Aryan-Imlie/ AryLie Discussion Thread 9 🧿 - Page 45

Originally posted by: PreetD

I get it. This is what ITV is about. But I don’t know. I think my whole life, yeah I’ve seen shows that literally are meant to be no-brainers - but we should expect more from the entertainment we consume. What purpose does media have if not to challenge, provoke, and start dialogue.

I’ll be honest I never look at ITV for that. But that begs the question, why not? When I watch “regular” TV I expect more from the entertainment I’m consuming. I don’t know the whole of the ITV landscape but I hope there are options beyond these shows then that do challenge audiences, that do put something else, beyond illogical entertainment into the world. Not saying there’s nothing wrong with just really basic, check out for a minute, entertainment.

Here you have people with a platform to tell stories, and what are they doing with that platform? It is a privilege to have that - to be able to reach audiences like they do, that privilege also comes with a responsibility that audiences should hold them accountable to. Even no-brainer entertainment shouldn’t be regressive. Agar kuch acha nahin dekhana to kechard toh nah pehlao. And I’m not just talking about this scene, but just in general.

I talk about it a lot in regards to American/western media - representation matters! You have a girl like Imlie, who’s from a small village, who happens to turn on the TV and tune into this show, what is she going to see?! What is she going to relate to? You have women who are constantly being abused at home, turn on the TV, what do they see? Other women being emotional, mentally, verbally, physically abused - but they’re meant to be mahan and just take it? What does that do? What does that tell that woman who’s experiencing something similar at home?

Now I’ve seen a lot of people apologizing for Aryan’s behaviour, making excuses, finding rationalizations for it - I mean I did it as well. Why are we finding reasons to make sense of or excuse his behaviour in the name of entertainment - and “that’s just how it is”. What does that say to the young girl that’s sitting there watching TV and learning from shows like this what romance is, what love is?! American TV is also rife with romanticization of toxic behaviours. When I was still teaching I had so many conversations with my students about this. At least here there are multiple sources of entertainment and media to see examples of relationships.

I’m not saying that we should be looking to ITV or any TV to show us all the things, but the realty is that it’s a powerful medium, and it’s not going to solve the worlds problems alone, but we should expect more from it. It’s not enough to just write it off as a thing that happens.

And with that I’m officially signing out and going to bed. I’m too tired and I don’t know if I even conveyed my thoughts coherently. Absolutely nothing against you Libran, please don’t take this the wrong way, it’s just something I feel a bit strongly about.

I still stand by the fact that they were trying to portray Aryan and Imlie's haq over each other but they did it so poorly. There's no rationalising the scene because it was a crappy trope that was not only inadequate to portray all that they were trying to do but also a character break.

True

He is fighting a mighty war within himself.

Well kind of agree with you and was going to make an elaborate post on Aryan throughout this episode later in the day...

I'll still make it but you covered my essential point.

Originally posted by: PreetD

I get it. This is what ITV is about. But I don’t know. I think my whole life, yeah I’ve seen shows that literally are meant to be no-brainers - but we should expect more from the entertainment we consume. What purpose does media have if not to challenge, provoke, and start dialogue.

I’ll be honest I never look at ITV for that. But that begs the question, why not? When I watch “regular” TV I expect more from the entertainment I’m consuming. I don’t know the whole of the ITV landscape but I hope there are options beyond these shows then that do challenge audiences, that do put something else, beyond illogical entertainment into the world. Not saying there’s nothing wrong with just really basic, check out for a minute, entertainment.

Here you have people with a platform to tell stories, and what are they doing with that platform? It is a privilege to have that - to be able to reach audiences like they do, that privilege also comes with a responsibility that audiences should hold them accountable to. Even no-brainer entertainment shouldn’t be regressive. Agar kuch acha nahin dekhana to kechard toh nah pehlao. And I’m not just talking about this scene, but just in general.

I talk about it a lot in regards to American/western media - representation matters! You have a girl like Imlie, who’s from a small village, who happens to turn on the TV and tune into this show, what is she going to see?! What is she going to relate to? You have women who are constantly being abused at home, turn on the TV, what do they see? Other women being emotional, mentally, verbally, physically abused - but they’re meant to be mahan and just take it? What does that do? What does that tell that woman who’s experiencing something similar at home?

