Friends, as expected Jalal's crash to earth came after his flights of imagination yesterday. But although this looked like a negative happening, it would be so easy to blame Jodha for this upheaval to Jalal, but it wouldn't be fair. To me, in fact, the comforting factor today was that Jodha did everything right and thus redeemed herself in my eyes!
The scene between Jodha and Jalal started very nicely with Jodha actually fully empathising with Jalal. She extended every reciprocal and supportive sentiment that matched his words, as he described his happiness at her letter, and asked her if she meant every word of it. Jodha understood and was willing to soothe his tumultouous feelings, his trembling hands, his confusion to speak his mind. I loved the way she offered the solace of her hands and her touch to give him the strength to say all that he did to her. Unfortunately they were both victims of a deliberately fuelled misunderstanding where his understanding of her letter was not exactly matched by her recollections of what she had written. Naturally then, after asking Jalal to speak his mind freely, Jodha was completely perplexed when he acted as if she had given him the licence to tell her :"I want you as much as you have written that you want me!"
You know what folks, even though the events were ultimately sad, I am actually so, so glad that he openly and upfront mentioned the fact that she had written such words in the letter that she wanted him. And I am so, so glad she immediately thereupon told him: "I wrote no such thing. There is some misunderstanding!" Just think what the situation would have been between them, if he had just acted very fresh with her without saying what he had read in her letter. And what would have happened if she then just spurned him without clarifying that she had written no such thing in her letter. The whole thing would have become a "misunderstanding multiplied" by insufficient and delayed clarity on the one crucial issue: the exact contents of the letter!
So, in my book today, the whole situation has been largely mitigated by this early open declaration between both of them that it was the contents of the letter that was causing their being on different wavelengths! There is of course a lot of resultant anger on his side, and perplexity on her side, after the interaction soured, since they both think the other is behaving with "be-izzati" ... but there is also room for quick reconciliation because of this early openness on the issue from both sides.
To add to all this there are also other reasons why I thought Jodha was perfectly okay and controlled in the way she reacted today: she was not rude or harsh to him, all that she kept saying was that there is some misunderstanding, she does not any more feel ghrna for him, but she does not love him yet either. She is therefore not ready for any physical relationship with him. She said all this is in a calm voice and without rancour.
Jalal also was quite okay. He was very emotional - but also very careful. Physically, he did not do more than give her a hug, and that too after she herself held his hands in hers and looked into his eyes as she encouraged him to continue talking ... and it was only when she started demurring, he mistook it as standard issue female behaviour and started giving her a hug. That was when she tried to break free of his embrace and he fell to the ground from the sudden movement of hers, losing his balance. She pulled away from him, she did not actually push him - even if he liked to think so in anger!
If there is one thing I can blame for this situation today it would not be Jodha or Jalal - or even Maham! I would blame all this on the fact that Jalal is illiterate - and his illiteracy has been exploited by someone who found this convenient vulnerability. The villains of a story are generally to blame for the evil plots and plans they try to execute - but who can blame them for exploiting a readily-available weakness in the hero and heroine? If Jalal later comes to his senses and realises Jodha did not write all that in the letter, I hope he won't just think "Thank God Jodha is in the clear!" I hope he will think "I have to see that I get literate. I cannot allow my life to be shaken and taken advantage of just because I have never learnt to value literacy. It's time I did something to plug this major weakness!"
In fact I would be very happy if Jalal were to really see how without literacy he is at such a huge disadvantage running a huge Sultanate. If people like Atga were not standing by him, any crook of the smallest size could take him for a ride quoting stuff from administrative paigams that are totally fictitious! I hope this issue shows Jalal that it is not the Jodhas of this world he needs to suspect of writing or not writing romantic letters ... it is the larger concept, of not being a genuinely powerful Shahenshah if he is totally illiterate, that he needs to worry about!
Having said all this, I want to highlight three important issues that I thought took centrestage today. The first of these is my take on why the turn of events today has a very positive side. I have given seven reasons why things are actually looking good! The other two issues I want to write about are the actual Jodha-Jalal scene and its details - and the Maham plot and its contours!
The positives from today's episode: hopes for quick clearing of the air!
