much interested in other people's business and Aastha would be subjected to merciless scrutiny of the society. When she faced such things, she may not have wanted Shaurya to go through it.
In the hospital scene, she tells Devi that had she been aware how badly Shaurya would be poisoned, she would have fought for him. That is why I think that she had not thought that the Sabharwals would be so bad. They were against her because she was a rebel. Even in normal families, the rebels are shown the door.
Also, she was a woman who was at the end of the day an outsider. The Sabharwals strictly disciplined their bahus but they are very liberal with their daughters and more so the sons. A person's mentality is not shaped by the family only. Education, friends, teachers everyone contribute to it. So that is why Aastha expected Shaurya to not be exactly like the Sabharwals.
Whatever were her motivations we don't know. We can only guess. Her decisions definitely turned out to be wrong but I don't think she intentionally made Shaurya go through the trauma. Most people are not convinced. I can understand that. Women are always worshipped as mothers. And a woman who turned out to be a bad mother, no matter for what reason, will be judged severely. All her other good deeds are going to be overlooked. That is why I hope CVs provide some concrete reason for her leaving Shaurya behind with flashbacks. But I doubt they will.
Aastha is a refreshing character in itv, who not only fought for herself but also motivates others to fight. She not only encourages others to dream but she also helps them to reach for it even if she had to pay a price. Career women are anyways a rarity in itv. She is a welcome departure from other TV moms who only give their wards relationship advice and are otherwise found to be helplessly crying in a corner. So it hurts that such a character is shown in a bad light.
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