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As we are now counting down to just last 3ish episodes of Judaai track.. I am back to analyse what we all witnessed. In my previous post on Chapter 2: Responsibity & support, I really thought Judaai is going to be a small track but it was full blown 40 episode track just like heartbreak track of 40 eps.
Those looking into my previous posts:
Part 1: Confession (link)Part 2: Responsibilities & Support (link) Actually, what I wrote in my part 2 is what will happen now instead post judaai.
Now, I said YUD keeps it realistic and the news of Dadi back then, I thought she would be a grey character too just like others, but damn, we all were wrong. Probably the only true blue villian of our show, which I cant wait to say bye in few eps. Her final plotting is done. Thank god! If there's one thing I'd like to change in YUD, it would be KeDi. Totally ruined Delhi track. Overall, yes Delhi the essence of YUD somewhere felt lost, Ahemdabad parts still remained the same. The constant tho? The VOs. The essence of the VOs wasnt lost one bit. Soul of the show.
But my point to make this post is not that, my point is to bring in positivity to the entire Judaai track. I know like me many are either disappointed, or wanted to see xyz, etc etc. But I really wanted to look back at what we were offered and how even they were represented nicely actually (other than KeDi plotting, which is not realistic but I will look at them as "catalyst" something which was said when news of Dadi was out).
I am going to be analysing it week by week, as I loved how every week CVs tackled a new shade of Judaai, Loneliness & adjusting with family. Not dragging anything for long at all contrary to what is believed by the fandom. I strongly believe that as a fandom, judaai track was hard on us also because of seeing the two separate & us being super impatient to see them back already. It surely adds to the drama factor already happening in episodes. We all were like c'mon seriously, just milwa do inhe! What's life without some trouble times.. they make us strong and who we are in the long run. So look at Judaai track as that. The light heartedness of the show couldnt remain all the time, judaai was the perfect time to bring in drama factor & learnings and growth for our characters. As we get done with it now.. with their reunion and college track will bring in the light heartedness & essence back as its gonna be all Ahemdabad! So yay! Hang in there.. few more eps guys!
Let's start!
Ep 135th week 1: Judaai transition
I'd say well done. Sameer loosing his entire world and just lost and entering a new environment altogether, not knowing how to adjust at all.
"Nanaji ko yaad karte karte mein kab so gaya mujhe pata hi nai chala, lekin jab mein neend se jaga tab tak toh meri duniya hi badal chuki thi. Ek aisa toofan aa chuka tha jo mere naina pyaar ki kashti ko bahut door le gaya, ek aise raste pe jisme hum dono ne kabhi chalna nahi chaha tha"
Toofan = Not only judaai but also the troubled times.
Naina, getting to know about Nanu. Judaai from her lover when he was at his lowest made her the most vulnerable that she could ever be. Plus not knowing about Sameer's condition at all made it only worse.
Special mention #1:
The intensity of VO voiced by Jiten & Sameer totally lost recalling Naina.. Magic! Perfect way to bring him back to his senses.
"Naina. Aaakhon se door thi par dil se nahi. Uss samay aisa laga jaise 3 dino se mai soya hua tha, aur jab neend khuli, toh ek hi naam muh se nikla, NAINA. Samaj nahi paa raha tha ki kahan hogi meri Naina, kaisi hogi meri Naina. NAINA."
I could just feel Sameer's intense love right through my screen and boy their love has become so intense & gehra during Judaai.
Ep 140th week 2: Vulnerable lovers, struggle to hear each other just once! "The phone call"
As I can call it, panic mode on for the both of them. And when we panic, thats exactly when nothing works right for us and here it was Dadi vs Taiji.
There in Delhi because of Dadi, Sameer's weakness of Anger was coming back slowly. And here, our Topper Naina who knew how to handle Agarwals & get away with situations, lost her focus completely.
Start of the ever so lovely NaMunDit bond, Sameer-Deepika bond and Amrita-Sameer's friendship.
"The phone call"
Ah! Them saying sorry to each other for not being there vs not informing about his whereabouts just sums up their relationship. Them. Phone call/Convo. Chandni raat. A lovely trio always. Basis of the judaai track, that no matter what their love will never fade no matter how far they are from each other. Sameer's smile being back just by that one phone call, expressed how important Naina is to him. How she is the only one, to whom he can pour his heart out to, always. Dil halka sirf Naina ke saath ho sakta hai for Sameer.
Special mention #2:
The "Oh god oh god!" VO by Jiten. These 2 special mention VOs I will never forget from the judaai track. Never.
