Originally posted by: CogitoErgoSum
Res 😈 😊
My patronus went to Mrs McGonaggal and transfigured from Kangaroo to Peregrine. 😉
Un--Res
Wow Saku...Such a psychologically powerful portrayal of Ragini--and of Lakshya and Swara, too.
You put that so wonderfully: Evil and hatred do not arrive abruptly. They grow out of the gradual dimming of the light, as the brightness and transparency of day give way to the dark hues of a stygian night.
Ragini knew very well what she was doing was a vile, despicable sin...and she still feels, that given an opportunity to go back and re examine the blatantly false evidence she gave, damning her own sister, she would do the same thing all over again.
The Ragini on the show is being shown as completely cuckoo in a sense---so delusional that she is practically paranoid schizophrenic. But the one here, has no such mental/ emotional disturbances. She is cold and clear about what she wants, even recognizes this evil, contemptible person she has turned into. But she still feels she has no choice, but to consign her sister to a literal hell on earth.
Those memories Ragini lets her mind revisit, in her darkened room, were so powerful. It showed how even as a child, that canker of jealousy and vindictive hate had clouded her intellect, her emotions again and again, until she lacked the will and the power to turn to the light, to goodness again.
First, when she feels her sitar recital has been upstaged by Swara's wonderful singing. When Swara garners all the accolades, Ragini was able to curtail her jealousy with difficulty by playing her sitar through the night, her fingers bloodied and cut by the intense negativity of her emotions. One is supposed to play with humility, with devotion, with a total suppression of one's ego. But for Ragini, her playing was directed towards the satisfaction of her ego. She played to get the praise and accolades, didn't she? Never thought of playing for the sheer love of music, for the sheer heart wrenching, soul enriching beauty of what music actually conveys. Sad...
And then, when she saw her Sister being the popular one with their friends, again the canker of jealousy reared its ugly head. She suppressed it with difficulty again, but she was no longer the same Ragini she was before.
Lakshya's affections being directed towards Swara was just the last straw for an already enfeebled conscience...The sad part about Ragini is, here, Lakshya never even gave her hopes by getting engaged to her prior to his "love" for Swara. He was Swara's friend first of all, and Ragini had only come to know him through that bond. Ragini developed a strong infatuation for him, which she deemed to be love.
I do not even want to dignify it by calling it true love, for she seems to be happy at the thought of having Lakshya in her power, caught in her grasp at last, when she gives the false testimony that would save him. She feels so satisfied at the thought that he would be bound to her for life, with this monstrous deceit she is going to unfold. 🤢 There is no way such a poisonous, covetous emotion can be termed love. Toxic love, perhaps!
And true to form, she had the fall coming for her as well, even before Sanskaar ripped apart the mask from both Lakshya's and her shenanigans. She realizes that Lakshya is a shallow, empty character. Ragini thought he was carrying the burden of guilt around. She felt fiercely protective and possessive, that he should not spend any more time pitying or being concerned about her sister's fate. But she realized it was hatred and vendetta he was carrying around, not any sense of remorse. Ugh! What a pair! They completely deserve each other!
The closing scene, Ragini's meeting with Swara was so profound in its delineation of Swara's frame of mind. She knows very well she didn't stab Vansh. But she is overpowered by the sheer hatred, the bitterness in Ragini's diatribe. Ragini played the "you are unwanted in our family" card maliciously well, didn't she? All those harsh words about how Swara always causes pain and discord wherever she goes---a hint at Shomi and Shekar's strained relationship, I guess. She played her cards well enough for a dejected and dispirited Swara to almost throw in the towel and accept guilt for a crime she never committed----Until her Knight in Shining Armor, SK flew in as Icarus did---with a much better set of functional wings!
I get now, what SK meant when he told Ragini that the Maheshwaris had got her as a bride, in a perfect imitation of what Annapurna was to Durga Prasad. A person who would blindly worship at the altar of their husband's supposed goodness, even at the cost of casting other relationships by the wayside, betraying the trust of other cherished bonds. But I do think he erred a bit there though. Annapurna made a bad choice, she betrayed the son of her heart. But I do not think she carried such darkness, such vile jealousy, a desire to hurt, in her mind as Ragini did.
Really loved it, Saku. Waiting for more!
Love,
---Viji
Cricket
