Contrivance, thy name is Qubool Hai.
Billo Rani - the cat who is looking for the cream. She is in search of the elusive doll!
For more on the doll, my friend Paayaal will expound on it. The doll is a crucial element of the story, and now more than ever we must keep our eyes on it. Because the characters have lost sight of it. It is missing!
But that is not what I am hear today for. Today I take a look at relationships in Qubool hai.
Some of you will remember the game you played as a child. The string game, where it starts with one player holding a long piece of string, that is tied. The string goes around the thumb and the little finger. And then you begin the play. The next player has to make another figure using their fingers, and the strings. This goes on until no other figures can be made. This is a very ancient game and played in almost all parts of the world - from China to India to France, from the ancient Navajo to the Zunis.
Stay with me here.
The first figure is called Diamonds. A diamond figure has four corners. These represent the three women that Asad has in his life - Dilshaad, Zoya and Tanveer. The fourth corner is himself. He is now in conflict with both Zoya and his mother, and his childhood friend, Tanu is his only ally. We will leave Tamatar out of this analysis, because she is not important to the story.
But soon, the threads are switched. We have forgotten who Asad's real love is. His brother, Ayaan. And his father, Rashid. Because try as he might, Asad longs for this relationship.
So the strings are changed by another player and now it becomes the 'Soldier's Bed'. This is very important. Asad is in a battle Royale with his brother and his father and Zoya and his mother. He will fight for what he believes in. But he will not be successful, because he is mostly wrong. We know that Rashid is partly innocent. So now the strings can come apart!
But Zoya will pull them out - she always does. So the significance of the peanut must be included here. Peanut butter in dreams signify remorse or regret. Asad will have have to be redeemed for his injustices to Zoya and herein will lie his remorse and regret.
So Asad must rise from the soldiers bed. He is now in battle against his two loves, Zoya and Ayaan. His mother Dilshaad has also gone over to the enemy - or his father.
Now you will understand the significance of the lantern in Ayaan's hand on the road. In the 'Candle' figure of the game, all the ropes are parallel. Nothing criss-crosses any more. This is what the directors were showing. Asad will line up with the women in his life. He will also believe that Rashid is innocent - at least of the murder.
And this brings us to the significance of the game. The name of the game - the string game is The CAT'S CRADLE.
Now who is the cat - you may ask. Of course, it is Billo Rani. Her name tells it all. Like a cat, she wipes her whiskers - sorry, twirls her curls. She is always hiding behind doors, sneaking around, running away when people are in the house. Sometimes, she stands there and purrs. This is excellent characterization from the directors and I have to salute them on it.
There is one thing more. My friend Payal asked me - why was the kooda not taken out? And there is a simple answer to it. The garbage collection day was past for that week. All the garbage was outside. Cats love to rummage through garbage so Billo is always outside, rummaging through the garbage looking for the doll. Cats also love to play in leaves, that is why the doll was left inside leaves, so the cat could play in it and find it. See how simple they made it for us.
So who is playing this game of strings? Need I say - Raziya and Gafoor, of course. They are changing everything every now and then. But if another player steps in, they take them out. That is why Dadi cannot play Cat's cradle with them. She would end the game by pulling out all the strings.
What a beautiful inspiration the creators have given us from the very simple childhood game. I was struck by it as I realized all the corners and the changing figures and how they moved around! And I had to share it with you all.
