Posted:
I have been thinking about ruqaiya character. How she as a character is someone they dramatically changed from the start of the serial. I started watching the new ruqaiya only, but recently I caught up with old episodes just to see how the story began.
The actress who played Ruqaiya at the start was definitely weak in her performance, but the character she portrayed was very different. Her character had a regality to her, she was able to command without raising her voice and more distinctly she had a tragic sadness about her. In one scene when Jalal asked the reason they don't have children is because there is no love between them, she turned her face in tears that was so sad, you could tell she loved him but he didn't love her atleast not the way she wanted to and that scene was really sad. That was the last touching scene of ruqaiya.
Then ruqaiya changed and she became cold and calculating. She is shrill when barking orders and didn't have that diginfied composure at excuding her authority. The biggest difference being the writers seem to decide the new ruqaiya doesn't love Jalal as much as the old one did, proof being when he breaks down after Khan baba death she takes off to deal with the Harem. The old ruqaiya would have stood by her man when his heart is breaking.
The change in Ruquaiya seems to be made on purpose to pave way for Jodha. The writers feel the need to justify Jalal loneliness so that he can fall in love with Jodha. Alas why do the writers have to be so simple minded. The old ruqaiya loved her husband and he doted on her, but there was something missing in that relationship for whatever reason it was Jalal who could not reciprocate despite his extreme fondness for her and saying no will take her place. Jalal did give her his zubaabn that she will always be his chief begum, sealed with an affectionate kiss, now for a man who never breaks his word it would have been interesting to see Jalal struggle to keep two woman he loves happy.
The jodha akbar love story would have been so much more interesting and complex if they kept Ruqaiya as tragic queen not a vampish tantrum throwing begum. It was not Ruqaiya did anything wrong that Jalal fell for Jodha, it is just that love cannot be forced.