Contrary to popular opinion, I have a take that there could be many positives in the episode today that point to a good chance of an early reconciliation. We just need to keep an open mind!
b. I think it is significant that Jalal told Maham that he wants to discuss this anger with no one but Ruq. This suggests to me that in some way Ruq may either re-read that letter to him or else hint to him that it all sounds too un-Jodha-like to be true! And Ruq, the new friend of Jodha, may well be the person to bring Jalal and Jodha back on friendly terms. Maham definitely looked troubled by the fact that Jalal wanted to confer only with Ruq on this issue and not discuss it with Maham!
c. It seemed like an additional good sanket to me that Jodha was seen praying to Kanha for help in making Jalal see that she had not written all that he claimed in that letter. And we all know that Kanha has never deserted Jodha, so I expect some divine help soon. The good thing is that Jodha seems to have cottoned on to the fact that some thing was amiss in that letter and she voiced that in so many words. So at least the source of the problem is clear to her.
d. This introduction of Benazir seems part of Maham's plot to keep Jalal distracted away from Jodha and to prevent a reconciliation or even maybe to further the split between them. But I have a feeling that Benazir too could become an unintentional reverse-Cupid. She could of course make Jodha feel jealous on the one side, and thus make Jodha question her own responses if she is beginning to feel possessive over Jalal. On the other side, Benazir could well also make Jalal think twice about his feelings of "wanting Jodha" as he did. If it was just lust for any woman, he should also feel the same way for Benazir, but if he doesn't feel the same with Benazir as he did with Jodha, that should make him question what he does feel for Jodha that is so different and exclusive? As regards Benazir, there's another possible angle. Ruq may also dislike Jalal falling for Benazir's charms and she and Jodha may well become a team that tries to prise Benazir away from Jalal? To get Jalal away from Benazir (whom Ruq thinks of as the greater temptation for Jalal), Ruq may well even believe bringing Jalal closer to Jodha may help keep him away from Benazir?
e. We all know Benazir's role is a cameo, so it is a limited-time fascination that Jalal may show for her that we have to stomach. Who knows, it could well also turn out that Jalal feels nothing for Benazir but decides to teach Jodha a lesson by acting attracted to Benazir after seeing Jodha does not take kindly to her presence? (Breaking News: A spoiler has already come out that Jalal will definitely try to use Benazir to make Jodha jealous, and she will realise she has feelings for him!)
f. There was one more sanket to me today that the reconciliation of Jodha and Jalal may not be very far away. The loud guffawing laughter that Maham gave us, crowing in delight over the fact that she had split up Jodha and Jalal was as sure a sign as any that her plot is about to fail! Many a time we have seen the over-confident Maham, thus gleefully crowing over her successes a little too early and then shooting herself in the foot just at the penultimate stage of what looks like her victory. I fully now expect that no one else may need to trip up Maham's plans, as she looks set in her usual form of overplaying her hand somehow and neutralising herself! These loud guffaws of laughter I have started seeing as a very welcome sign of her slipping soon on a proverbial banana peel!
g. We have not accounted for the continuing role of Tansen in this affair. I am not able to believe that his role was merely to sing and cause Jalal to keel over with lust for Jodha. He has given us all indications of being here in some way to clean the "air and soil of Agra", remember? So I think he will have some continuing role to play, perhaps in bringing Jodha and Jalal together - maybe after he realises that Maham may have used his music for all the wrong purposes. I don't think Tansen was brought in just to sing a concert and then to vanish into the woodwork. I have a feeling we will see him in more action this week.
Jalal-Jodha: from trembling with feelings to trembling with anger!
I loved the Jalal-Jodha scene even if it ended on a sad note where the two of them were at odds with each other. The scene opened with Jalal making his way lurchingly to Jodha's room, and entering without any announcement of his presence. Jodha was already attired for the night, sans her usual heavy clothes and jewelry (and looking rather pretty!). She had on what looked like a nightie (only I don't know what it was called in those days) so on the faceof it, Jalal must have thought to himself "How opportune! She's waiting for me!"