Ep 145th week 3: Vulnerable lovers week 2. Recurring weakness of Anger of Sameer vs Naina continuing to loose focus. Letter phase!
VOs:
"Un dinon gussa bahut tha mujhme. Tha kyun keh raha hoon? Gussa aaj bhi meri kamzori hai. Lekin uss din meri kamzori ko bhaav diya tha aur kisiki kamzori ka fayda uthana unhe acche se aata tha. Bas phir kya tha, woh chingari ko hawa deti gayi aur meri gusse ki aag bhadakti gayi"
"Arre kisi ke haath se uski pyaari pyaari cheez cheenti chali gayi na toh gussa nai aayega? Aayega na! (...) Naina ki shaant parchayi se jo thoda badlav aaya tha mere gusse par kaabu rakhne mein, woh delhi jaane ke baad dugne asar se wapas laut raha aur iska ilaaj sirf ek hi tha.. Naina ke paas meri wapasi"
What I liked about Judaai track is that the core character sketches remained the same, they didnt introduce anything new. Anger trait of Sameer we know right from start of the show. In Ahemdabad, he was around Nanu, Naina, Munna, Pandit. They never gave him the chance to feel not loved at any point. He was loved everytime. In delhi, he was all alone and hence can't manage his emotions. He has been shown as emotional kid right from episode 1 coming from a broken family. He needs constant love & support to be able to think right. Him planning to run away I knew where CVs were taking this in terms of bringing lil maturity into Sameer and that's exactly what happened.
Ep 150th week 4: Overcoming weakness and becoming, "Ek doosre ki taqat!"
"Naina ke paas meri wapasi" happened quite literally. At times, when loved ones are involved in our shortcomings it hurts us the most and makes us learn the most too. Thats exactly what happened with Sameer. He bursted out on Naina for nothing. Taking out all Delhi anger on Naina for nothing. Realisation was done so so well by CVs. Spot on VO!
That phone call is another basis of their relationship. "Ek doosre ki taqat" and "Nanaji hamesha kehte the ki jab kabhi bhi mein ladkhaunga na, toh tum mujhe sambhalogi" and their vaadas to each other. One vaada & support from her lover and Naina was back on track and back to balancing her life. For Sameer, was that the case tho? But yes when he started to stick to his vaada, it started the ever so lovely bond of Sameer-Maa, which doesn't happen overnight, and things dont just mend when they have been distanced from each other for 12 years. So it started atleast.
Ep 155th week 5: Finding escape to loneliness, Friendship Judaai - SaMunDit judaai struggles. Sameer-Maa bonding.
Timeline: Delhi boys VO leap: June-Aug'91 gradual leap (DHKMN released in July'91, VCR would be out post that)
Am not suprised him getting into bad company.. its like.. he was in search of loved ones.. so any chance he sought he will grab it.. yes he was aware Naina loves him and was there for him but the thing was she was far and not with him. No matter what, the physical loneliness always kicks in.. and it hurts even more when you are being neglected in the family and after you have experienced unconditional love (Naina, MunDit, Nanu). Just when he found love and was maturing.. life took a sudden turn and he was lonely.. again. Finding an escape when one is downright lonely can be blessing or curse. While doing so he made mistakes and this being one of them.
The VO dissing his younger self is just the best thing about Judaai track. It makes me connect to the show so much because when I look back I cringe, laugh, dislike.. and everything about myself. Like dude, How could I do that? Its same here. Its not about justifying the current track all the time. This has been constant till current episode, its today's Sameer, who has taken lessons from his troubled times and become what he is today.
If there he was missing his friends, here MunDit was missing their yaar too. Their fight was rather pyaar wali ladai, haha.
Special Mention #3: MtAbu Red shirt parallels.
Then: Vishakha not standing up for Sameer. Not recognizing him as her son.
Now: Standing up for Sameer. Saving him from Dadi plotting.
From this point onwards, dadi plotting has resulted in something positive or she has not been successful every single time.. aka Catalyst.
Ep 160th week 6: SaMunDit Delhi reunion, Selfless friendship & relationships & Love parallels. Also, "the dream week"
Best part about Sameer is once he realises he rectifies. He is learning via life lessons.. love that. Isn't that how it happens in real? His troubled times will make him SJM. His VO is of a very sorted, experienced, emotional, intense man. And so this was also one of those life lessons. What's life without mistakes anyway? Who is perfect? You? Me? Hell no. So I never really minded the Delhi boys track. I knew it wouldnt be dragged. It was one of those weekly tracks.
