Marriage in ITV serials: A criminal motif or a shifted perspective? - Page 2

Honestly I sometimes wonder if ITV serial writers have a PhD in marriage mismanagement ki kya .. Like seriously in which parallel universe is marriage used as a full time tool for plotting murder, revenge, or emotional gymnastics?

One day they're in love .. next day married to someone else .. third day they’re plotting against their spouse's ex's half-sibling./Bua/Chachi or something

And ofc let’s not forget the contract marriages, memory losses, plastic surgeries, and evil twins and the OG Tarbuz se paida hua baccha (Watermelon Kid) Logic went out for a walk and never returned

Yup exactly .. good point you hv mentioned Dii .. TV is meant for entertainment nd some spice is fun .. but when every other serial shows bahus being poisoned or thrown off terraces, or husbands marrying the sister just for revenge... we need to pause and ask what exactly are we normalizing here?

The bigger issue is that people especially in small towns or younger minds do absorb these messages. They start thinking this drama = real life or that toxic relationships are somehow ‘normal’ or ‘romantic’ .. I mean trust issues toh side mein rakho, ITV serials teach you to do a DNA test before every rishta

On a serious note, marriage is a huge part of our culture .. portraying it like a warzone or a revenge game doesn’t do justice to the values we claim to hold

Dunno whatever disaster happened to EK's Mind/Logic/Conscience .. she did make some good ones but these days it's pure brainrot

But I guess until then... remote control zindabad

Marriage has been made a mockery and just a trp gaining tool since Ekta started ruling itv. In 2000s, Ekta introduced hate marriage/revenge marriage through shows like Kutumb where the boy and the gal hate each other yet get married to each other to take revenge. It became a trend and writers of other production houses also followed the same.

Nowadays things have become even worst. These days in most of itv shows we see deal marriages where the boy and the gal marry due to some majboori and they make a deal post marriage. The deal is mostly done by the gal. You help me fulfilling my dream by financing my education and after I fulfill my dream we will divorce each other. Things become complicated when the boy's family start having expectations from her and she doesn't want to fulfill them due to her deal marriage or she questions certain regressive and bad practices going on in the family and her husband doesn't support her again because of their deal marriage. Then they fall in love with each other but get separated then again marry each other then again get separated again get married and the cycle goes on and on and on until the writers decide, Hey let's have a pregnancy track to gain more trps so they show consummation (only for the FL to get pregnant ).

Pregnancy and child birth is another subject that is made a mockery in itv shows. Less said the better about them. The thing is trp audience watch such shows for entertainment. They don't care about logic. Shows dekho and bhool jao. It's us online janta who analyze and question these shows. Trp janta doesn't care so I feel shows are made to please trp janta and also they benefit in some way or the other when online janta also discusses these regressive shows. It's a win-win for the makers from both the sides.

How casual they’ve made remarriage ... u marry the cousin of your ex-husband who was also ur sister’s ex-fiance … and somehow everyone ends up living in the same haveli

What’s scary is not the plot ... it’s how numb we’ve become to all this. Poison in halwa? Arre, normal hai. Husband cheating with his secretary and saali? Yeh toh routine hai

Even need to stop with the “marriage as punishment” trope? She broke ur heart in college so now u’ll marry her and torture her for 200 episodes? Bro, go to therapy, not mandap

Who even needs Netflix when every Indian serial gives u

3 weddings, 2 kidnappings, 5 reincarnations, 1 illegitimate child, and 0 logic

all before lunch

At this point I wouldn’t be shocked if the next serial shows someone marrying a ghost for property rights ...

Just as i think isse crazy kuch nai ho sakta .. ye log apni aukat dikha dete hai

Back then there were really few good shows yaar ... Jodha Akbar, Chandra Nandini, Kuch Rang Pyaar Ke .. Bade Acche Lagte Hain (1st one) .. they don't make shows like these anymore

I've always hated the concept of forced marriages in itv. It's not wattpadish. It's outright crime. I also loathe how tv shows also mock the third love angle by getting them to the altar only to leave them heartbroken, with a reason to be a villain for the rest of their lives.