Now I’ve seen a lot of people apologizing for Aryan’s behaviour, making excuses, finding rationalizations for it - I mean I did it as well. Why are we finding reasons to make sense of or excuse his behaviour in the name of entertainment - and “that’s just how it is”. What does that say to the young girl that’s sitting there watching TV and learning from shows like this what romance is, what love is?! American TV is also rife with romanticization of toxic behaviours. When I was still teaching I had so many conversations with my students about this. At least here there are multiple sources of entertainment and media to see examples of relationships.

I’m not saying that we should be looking to ITV or any TV to show us all the things, but the realty is that it’s a powerful medium, and it’s not going to solve the worlds problems alone, but we should expect more from it. It’s not enough to just write it off as a thing that happens.

And with that I’m officially signing out and going to bed. I’m too tired and I don’t know if I even conveyed my thoughts coherently. Absolutely nothing against you Libran, please don’t take this the wrong way, it’s just something I feel a bit strongly about.

thank you for writing such lovely post and I loved this one to the moon and back.. that was my frustration with the scene and its still stands..

what you said abt medium and power of that medium should be used right way to make people feel good about themselves and empowered for their future.. but sadly ITV was/is never like that (with few exceptions)

Originally posted by: GenMed

Agree. Also I thought it was similar to the scene wherein he threw her out of the office when he found her sleeping there and denied her even a sip of water. But soon realizes how harsh he was and goes to find her and offers her some water. He seems to be in conflict with himself.

He especially has a lot of emotions that are not well-defined atm. Today especially he was all over the place between feeling jealousy/protectiveness/love/pride/ annoyance.

Originally posted by: Piratequeen

Hi everyone

I have been a silent reader of this wonderful thread for a while but I couldn't keep myself from commenting today.

Here is my take on today's episode:

The hullabaloo over Aryan's death grip or his deleting the message from Imlie's phone is because we have placed him on a pedestal. But that has never been the intention of the makers. Aryan has always been portrayed as a grey character who has a lot of darkness in his heart because of the traumatic experience in his past. He is a guy on a dark mission: revenge. The flashbacks of his life intend to show us that Aryan has deliberately suppressed his soft side in his quest for revenge (Remember Arpita crying in front of Mata rani- Mera bhai apni guilt or dard mein doobta ja raha hai). I won't be surprised if some of Aryan's actions in the future are that of an anti-hero because that is who he is. Aryan's journey would be to bring that inherent goodness in his heart to the surface. This is where Imlie comes into the picture. She is the answer to Narmada and Arpita's prayers to Mata rani to send someone to save Aru's soul.

So, the death grip on the arm, immediately followed by a much softer scene was to portray the juxtaposition of light and darkness in Aryan's life.

Hahah! Welcome! 🤗 I see Aryan made you come out of hiding and join IF to defend him. 🤣

Bold – This is all that mattered to me when watching the episode. Because the moment he stepped back and saw what had just happened, he immediately moved towards her as if to apologize but then turned it into a non-verbal gesture and gently held her hand and led her out.

Originally posted by: Piratequeen

Hi everyone

I have been a silent reader of this wonderful thread for a while but I couldn't keep myself from commenting today.

Here is my take on today's episode:

The hullabaloo over Aryan's death grip or his deleting the message from Imlie's phone is because we have placed him on a pedestal. But that has never been the intention of the makers. Aryan has always been portrayed as a grey character who has a lot of darkness in his heart because of the traumatic experience in his past. He is a guy on a dark mission: revenge. The flashbacks of his life intend to show us that Aryan has deliberately suppressed his soft side in his quest for revenge (Remember Arpita crying in front of Mata rani- Mera bhai apni guilt or dard mein doobta ja raha hai). I won't be surprised if some of Aryan's actions in the future are that of an anti-hero because that is who he is. Aryan's journey would be to bring that inherent goodness in his heart to the surface. This is where Imlie comes into the picture. She is the answer to Narmada and Arpita's prayers to Mata rani to send someone to save Aru's soul.

So, the death grip on the arm, immediately followed by a much softer scene was to portray the juxtaposition of light and darkness in Aryan's life.

i get your point and we (at least i am) are not questioning Aryan the character but the makers who such ways to show the emotional juxtaposition of characters like him... cant we have a better and not so forced way of it.. thats all i am not happy about.

*now back menu ki farak penda hai mode* this show has taken a toll on my life and my day n night..

Originally posted by: Bluegrass

He especially has a lot of emotions that are not well-defined atm. Today especially he was all over the place between feeling jealousy/protectiveness/love/pride/ annoyance.