MunDit came to Delhi just when they were needed. His farishtey via Naina. Goes back to, "Jab kabhi bhi mein ladkhaunga na, toh tum mujhe sambhalogi". The only thing with him like I said already is he needs constant love and support either from MunDit, Naina or now Maa. Thats just how his character sketch is. MunDit talking to Dadi was a total Dil le lo moment for me but as if Dadi is gonna listen, now thats 'her' character sketch. Here again, Dadi's plotting led to a solid bonding of Sameer-Maa. As they say, if your loved ones know the truth, it doesnt matter what strangers know because they don't matter in the long run anyway so why care? Even when Sameer wanted to go and tell the truth, he said he wants to say the truth to Maa only, not anyone else. So, while I absolutely disliked them getting slapped by Dadi (which was not needed, could be left at scolding), Vishakha realised the truth and gave that much needed assurance to Sameer, which was long overdue. First mutual hug of theirs.. and I cried.
Radio phase: I loved the part time job touch. Brings in the sense of responsibility in him and perfect path of turning SJM and business take over later on.
On Naina's front this week:
I wanted to talk about Shanti mam bits. Naina knows her love isn't wrong. And she took a stand for it in front of Shanti teacher for herself and Sameer, Both. And proved her right because of her vaada to Sameer. That one vaada grew her character so much during judaai. Her love for Sameer is her strength. She can fight the world for it, but with her own principles and would never cheat.
Intro to Mission Naina in Delhi.
What I liked that Naina is like I can do anything to meet Sameer. Yes quiz is her forte, but itni aasani se can Naina go to Delhi, then kya maza? ;) So its dance competition instead.
Special Mention #4: Pandit bringing Naina's rose in a simple pencil box. Simple. Caring. Thoughtful. = NaMunDit bond in a nutshell = The bond which grew so beautifully in Sameer's absence. And Sameer's proud lil smile hearing Naina took care of MunDit in his absense as he got to know of her plan.
Special Mention #5:
Winter leap: Timeline: Aug to Nov'91
N: Hamara pyar baar baar ghir kar bhi apne pairon par khada hona janta hai
S: Girna bura nai hota. Bura to wo hota hai girke uthne ki koshish na karna
Core essence of Judaai track!
Special mention #6:
Vishakha getting hints about Naina. Twice! She is yet to connect the dots about his radio station lines.. but it's coming up real soon. Maa is soon getting to know about her Bahu! ;)
Special mention #7:
By the VOs its pretty clear, they have shared and confided with each other everything. Naina talked about Delhi boys/English film whereas Sameer knows about Shanti teacher incident or about his radio station day. Or Preeti mentioning about Dadi. So they share a lot, than what is shown to us, but VOs convey to us subtly very well imo. And I actually like it whenever that happens. Not only during Judaai but otherwise too.
The only thing he doesnt share is.. his emotional struggles. Not until it reaches a peak. But with this jinx lesson of his, he will promise to share everything with Naina am sure. Looking forward.
Ep 165th week 7: Mission Naina in Delhi. Judaai start vs ending parallels. Bhai-Bhai bonding.
Dance vs Sameer's desperation for Naina's letter leap - Timeline: Dec'91
Saathiya song seq summed up their relationship so so so well. Hands down my fav song/dream seq from the show so far. Best is, its part real part dream unlike others! Love the transitions, parallels & oh so beautifully shot!
"Ab jeena marna mera, Janam tere haath hai. Maine kahan na sanam, ab tu mere saath hai" = Them! Works both ways actually, not just one way. They are each other's strength. They work together!
Sameer-Deepika bonding, I love how this bond has grown overtime. From playing pranks on his bhaiyya to having fun with him. What a lovely growth. The drawing closure was fab. Somani seeing change in Sameer has been a great growth in their relationship. Its not about Sameer changing, he is same, but its rather that living with Sameer, Somani's perception slowly changing of Sameer. He is just like another strict father who wants well for his kids. Here too.. Dadi interfering turned into a catalyst for Somani taking Sameer's side. aka catalyst.
Hit&Miss #1: Loved it! Beautifully shot & enacted by both. The whole point of this one was for Naina to meet Dadi and get to know her behaviour towards Sameer.
Hit&Miss #2: Gosh! I disliked coz ofcourse I want them to meet already, but the point of this was bringing Sameer's insecurities to the front. He just lost Nanu. Him panicking that morning, clearly showed his fear. Dadi only fueled it.. aka catalyst for reunion with Naina and Vishakha to send him back to Ahemdabad as she realises his happiness lies there, as Dadi will always somewhere step in do something and play with our boy. Her final plotting is done. But once again she won't win, temporarily yes, but not forever. Like I said he needs constant emotional support, his character sketch. But now, he has none. Maa is ill, MunDit not there, Naina is there & she will pull him out but at the point when ep ended, was she there? No. So what happened? His VO, "Aur main apne akal pe taale lagane wala.. 'tha'" I highlighted tha for a reason! ;) Because it will open soon and he will learn a lesson.
