The story-Seldom does one come across 'excellence'…the word is almost forbidden in telly-world. I was quite skeptical and sore when Kat asked me to watch an episode of "yeh pyaar na hoga kam" but I was pleasantly surprised and my faith that good stories still exist was restored…they say, 'excellence is what we can reach for, perfection is God's business' so let's not hope or ask for the latter.
The story touches on a social issue…cast differences, unfortunately they still co-exist in a largely forward thinking society, but social issues are not my cup of tea. My mantra is that we watch TV for respite from our real lives, I have enough problems of my own so I don't need somebody to gift wrap reality and make me sit through episodes of pain…thankfully the writers of "yeh pyaar" have not (yet) forgotten that it's primarily a love story…and did I say I *heart* love stories…ahem 😳
The stars-YPNHK has an excellent cast…no hamming! I feel like slapping TN's mother when she gets going but hats off to the actress for portraying the character so brilliantly! She has almost redefined negativity in Indian television with her stint in this one.
Gaurav Khanna our male lead- well I have to admit I still don't find him attractive, 'cute' is the word I'll use for him. We spend our lives ogling hundreds of attractive men but it's the ones who're 'cute' both in persona and in soul that we take home to our parents… Gaurav as Abeer is just the kind of guy I would want to take home. So once again, an excellent character fabulously portrayed by Gaurav.
Yami Gautam as Leher is just the right combination of sensuality and sensibility…the character has her feet rooted deeply into the ground, a little over the toppish but quite close to being excellent… Yami is doing complete justice to her character, a commendable performance.
The others-I am so surprised! I have never come across such (near) perfect casting!! Everybody from Baankay, TN, Panditain, Chutki, Brij Bhushan Mathur & wife to his brother's family and not to forget Bansi kaka and Deepa's mom…it looks like everyone (spare Abeer's buffoon friends) are putting in a 110% at what they're required to do.
What hooked me- Nostalgia {among other things}Abeer doesn't fall in love with Leher from the word 'GO'…it's infatuation that steadily grows into love…
The perfect scene- remember how Madhav & Abeer leave for the 'doibaad' rasam in the early hours of the morning? Abeer tells his friends to push the car away from the house as he's afraid the sound of the ignition might awake someone. I was hooked! This is exactly what I used to do with my cousins when we wanted to go out for a late night/ early morning snack…we'd push the car two three houses away, and then start the engine…ahh nostalgia 😳 silly reason, but it brought back some of my best memories...
The episode-Or shall we call it
'the choice'? Leher is quite traditional and she's said her family's honor matters most to her, we also know that she loves Abeer. So Leher had a choice today, Abeer or her family…and she chose the latter.
A lot of factors may have influenced her decision, Rashmi & Madhav didn't set a rosy example for starters, and whatever hope she might have left in her heart was washed-up all thanks to chachaji's 'deewar' fiasco. But there's also the other side of the coin, Abeer is Madhav's polar opposite. Madhav was sweet, mellow and rather weak, he believed that his silent persistence would win over his parents, it ultimately cost him the love of his life. Abeer is the rebel, he chooses to standup where Madhav remains silent, so Leher can count on his support when the going gets tough and here's where I thought, so why did she still say she doesn't love him? I think her father's medical condition played a crucial part in her decision. Where Mr. Majumdaar was strong enough to bear all accusations and insults and still go ahead with his daughter's wedding, Brij Bhushan Mathur will falter, the man cannot bear the heat of his brother's anger…I will be surprised if he stands tall in front of TN & dadi.
Coming up- the drunkard's act continues…will Leher succumb? Not yet 😉
Episode rating- 7/10, the acting could've been a tad better and we didn't necessarily have to sit through 'tu jaane na' that was a filler!
The journey-
Ria Ka Adda & it's Annex are all about the friendship we share, the brainstorming and in-depth analysis and discussions about each episode and unyielding love for the 'love' portrayed on screen…here's to a new journey, an excellent story, old friends and the new ones we hope to find here…cheers to US! 😃
Jo thanks for opening Annex here...will be back later... 🤗
P.S. Deb Majumdaar is the best telly-dad I've seen in a while 😳 hope they bring him back on-screen pronto!! I can even do a petition!! 😆 😆 😆
Edited by natz - 15 years ago