Phulwa. The name itself sounds very feminine and soft but when you hear Dacoit Phulwa another image comes to mind, a slightly tougher darker image. And that's how our dacoit Phulwa was; she was strong, independent, fierce and anything but feminine. One look at her and you knew you were dealing with a strong headed female. Even her appearance shouted 'do-not-mess-with-me'. From her attire to her hair, everything about her was...in control. Yes, she had the appearance of calm and control, yet there was a fire in her beautiful eyes.
Besides her eyes one feature that stood out was her beautiful long dark hair that was unfortunately always tied in a straight tight braid. Unfortunately because as viewers we hardly got to see those luscious tresses fall down her back in purely feminine fashion. No, they were always tied back in the same old braid. Straight. Simple. Completely under control just like Phulwa. That simple look spoke volumes about her. And that look was not only about style, it wasn't so superficial. No. it had deeper meaning. That tight braid symbolized the fierce yet controlled, strong Phulwa.
But when the day came and her heart took a leap of faith and she let the girl inside take over, the day she let those beautiful dark hair let fall free that was the day we saw the other side of Phulwa. The 'girl' Phulwa. The 'oh-so-in-love' Phulwa. And what really made that change stood out was her appearance; her long black hair resting beautifully on her shoulder.
She made a beautiful sight, standing there in her pretty pink ghagra and jewelry and most of all her dark hair set free just like she had set her heart free; free to explore the depths of the new found love. Yes, that was the moment she had let her guards down completely to let the new love enter her life and heart.
Then came the bad news. Who can forget what our Abhay did after that? Who can forget the not so pleasant phase of their relationship where Abhay humiliated Phulwa and forced her to close her heart again to love and life. And like before this change in Phulwa was seen in her appearance too. She had donned the womanly sari to fit the bill of Abhays wife but her beautiful hairs were once again locked tight into a braid. The girl in her retreated, her taut braid symbolizing that she was getting back in control. She had not only woven her hair back into that simple braid but build the walls around her heart too again. She was closing on life and emotions. The strong willed, in control Phulwa was back.
It was the worst nightmare for Phulwa but after every night comes dawn and so the sun decided to shine down again on her and happiness and love returned to her dark world in the form of loving Abhay. The day she was able to mesmerize him with her looks that was the day Phulwa had laughed with her heart, her open smile and laughter had managed to touch the heart of the strict ACP. No wonder, he was unable to control his heart afterwards for Phulwa had truly bewitched him that night. But back to hair, so after that night Phulwa never tied her beautiful hair into a braid again. No. She may have tied them into a lose pony tail but not a braid. After the incident Phulwa always wore her hair in a simple lose pony, with her open hair resting nicely on her shoulder flowing down in front of her. Her long dark tresses presenting a beautiful contrast to the vividly colored saris she wore. That in itself was a huge change which signified how much had changed in that one single night. The strong but hurt, fierce yet a little afraid, closing on her emotions Phulwa had dared to let her heart beat again. Once again she set her heart free, open to the experience of love. She had dared to hope and this time her dreams did come true. This time around Abhay did prove to be her savior, her prince charming, her love, her life. He fulfilled the promises made.
That was the day Phulwa came alive. The day Abhay-Phulwa truly happened, after that she never tied her hair again and he never left her side.
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Okay so that was um a short take on how Phulwas hair were kind of symbolic of the change in her life and relationship, hoping was able to convey something through the words. The credit for this idea goes to Dolly only because she is the one who pointed it out. Great observation on her part I must say. And...I wrote this like quickly last night, just an urge came over and I know this is bad, did not even proof read so any mistakes...please forgive me. Thanks.
Mangal Lakshmi