I don't know if I am the only one who felt this but the scene also gave me low-key MCP vibes...as in "mom told us about the party and you forgot?" "Your job is not more important than hosting/attending my party."...etc...

I may be over thinking though.

In real life, this would be red flag for me.

Originally posted by: PreetD

I get it. This is what ITV is about. But I don’t know. I think my whole life, yeah I’ve seen shows that literally are meant to be no-brainers - but we should expect more from the entertainment we consume. What purpose does media have if not to challenge, provoke, and start dialogue.

I’ll be honest I never look at ITV for that. But that begs the question, why not? When I watch “regular” TV I expect more from the entertainment I’m consuming. I don’t know the whole of the ITV landscape but I hope there are options beyond these shows then that do challenge audiences, that do put something else, beyond illogical entertainment into the world. Not saying there’s nothing wrong with just really basic, check out for a minute, entertainment.

Here you have people with a platform to tell stories, and what are they doing with that platform? It is a privilege to have that - to be able to reach audiences like they do, that privilege also comes with a responsibility that audiences should hold them accountable to. Even no-brainer entertainment shouldn’t be regressive. Agar kuch acha nahin dekhana to kechard toh nah pehlao. And I’m not just talking about this scene, but just in general.

I talk about it a lot in regards to American/western media - representation matters! You have a girl like Imlie, who’s from a small village, who happens to turn on the TV and tune into this show, what is she going to see?! What is she going to relate to? You have women who are constantly being abused at home, turn on the TV, what do they see? Other women being emotional, mentally, verbally, physically abused - but they’re meant to be mahan and just take it? What does that do? What does that tell that woman who’s experiencing something similar at home?

Now I’ve seen a lot of people apologizing for Aryan’s behaviour, making excuses, finding rationalizations for it - I mean I did it as well. Why are we finding reasons to make sense of or excuse his behaviour in the name of entertainment - and “that’s just how it is”. What does that say to the young girl that’s sitting there watching TV and learning from shows like this what romance is, what love is?! American TV is also rife with romanticization of toxic behaviours. When I was still teaching I had so many conversations with my students about this. At least here there are multiple sources of entertainment and media to see examples of relationships.

I’m not saying that we should be looking to ITV or any TV to show us all the things, but the realty is that it’s a powerful medium, and it’s not going to solve the worlds problems alone, but we should expect more from it. It’s not enough to just write it off as a thing that happens.

And with that I’m officially signing out and going to bed. I’m too tired and I don’t know if I even conveyed my thoughts coherently. Absolutely nothing against you Libran, please don’t take this the wrong way, it’s just something I feel a bit strongly about.

Why will I feel bad Preet? Because I know you are not wrong, and neither is anyone wrong about it. But when as a medium these people think that exerting strength and showing tough love is romance, then why should I use my sensibilities to argue this point. ITV wasn't like this before. It started deteriorating 30 years ago, because before that they ideally were more progressive. Since EK and Gul started ruling the roost, it became a norm. Crucifying a woman in the name of society, culture, love, friendship, romance is the norm here - heroine or vamp. Showing how uber-powerful men can exert money and influence and ruin a woman and fall in love with them is a norm. Have you seen IB? See it, the lead pair was cringe at the power of infinity and when they fell in love all was forgotten. How the hell is it forgotten?

It is a pain and bane to watch cringe I swear and trust me when I say this, I have been there and done that and my thoughts come from my experience of absorbing filth. So I stopped watching altogether. Now, I am at a point where I watch with a pinch of salt and treat them like as is, without going too in-depth, because shows have no depth. Very rarely shows have had depth and they have been different. When I am watching Gul's show, I know what will come with it. So I tune in and out accordingly. When I watch an American/Brit/ European drama or a OTT platform multilingual show, I tune in and out accordingly.

Many aren't able to. I know. But change has to come from the other end as much as from our end. And unfortunately, we aren't the TRP givers. As long as TRP givers watch these shows, the format will not change.

Originally posted by: GenMed

I don't know if I am the only one who felt this but the scene also gave me low-key MCP vibes...as in "mom told us about the party and you forgot?" "Your job is not more important than hosting/attending my party."...etc...

I may be over thinking though.

I didn't get any MCP vibes as much as him really wanting her to stop spiraling about BS. There are a lot of hazy feelings between the two. They could have handled it much better than what they did.