The Philosopher’s Corner - We all live some kind of an illusion

Hello, 

My name is Ibby. I started months ago a banner “The Philosopher’s Corner”, where I aim to express my views and thinking personally. I like to believe I am on a journey to become a fully pledged philosopher. One day I want to write something that provoke critical thinking and different ways to perceive. 

Undoubtedly, this show has stirred up quite a buzz. Certainly, Shrenu as the main antagonist was one of the reason for this and as well as the fact that this story revolves around a lady who is basically out to destroy lives. Instead of being the common story of a woman who aims to improve the lives of those around her. Indeed, the storytelling is radically different as some might believe. I understood Mohana from Nazar and the story telling of that show as similar - the story being told from a Dayyan’s perspective. Then again, there are far too many disagreements about this perception of mine. Let us not get into that though. 

You see, I think Ek Bhram - Sarvagunn Sampanna is the perfect example of what some of us learn in philosophy school. If only this show existed when I was at University, I would have possibly used it as an example to illustrate how we cannot simply take what is seen on the surface for granted. Precisely, the Ek Bhram echoes what is grounded in our existence. This is, illusion. There is an old saying in Hindi: “Jo deekh tha hai woh hota nahi” - “What is seen is not what it is”. I am sure we all agree to this to an extent. Perhaps, it is possibly true that life as we know it may not be what it really is. I believe that we have all at least once in our life time have experienced situations that have altered our perception of life. We can characterise several Bhrams here. Take for example, many of us who have been in relationships and misconceived the idea that we really are loved, but our partner has been cheating on us for years. Some of us have been spouses of those who we believed that will never betray us and take us for granted, however we have been living a sham. Consider, our friends who we thought would never exploit our feelings, talk behind our back or even take advantage of our true friendship. The list can go on... I am sure you all may have one or two examples to add to this list. It goes without saying Janhvi is the character we should watch out for, but at the same time she is the sort of person we believe in the most. After all, it is gestures like hers that compel us to believe so. Supposedly, the Bhram Janhvi portrays as true teaches us that perhaps we ought to be weary off those who we trust the most. She is only one of the many who break our heart after making us feel so cared for and loved. She is simply just a different character with a heartbreaking personality trait. Yes, she may have her own reasons for the way she is and this may be justified with her background story. But, an eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind. Her revenge and ruining a family won’t return her father and won’t change her childhood. Her memories will stay intact and I am sure no amount of revenge, pain and hurting others will change how she feels. She will forever mourn the loss of her father. Even when she manages to punish PK Mittal - her loss will remain. 

It will go without many arguments, we all indeed do live some kind of a Bhram. We are all deluded from living some kind of an illusion. This is applicable to absolutely all of us. Our parents may be deluded about what we do with our free time. Our manager’s may believe that we follow our company rules duly. Our teachers and others may think along lines that really are far from the reality. I think this goes for Janhvi too. It cannot be said that she is not living an illusion herself. Which is precisely her belief that her plan is foolproof. It cannot be since she cannot predict the outcomes of her actions. We cannot predict the future and this is disadvantage for all of us. Janhvi at the end of the day is a human like all of us - she has no special powers to foresee the future. If she thinks that everything will go according to her plan, then she is clearly living a Bhram herself. I am not sure how this Bhram will break for Janhvi, but it should and it will because we all come out of our Bhram one day. All of our being-in-the-world must consist of a moment where we must reconsider everything around us. We must observe and critically analyse what we see on the surface. 

Whether Janhvi’s actions are justified is a concern for moralists and whether Janhvi’s means to achieve her end is justified is a matter different altogether. Maybe, we can debate on this another day. For now, I wonder if someone like Janhvi who knows she is simply an Ek Bhram - Sarvagunn Sampanna will ever consider if it is possible that she is living a Bhram herself. After all, we all at least in one way live some kind of an illusion. This is a fact. Our existence as we know it is not exactly what we think it is - it cannot ever be, regardless our fervent belief that it is. 

I see the plot of the story quite philosophically, as you can tell. Plus, I am really just a big fan of Shrenu

Kind Regards,

The Philosopher.

Very well written.. Lovely post dear 😍👍👍

Originally posted by: AnnStyles

Very well written.. Lovely post dear 😍👍👍

Thank you. 

Hi Ibby. Nice take. I want to make a few points as well.

