Posted:
Excellent Post Amethyst! Honestly I am really enjoying what they are doing with both couples. I like the fact that the writers don't need to downplay one couple to prop up the other. Both couples have their own strengths and weaknesses.
I agree with a lot of what you said. But I wanted to add a few things.
Like you said we didn't see Meghnal's initial days so we didn't see exactly what their equation was. But from watching the first few episodes... it doesn't seem like they had much of a relationship back then.
Kunal, in college, sounded like he was the guy that every girl liked and every guy wanted to be like. In all likelihood, Meghna would've surprised him not only by doing better than him (which was probably a new experience) but also not giving him the time of day. I totally imagine her brushing him off when he repeatedly tried to talk to her (bechara 😆). So I could see him paying attention to her more and more. Its easy to imagine how he'd fall for her like that. Meghna's very bold, and i think he would've probably appreciated that quality in contrast to his frustration of his mothers passivity. He probably realized her ambitious nature and got a chance to witness her quick temper😆. But whatever he learned would've been through observation because they weren't really friends.
Even though Meghna fell in love with him at first sight, she never allowed herself to go there. Jis gali jaana nahi, uske rasta kyun poochna. Or at least that's what she was telling herself 🤣. So while Kunal spent time consciously trying to figure Meghna out, Meghna didn't really. I think that's where they differ in their understanding of each other. If anything Meghna may have been looking for things that would annoy her about him so she can put him from her mind. She unwittingly fell in love with him, but still I don't think she spent a lot of conscious effort figuring him out.
So even though they are both in love with each other, its only now that they are actually developing a real relationship. Its different when you like someone from far and when you are actually in a relationship with them. So I don't consider them as having that much more time in a relationship with each other than Naina and Karan. If anything Naina and Karan actually have a head start because they've been forced to spend day and night with each other right away. Both of them have allowed themselves the luxury of being friends whereas Meghna never allowed herself that luxury with Kunal. That was always a forbidden place for her to go until they got engaged.
But in terms of trust... I feel like Meghna did trust Kunal implicitly before the wedding. I think for someone who didn't allow herself to pick up his phone calls, didn't allow herself to even hold his hand or hug him before the engagement... to actually go all the way with him the night before the wedding is a pretty big testament of her trust. She put herself and her family in a very vulnerable situation.
Trust is allowing yourself to be in a vulnerable position with your partner where they have the power to hurt your life but you have enough faith that they won't. Meghna and Karan have a lot of hangups. But in spite of those hangups, they've actually allowed themselves to be in quite vulnerable positions with their respective partners. So if anything, I'd argue, I think they've shown more implicit trust than Naina and Kunal.
For example, even today Naina didn't open up to Karan about her misgivings regarding competing with her sister. She opened up to a stranger, her mom, even her sister. But not to her best friend/husband. Yes Karan was struggling with his own confidence issues... but I think she could've trusted that he wouldn't misunderstand her perspective. That to me would've been a testament to her trust in him-- that he understands her etc. By nature I think Naina is more guarded-- I think once Karan's confidence improves that's where he's going to have to work to develop more intimacy in the relationship.
Also, I think Meghna's trust was a little shaken after Kunal didn't stand up for Naina's future during the wedding mishap. But the fact that she was still able to give herself full heartedly in this relationship after that betrayal (and for her it was a betrayal) speaks volumes to their foundation. Again for me the point of a foundation is how quickly you get over perceived betrayals? I think on that score both Kunal and Meghna have shown that their relationship has resiliency. Getting over obstacles helps build trust in a relationship.
Honestly I don't really think that Meghna and Kunal are about mind games. I think Kunal is a little harder to figure out because he hasn't had that many scenes where he is completely vulnerable. The one scene we had was after his fight with Karan where he was completely vulnerable in front of Meghna. He was willing to pick a fight with his dad at the worst possible moment in order to avenge Meghna's hurt. I think that showed that there is indeed a lot of heart in his relationship with Meghna too. I think that business deal line was just a way to handle his father... the business deal fell through and he never seemed to be affected by it.
If anything I think Meghna is very much about the heart in this relationship even though she doesn't want to be. Meghna wants to be someone that is goal oriented and strategic. But to her frustration her emotions for Kunal are not something she can control. Meghna had to face the fact that she was indeed in love with him in the worst possible moment... after her mom had already arranged her marriage to someone else. I am not sure she would've been able to rein in her emotions had her mother set her up with someone else.
So I think Meghna and Kunal are both very much invested from the heart... they just aren't a very mushy couple (which I appreciate). But with two headstrong personalities there will invariably be clashes. But I think its good that they each keep each other on their toes. That neither person really has the upper hand in the relationship.
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