All of us were wondering that day when they showed the marriage signboard outside the resort ... we were wondering why Yash's name was fully there but Aarti's name was just half there as "Aa".
Today I got the symbolism of it!
Aarti's name change to Arpita was the mystery!!!
Now coming to the name change issue itself, it was the most dominat item on today's episode ... it took off nearly 3/4ths of the whole episode. I am personally disgusted that Aarti has been asked to change her name and the way everyone is acting around this issue. But for my analysis today I thought: Let me see what each and every character's true nature is by how they reacted to this name issue ...
... here's what I found: The true colours of everybody's psychology came through like never before. Whatever people may pretend to be, when there is a really critical issue of social dilemma, the internal truth of every person involved gets revealed.
So here's my take on each and every character exposed today ...
Daddy Scindia:
Complete out and out crook, with a nature that is as ruthless as a snake. All these days he was uttering small sentences here and there that gave glimpses of his true personality, but today he was totally eloquent and unstoppable in his crooked and chauvinistic speech. It is not just what he said about the name change, but the way he said it to Shobha and Aarti - both of these women was stumped and speechless! And then the final namaskar and disappearance of the man! My God, this name issue has revealed the utter disregard of this man for any kind of sentiment or emotion. He is pure stone, inside his heart and out!
Mummy Scindia:
All through Daddy Scindia's speech all she could do was look sneeringly at Aarti and Shobha, as if she was taken aback by their guts to come here and argue with her powerful husband. Here I feel she tried to look dominating and powerful herself, in the shadow of her husband. But in the end, when Shobha asked to speak on behalf of Aarti to her husband all she could do was to refuse, because in truth she dare not! Her namaste looked sarcastic, but it was the empty gesture of a woman shining in the borrowed power of her husband but having no power worth the name herself!
Arpita's Mother:
What kind of a woman tries to keep her daughter's memory alive in her sasuraal by naming the second wife after her dead daughter? Arpita's mother came across in this name-change issue as a very intensely self-preoccupied and selfish lady, even going to the extreme extent of making Yash take a kasam on her head to agree to change Aarti's name to Arpita. She too is a mother and a woman. We can at least blame Daddy Scindia for being an old-fashioned man with no value for a woman's sentiments. But Arpita's mother has no excuse for her lack of sensitivity to Aarti's situation. All she could think of was herself and her dead daughter. This name issue showed her to be self-centered person capable of timely emotional blackmail.
Arpita's Father:
At least Arpita's father could have cautioned his wife against her emotional atyachaar, but he looks like a man of few words, and the male equivalent of Mummy Scindia. His wife makes the arguments, he adds his two bits! Arpita's father seems to have a weak backbone and a low voice against his wife's pressure.
Mummy Dubey:
Shobha initially got my attention because she had the guts to tell Aarti "Come let's go and tell the Scindia's that we don't want this name change business". I got the feeling that she would be able to put her point across. But already we have all seen how the Dubeys, in the most critical moments are becoming doormats to the Scindias. Shobha started with a loud voice and then got reduced to a whimper. Her strong arguments vanished against the onslaught of Daddy Scindia. In the end all she could say was "Name change per se is OK, but not name change into the name of Dead previous wife". Is that a valid argument? Is that called support for Aarti? I was disappointed in Shobha today ...
Daddy Dubey:
He is the architect of that Big Lie about the vidhwa versus talaaqshuda issue, na? Today again as expected he preferred that Shobha and Aarti should say nothing and should just accept the name change wishes of the Scindias, just so that the marriage can go ahead. Daddy Dubey has already done enough damage to this shaadi's future with the Big Lie, and thankfully he was not invited by Shobha and Aarti to go to the name issue discussion meeting with the Scindias. The weak man that he was, he happily stayed away from the proceedings!
Vidhi:
She did not obviously like this name change stuff but could not add her opinion in that room. She seems the one to take the lazy option: "Just don't say anything now, later we can tackle Yash and appeal to his good sense". One thing can be said about Vidhi. She has lived in this parivaar long enough and by now must have understood the dynamics of this family fully well. If she thought that it was better to quietly get her way rather than openly confront issues, that point of view must have come from her experience in this household!
Pankaj:
His dialogue with Yash was not strictly about this name issue, but his advice to Yash was strong and sensible, even though it was more general. Pankaj put it across that Yash cannot go through with a second marriage and still pretend in his mind that nothing had changed! He was able to break Yash's mindset with a few well-chosen words. Unfortunately we do not always see Pankaj having this kind of freedom to say what he like in front of his Dad or even to his own wife.
Pratik:
One thing about him is that he can reduce even serious issues into a laughing joking lighthearted matter. He did not address the name issue as such, but he was able to break Yash's morose mood with his impish nature. Thank God this serial has at least one character who refuses to take life too seriously. Pratik comes across as one who does not address serious issues head on but rather finds a way around them through prankishness.
Aarti:
Aarti voice was gaayab today. Dd she have not even one word to say to the Scindias in her own defence? What is the use of talking about her pehchaan and astitiva when she cannot even stand up for herself in the face of the Scindias? I think rather than Shobha pleading her case Aarti should have been the one to say straight out "I do not want the name of a dead woman, however much the dead woman's parents want it". Instead Aarti stood there, staring at the floor and at Shobha, unable to say even one word. There is an inconsistency in the way the CVs are portraying Aarti. Initially she was the hockey-stick weilding power woman, and nowadays she has become a silent spectator, taking all kinds of rubbish without even the slightest resistance.
Yash:
He is not just in double-mind, he is in the state of having ten minds right now. He has no clear idea what he wants and what he doesn't want. He wants the memory of Arpita, he doesn't want Aarti to get her name ... he wants to favour Arpita's parents, he doesn't want to do as they request ... he wants to say what he wishes, he doesn't want to upset the elders (his parents included) ... he wants to win the argument, he doesn't want to openly say yes to the kasam on ex-mother-in-laws head ...
... and in the end all he can do is mutely walk away, leaving them all to assume he has relented (which in his mind he has not really done so!). Yash is a complex mixture of all kinds of internal conflict. At this moment he is so wrapped in his own confusion it does not seem likely that he can argue any case in favour of Aarti!
Well finally, things evolved from the name fight to the bachelors party. That was a bit of light relief at the end and the poor confused Yash was pushed into agreeing to it by his two brothers and their desperation to have a "boys evening" without wives and girlfriends.
It was nice to know that Yash has some buttons that can be pushed to make him give in to some happiness and fun moments, in spite of his private agonies. In future if Aarti learns where those buttons are she can have fun pushing them ... and we can have fun watching it!
Edited by skanda12 - 13 years ago