Mansi of Punarvivaah – Better foe than a friend?
In the world of soaps, it is not a rare occurrence to come across a character that totally confounds us in a queasy sort of a way. Whenever the said character appears on screen, we are hard -pressed not to throw up with anger and annoyance building inside us. Mansi is one such character in the recently released show, Punar Vivaah, on Zee TV.
Before I proceed, a short recap of the show for non-punarvivaah viewers: Aarti the protagonist of the show is a divorcee and a single mother of a four-year-old son,Ansh. She lives with her in-laws who treat her more like their daughter and are now in the process of getting her married to Yash, a widower with two little daughters. Aarti, still pines for her ex-husband, but agrees to marry Yash solely for her son. Mansi is Aarti's best friend who is constantly by her side and plays an important role (to our dismay) in her life to the extent of shaping her perceptions regarding Yash.
And here lies the problem. At every single step, Mansi is the only voice Aarti gets to hear besides her well-wisher – her mother-in-law, Shobha. Unfortunately, Mansi is projected as a character that is shallow and insensitive. She mostly comes across as a delusional nymphomaniac who is constantly misguiding her friend. She repeatedly projects her disillusioned view of love and relationships on to her friend. Her twisted view of a woman's sole purpose in a man's life raises a red flag in Aarti's mind about her expected role as Yash's wife. Mansi further succeeds, though unintentionally, in creating a wrong image of Yash in Aarti's mind.
The shadows under Aarti's eyes, her pursed lips, furrowed brows, anguish in her voice, tension in her body, and even the shudder that runs through her every time anyone talks about her impending marriage to Yash is evident to a naked eye. Yet, here is her supposed best friend who cannot even see what's right in front of her let alone have the sensitivity to gauge her friend's plight and her internal battle to accept the inevitable. A friend's insensitivity especially in a situation Aarti is in is inacceptable to me as a viewer.
This restlessness when I see Mansi has pushed me to question Aarti's judgment regarding her choice of friends. It even makes me wonder about the complete disconnect between them. How can a person be so unaware of a friend's emotional battle or be insensitive towards a friend's feelings? I wish Mansi would for a minute snap out of her own pigeonhole of a delusional world and stand as a true support for her friend.
Mansi's characterization raises a few questions in my head for the creative team ofPunar Vivaah. Her presence and her annoying views are certainly pushing the pre-marital track in a certain pre-planned way. Was her character deliberately planted there to be obnoxious enough to achieve a certain purpose or is there more to it? If there is, you are off the hook hoping you will bring out a different side of mansi as a friend in the near future. But if not, as a viewer, I wish you treat us better than to thrust a character such as Mansi at us just for the heck of it.
Neeraja Unni
Rangmunch.tv
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