@ last paragraph about the crime — the last itv show I watched and the last couple I loved on itv was of Vanshaj (NeiVika). They literally didn't give us a wedding until some 300+ (or 350+ idr well) episodes and when they finally introduced the wedding track — not only did it not take place but we also got almost graphical scenes of the groom (Neil)'s illegal organ translate by the goons of their changed ML (basically the actor playing Neil had backed out of the show and they introduced another dude). So, trust me — Ekta and Gul and Shahi are far behind what Swastik did in that show.

Originally posted by: CID-fan-394

Honestly weddings are treated as a joke in tv shows all thanks to EK

This has spread to regional TV as well

Shows depict heinous crimes like kidnapping the bride on the day of the wedding , killing the groom on his wedding day (Vanshaj) and much more.

Plus youngsters (teenagers) with their yet to fully form brains get warped perceptions of marriage from these kinds of shows.....not just marriages they equate toxicity and abusive behaviour with love (IPKKND and many more shows). Some fans even defend the criminal protagonists (Katha Ankahee).

Honestly these shows should shift their focus from saas bahu and kitchen politics and bring shows with finite episodes so that the storylines are not screwed up.

Shows like 9 malabar hill , Mrithyudand, Nukkad , Aarohan , Hum paanch , Hum log , Buniyaad , ek shunya shunya , yeh jo hai zindagi.....TV used to be filled with such gems of shows.....now everything is about "proving her worth to her inlaws so that they would let her cook in the kitchen" , two women fighting for the same guy , sister in law being obsessed with her brother in law , victim being paired with her assaulter and the assaulter is put on a pedestal and worshipped as God himself

So people do get influenced by ITV and there needs to be a change in the way shows are made.

@B1: how can you forget Swastik?!!!

Originally posted by: Moonstique

@B1: how can you forget Swastik?!!!

I have menthoned Vanshaj in the 3rd point

Originally posted by: CID-fan-394

I have menthoned Vanshaj in the 3rd point

Nevermind I missed it. Only read the longer ones

Originally posted by: Moonstique

I've always hated the concept of forced marriages in itv. It's not wattpadish. It's outright crime. I also loathe how tv shows also mock the third love angle by getting them to the altar only to leave them heartbroken, with a reason to be a villain for the rest of their lives.

@ last paragraph about the crime — the last itv show I watched and the last couple I loved on itv was of Vanshaj (NeiVika). They literally didn't give us a wedding until some 300+ (or 350+ idr well) episodes and when they finally introduced the wedding track — not only did it not take place but we also got almost graphical scenes of the groom (Neil)'s illegal organ translate by the goons of their changed ML (basically the actor playing Neil had backed out of the show and they introduced another dude). So, trust me — Ekta and Gul and Shahi are far behind what Swastik did in that show.

You forgot about another groom who got murdered in ep 300 that show desensitized the audience by showing a horde of criminal activities to a point that it almost became a normal occurence in every 50th or 100th episode

Originally posted by: CID-fan-394

You forgot about another groom who got murdered in ep 300 that show desensitized the audience by showing a horde of criminal activities to a point that it almost became a normal occurence in every 50th or 100th episode

Oh yes. And his newly wed wife had to witness how his throat was....*coughs*

Recently, serials started portraying physical and emotional abuse within family, esp in marital relationships, sometimes as a plot device or as a recurring theme.

Another reoccurring theme is the propagation of murder or attempted murder in the context of marriage, which frequently involves complicated plans and revenge.

Extramarital affairs are a typical storyline, often resulting in conflict, jealousy, blackmail, exploitation and even murder.

It's important to note that these are fictional narratives, and while they may entertain, they can also carry a risk of desensitising viewers to the seriousness of violence and criminal behavior within relationships.

How far is it acceptable to view murders and wicked plots to ruin someone's life as part of our daily entertainment?