Jodha then extended her hand out for Moti to help her remove her kangan, when an obliging Jalal did it for her, and that's when she came awake to his presence in her room. I loved the dialogue that then followed. He askswhy she had chosen to write her thoughts in a letter, and she says she had written it all as her heart felt, because it was easier than saying the words to him. The misunderstanding of what they were talking about then starts getting deeper and deeper.
Jalal thrilled me to bits in that part of the scene when he shows her his trembling hands and says to her "My hand trembled like this when I first held a horse's reins, and again when I first wore my crown. But they trembled most when I held your hand at our wedding! At first I wanted to just capture you and get a hold over you, make you part of the harem ... but things changed for me later when all I wanted was for you to understand me, as you have now done!" Sensing that something was on his mind and he needed the support, she extends both her hands out to hold his and he added his other hand to hold her hands. OMG, what a lovely scene!
He then goes on to tell her "Remember how we were so against each other at first, and so full of guroor, both of us, and despite my being a hard-hearted person ..." She cuts him short just by placing her hand on his shoulders and saying "No, I know you now, and you are not hard-hearted at all!"
He then says he's been wanting to say something to her but couldn't find the words, when she gently holds his hands again and asks him to speak his mind. That's when he tells her that he wants to be close to her physically and wants her as she has said in her letter that she wants him! That shocks her into saying she never wrote all that. But he mistakes her demurring for a naturally ladylike response and actually goes to hug her and starts almost taking off the jacket of her nightwear. She moves to break free of his hold, he loses his balance and lands on the ground - filled with anger that he has thus been pushed into a humiliating position!
She tries sitting next to him and explaining her situation again, but he is so angry by now that he grabs the nearest object and almost strikes her with it - before smashing it to the ground. The comedy of errors then ends on a real sad note after more heated words are exchanged and he storms out of the room leaving her looking utterly confused, guilty, bewildered and unable to know what to do!
What can I say about the acting of both Rajat and Paridhi? Words fail me. They went through such a gamut of emotions in that scene. He was so childlike in his feelings for her, showing how vulnerable he was feeling to even ask to be with her! He looked like he wanted her caring and her love, although he could never call it love and he kept explaining it with all other kinds of terms. She looked ready to love him back - but only mentally not physically. She was so caring but she couldn't find it in herself to go further! What a sad state of affairs when both seemed so near and yet so far from that declaration of the real feelings eating them both up. And what sadness that they had to part on such a deliberate misunderstanding engineered by a vile-hearted woman like Mahamanga!
Jalal then is seen in his bathtub venting away at Jodha, while Jodha is seen praying to Kanha. Both seem to think they have been objects of "be-izzati" for which Jalal even says he can never give Jodha maafi, while Jodha prays for an opportunity to clear the air with him. It's always so sad to see lovers apart (even if they are as yet undeclared lovers). My heart broke into many pieces as I watched the episode!
But I have a natural optimism in me that always bounces back fast after distress, so I am back in business right now looking at the bright side!
The Maham masterplan: split Jodha-Jalal, use Benazir to seduce Jalal!
The Maham masterplan deserves some mention if only for us to try and guess how far she plans to go. From her own admission to Resham today Maham's motive was revenge for Adham's incarceration. Her immediate objective seems to have been to somehow split Jodha and Jalal by making him try to get amorous with her and getting her to spurn him and thus anger him. Her next objective seems to be to somehow get Jodha out of Agra as a result of Jalal's continuing anger and continuing disinterest.
Fortuitously, Maham has also come across the "pinjara" from the Kabul Munim that contains the siren Benazir. So now Maham seems to be keen to give Jodha the impression that Jalal is not at all angry, but instead is very happily distracted by Benazir ... while also (in the precap) telling Jalal she has just the right thing he would want - and his eyes widen with surprise to see her "gift" (no doubt, the sultry Benazir?)
I am just waiting to just see how Maham manages to now trip over her own shoelaces!
On a parting note, does anyone know how long the Benazir cameo is going to last? Any spoilers? Any news of the length of this misunderstanding track and the Benazir track? If anyone has any definite news, I'd love to know. In the absence of any news I think maybe this misunderstanding track would run all of this week and maybe into half of the next week as well? Just a guess!
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