Originally posted by: Gundamwing
REVEALING OF MURTASIM’S CHAHATH- PHOTOGRAPHY
Murtasim’s passion is wildlife photography. When we are introduced to his character, he is a sombre angry young man, an aggressive personality and is an avid hunter. He takes sadistic pleasure in hunting the very thing he loves as he is metaphorically killing a part of himself as he struggles to keep the other part of him alive. The part that lives is gaddi janasheen Khan Murtasim Khan who has to live up to his father’s legacy and has heavy burdens on his shoulders. He like Meerab can’t get over the past, both haven’t fully accepted destiny’s call and are lashing out in different ways. Taxidermy display in the gun room is a morbid reminder of his dead dreams, constant painful reminder for himself that the past is dead and to keep marching forward. He is not a killer, the gun doesn’t interest him, he can’t even tell the difference between a loaded gun and an empty gun. He doesn’t care how it works it is just a tool to protect his loved ones. The presence of Malik Jr. in his life has forced him to resort to violence, but he doesn’t want to become that man.
Murtasim has found solace in the love of his life, his Meerab, she is the balm to his wounds. Meerab is helping him find his balance between KMK who has heavy responsibilities and the individual MK who has his own desires. With her guidance the belligerent personality is starting to fade, and he is transforming into the man he would have become if he lived a different life. He is helping her heal and she is helping him heal, except he has a tougher job, and his actions are obvious and deliberate, all she needs to do for him is stay in front of his eyes and breathe.
Hopefully one day when the enemy is defeated, post separation when Meerab has ascended to her position as his queen and can competently assist him in his duties, she will clear out that morose gun room and her husband can take up photography again if not full time at least part time. They can go on jungle safari cruises with the kids to Africa.
OKKKKKK BACK TO EPISODE
Meerab doesn’t say a single word in this scene, he will talk she will listen. Murtasim has laid himself bear in front of her, it is a dying man’s last gasp, this was not romantic it was tragic. Murtasim’s outer shell is strong but inside he is all mush. Meerab looks breakable from the outside, but inside she is more durable than he is. She is the emotional backbone to their unbreakable bond. He is breaking the fourth wall, a man especially an alpha like him is not allowed to cry otherwise he would be called pathetic. Talking about his past is painful for him, but he sheds tears for her pain while enduring his own hurt.
He has been trying to convince her as Lord KMK he told her she is wrong, he warns her she will get hurt, he commands her to let go of her zidd, he alerts her this could crash their marriage, but nothing he said could sway her. He fears Meerab’s naïve idealism can blind her to staking everything including herself, him, their marriage, her honour. So how to stop her from pressing the self-destruct button, talk about himself. He frames this whole conversation from the POV of his pain. He drops the KMK persona, it is just a husband begging his wife, if not for yourself please my love I beg you do this for me. The husband is pleading with the wife who loves him not to sacrifice him for a cause.
It is devastating to watch, his voice starts to crack as tears drop from his eyes, every word is a struggle for him as he edges closer to a meltdown. He bore the hurt of loss of his first love bravely, but if he loses her his one true love the pain could kill him. She is the dream he never gave up on and thought would never come true. By stroke of fate the dream becomes a reality, but this frightful thought always looms over him that his reality will fade one day is strangling him. The two times he said he loved her he was in distress, he felt like he was losing her to a greater force that is beyond his control, his ‘I love you’ is a beacon to her to not lose faith in him and leave him behind. He chokes out his final agonizing plea ‘please take care of yourself and take care of me’. The weight of emotions crashes down on him, he can’t say another word as he is emotionally spent. Only a husband who knows his wife loves him can make this appeal, as he surrenders his life to her judgement. Murtasim accepts defeat she will do what she must do, he only begs her no matter what she decides not to abandon him.
Meerab is stunned seeing her once invincible white caped hero distraught, imploring, crying in front of her. She has seen him hurt before but not like this, and her heart breaks for him. She can’t bear his cries any more than he can bear hers. Tears well up in her eyes, he tries to console her with his touch, she silently weeps as he tries to wipe away her pain. Last thing he wanted to do is make her cry because of him, he looks on regretfully at her heartbroken face.
Murtasim is the anchor, she is the mast and sail of their life, she charts the course determines the direction they head in life, it is all up to her now. There is too much pressure on Meerab her husband will die without her, Maryam will die without anus, who is she going to save, how can she save them all, what is she going to do. Murtasim said choose yourself first and choose me, she will choose him and choose the family, and ignore herself.
Maryam has decided she will kill herself or elope, there is no stopping this fool, she is a coward she won’t kill herself she will run away. Meerab is trapped she only has 3 options, first she tells Murtasim and his action will be to lock up Yam take away her tools to commit suicide and by force marry her off, but this is a crime and Meerab will never let Murtasim become a criminal, she is his shield as much as he is hers. Second option she abandons Yam to her devices, but that is a cowardly act one not befitting of Murtasim Khan’s begum. Third her only option Meerab must intervene. By becoming Maryam’s shield, Meerab is taking responsibility on her shoulders, she is softening the blow for Murtasim and his mother. Maryam will be disowned if she elopes on her own, the family breaks apart with its reputation in tatters. If Meerab takes some of the betrayal on her head, yes Murtasim will be devastated but she is also the only person he will forgive. She has faith she can calm his anger down as always, reason with him and make him see the bigger picture. MB will just conveniently blame Meerab for everything making it easier for MB to accept her daughter’s mistake, if MB relents Murtasim will eventually forgive his sister. If the family stays together there is hope for the future, but if they lose JudasYam all hope is lost. Meerab has put all her blind faith in love, her husband’s love for her and Maryam’s love for anus that at the end of the day love wins. This grand plan has no chance of working of course because Anus is zoobi doobi, but Meerab doesn’t know this hence the tragedy.
Meerab is forced to choose between Murtasim’s plea to choose him against Maryam’s madness. She has merged both her struggles into one, what is best for Murtasim is to give into his sister. This is Shakespearean tragedy, his revealing of chahath was supposed to deter her but it had the opposite effect on her and made her resolve even stronger. His intention was to protect her and save himself from the impending doom, but he inadvertently pushed her into the abyss. The revelation of his past pain made her more determined than ever to protect him from a bigger pain, because if Maryam acted unliterally the damage would be permanent. Meerab can’t save him from the hurt, but she can try to lessen its impact by taking the blame on herself.
She will shed the tears he can’t shed and fight the battles he can’t fight. She will no longer demand any sacrifices from him, he has sacrificed enough, so the wife will fall on the sword as she once promised she would for the husband she loves. She swears by her sacrifice he will remain the ideal son who obeys his mother’s wishes and the ideal leader who follows KhanDom code of laws. She will accept the punishments for her mistake and won’t blame him and his status as ideal husband will remain intact as well. She is not sacrificing him for any quest she just made him her quest.
Anupamaa
