Remember, Atif, that I love you. I love you for how nuanced you have been in portraying the urbane classism and class-disparity vis-a-vis the Tripathis. Episode 14 remains one of the most impactful pieces of cinematic narration I have ever seen on television. From Dhruv's children christening humble potli as "Chudail ki potli" to the Tripathis caring more about Imlie's Aadhar card than setting up a fair wage for her. From Rupi showing her the shitty corner to inhabit while Meethi rummages through her stationary in PD synchronously to the conscientious patrakar reminding her to heed her jagah. All was gut-wrenchingly impactful. I know Aryan is and will be antithetical to this classist arrogance.
Also remember that I don't decontexualise things just to provide an outlet for underlying anger/hatred/frustration.
Further remember that I understand what it is to have unprecedented trauma at an young age and be forever relapsing.
Full disclosure hence that it's not an analysis of anything but the full promo. I am not claiming that the promo will play out in the show. I do understand that promos are supposed to elicit mass response, and this one has succeeded exceptionally.
Fuller disclosure : People will hate me for saying this, but there's nothing wrong or degrading about being a domestic worker. Not even if you're educated or married to a billionaire. Because, simply put, there is nothing degrading about honest work.
Now, in the past episodes, it has been established that Imlie and Meethi were impoverished and socially ostracised. It was further established that Meethi earned her living by working as a domestic worker at Auntie Blue's house— most likely sweeping and doing other janitorial works.
Why the f-ck is Imlie caricaturing her own mother's hard honest toil to fill their bellies in the promo? To one-up Aryan? WTF? She's making fun of herself and her own mother to get back at Aryan?
And no. This is not to assert her working-class identity against Aru's privileged one. She's literally doing a minstrel dance.
Now imagine, a domestic worker tuning into the the telly (please bear in mind the overwhelming caste-based disparity in the domestic and janitorial sector as well), this viewer is not only looking for escape like all of us but probably resonates with Imlie more than anyone of us. Imagine their profession being reduced to a caricature. And their humanity reduced to their mere occupation as Imlie rants about her pehchaan.
Imagine them seeing not only Aryan's guests being embarrassed by Imlie's antics, but also the only man who ever valued her— her husband— being hurt by her caricaturing, and disparaging her antics when it would seem that he's disparaging their occupations. When their occupation would be pitted against Imlie as an ineligibility to be Aryan's wife by his guests and another section of the audience?
What does that say?
Don't break my fuçking heart, man. Don't let my Aryan and Imlie be reduced to this.
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