There is another old saying in Hindi: "jo doosron ke liye ghada khodta hai woh ek din khud hi usme gir jaata hai" - "those who dig a hole for others, fall in it themselves one day". Granted we don't know the full story yet, but based on what has been shown, PK Mittal started all this. He dug a "hole" for Jhanvi's father and, while Jhanvi's father has fallen in it, Jhanvi is ensuring that it becomes a tit for tat.

On the other hand, the title is what intrigues me as well. Ek Bhram - Sarvagun Sampanna, which roughly translates to "A myth that she has all the qualities". Isn't that what people expect when they choose a daughter-in-law? They want a woman who has all the qualities. But it's a myth, an illusion. A woman cannot be a great mother, a great cook, a great housekeeper, a great wife, a great daughter-in-law, a great employee, a great manager, a great CEO, blah, blah, blah. Yet our society and Indian TV makes it appear so. The consummate bahu who is a detective, a mother, a wife, a daughter-in-law, a saviour, a businesswoman, etc. This show turns it all on its head. From the outside, Jhanvi appears to be that perfect bahu. The family can't stop gushing about her. But then you look beyond that illusion and see the real Jhanvi. And does that just apply to Jhanvi? Somewhere this can apply to every family member. Is PK really as trusting of Jhanvi as he seems? Is Suman really going mental or is it all an act? Is Ishani really just misguided by Jhanvi or is she worse than Jhanvi? Is Dhruv really as simple, innocent, and trusting as Jhanvi thinks he is? What is an illusion? What is real? The whole point (I hope) of this show is to show how people walk around with these masks. Masks that even the family members can't see past sometimes.

@ Purple: Sometimes it's not about avenging the loss, but about numbing the pain. For Jhanvi, this revenge is to numb the pain and also to prove that her father wasn't the traitor or fraud or whatever PK accused him of. She's on a revenge streak to destroy that illusion. On the other hand, ruining the innocent family members is not the right way to go. PK attacked Jhanvi's father, without care for what happened to his family. Jhanvi should do the same. Let the consequences of her actions effect the family, but don't attack the family directly. What fault is Kavya at? She wasn't even part of the family when PK did all this. What fault is Kabir at? Or Dhruv at? They were kids like Jhanvi. But as everyone always says. Anger makes people take the wrong steps. Jhanvi is still angry. This isn't revenge served cold, this is revenge served hot. And when that happens, it can burn the very person taking the revenge.

@ Brown/Red: But in a way aren't morals and philosophy tied? When Gandhi coined "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind", wasn't he speaking both morally and philosophically? It was his morals that led him to believe that and it is human philosophy to take revenge for the perceived wrong inflicted upon them. He tied human philosophy to his morals and imparted this wisdom. And whether Jhanvi is right or wrong can be argued on many levels: morally, philosophically, ethically, entertainment-wise, face-value, etc. Nonetheless I do agree that Jhavni is living in an illusion of her own and it remains to be seen when she will realize this. I think it will come when she faces her first loss. Right now she is winning and thus believes that she cannot be defeated, but there will come a day when she will lose. Will her illusion be shattered then? Who knows.

Originally posted by: ThePhilosopher

Supposedly, the Bhram Janhvi portrays as true teaches us that perhaps we ought to be weary off those who we trust the most. She is only one of the many who break our heart after making us feel so cared for and loved. She is simply just a different character with a heartbreaking personality trait. Yes, she may have her own reasons for the way she is and this may be justified with her background story. But, an eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind. Her revenge and ruining a family won’t return her father and won’t change her childhood. Her memories will stay intact and I am sure no amount of revenge, pain and hurting others will change how she feels. She will forever mourn the loss of her father. Even when she manages to punish PK Mittal - her loss will remain. 

Whether Janhvi’s actions are justified is a concern for moralists and whether Janhvi’s means to achieve her end is justified is a matter different altogether. Maybe, we can debate on this another day. For now, I wonder if someone like Janhvi who knows she is simply an Ek Bhram - Sarvagunn Sampanna will ever consider if it is possible that she is living a Bhram herself. After all, we all at least in one way live some kind of an illusion. This is a fact. Our existence as we know it is not exactly what we think it is - it cannot ever be, regardless our fervent belief that it is. 

@metis 

I agree with you also, very well explained