His VO when judaai started, "Nanu aur Naina door jaa rahe the" this time, "Naina aur Maa". But its time for things to take a reverse turn. Its time for things to mend, and not go worse. Its time for overcoming his fears. This is just emotional Sameer letting his fears taking over him. "Pata nahi kyun aisa lag raha tha Naina aur Maa..." This pata nahi kyun.. is his fear. That's how we feel when our fears take over. We panic. (Gosh! What portrayal by Randeep of this!! Wiping his tears recalling Naina's vaada & then running to call her & get that letter. Jeez! What intense love Sameer-Naina have. Gosh! I can feel it!)
Its Nanu vs Maa, Naina not being there vs Naina being there. Uss baar Judaai hui, iss baar, Milan! Uss baar Nanu passed away, this time Vishakha will be fine.
During this:
Once again Dadi's plotting led to another positive outcome. Sameer-Rohan bonding. aka Catalyst. Are you seeing the trend already from what I have been mentioning since special mention #3 part? So yeah! The observer Rohan speaks up!! I always saw him observe Sameer every single time & thought when will he speak up. Whenever he has spoken, its has been meaningful. "Main unhe doondne jaun kya" to understanding SaMunDit relationship and giving up his room to standing up for his bade bhai in front of the police. Dil le lo totally! I loved it! Yes I would have loved to see the bond grow overtime but I totally get this angle. Now, thats his character sketch. He has been routined by Dadi which hasnt made him fall into pressure but made him introvert and observant instead. He has turned the pressure positively and it has become his character trait. People like him only speak when needed and when they do its of meaning. And they open up with only few people. Like he does with Vishakha (talking about girls in front of his mother) to now comforting his mother with both her sons finally bonding and so he is speaking more in front of Sameer. Their bond grew from misunderstandings (ep 1) to awkwardness as they came face to face to observing and giving in to each other's presence to finally accepting the relationship out in open.
Judaai start: Hit&Miss = Judaai
Judaai end: Hit&Miss = Milan
(Not sure if this was needed)
I just love attention to detail to what CVs present to us.
Judaai start: "Kash woh hoti mere paas, mere saath. Uske saath baith kar rota toh shayad dil kuch halka ho jata"
Judaai end: "Lekin uss waqt mujh par ek pagalpan ka junoon sawar tha... Woh letter jo mera ek hi saara tha.. dil halka kar lene ka. Letter ko choote hi mujhe aisa laga ki meri Naina bilkul mere paas hai"
Naina remains that one person, who he can pour his heart out to.. always. No one can or will replace this. MunDit yes, he can, he finally spoke about Nanu in front of them bt not fully yet. The wound is somewhat fresh still. So, be ready for coming week.
Ep 170th week 8: Judaai ends, Ahemdabad transition.
Weekly theme: Contrasting Shades of Love. Understanding your lover with minimal communication & Sameer's emotional struggles aka "Distancing so that my loved ones are okay"
Timeline: 92 leap
#Ep171
Forecoming:
Mere Nanaji kehte the, ki zindagi mein agar kuch bura na ho toh acche ka maaza nahi aata. Isiliye toh mirch lagne ke baad, khayi hui mithai humein zyada meethi lagti hai. Nahi toh humein aadat ho jati hai swad ki aur hum uska maaza lena chhod dete hai. Ek taraf mein yeh soch kar dukhi tha ki main Naina se kabhi nahi mil paunga. Dusri taraf woh mujhse milne ki umeed mein khush thi. Dono ka pyaar ek-sa tha, bas pyaar ka swad.. alag-alag.
Their love is pure love. Naina's love and faith in Sameer is something which will never fade away.. which will actually become Sameer's strength, as he witnesses it himself once in Ahemdabad. Not only Naina, but MunDit too. They are Sameer's anchors. Like VO said, "Unhe dekh kartoh apni kismat pe ghamand ho raha tha mujhe" in Ep160.
So its Naina's hope & faith vs. Sameer's fear. We kno who will win!!
This VO tells us what is to come when something happens which Sameer didnt expect.. that is Vishakha to send him back to Ahemdabad. It will all be fine very soon. Rose in Naina's plant is symbol that its all gonna be okay. What the VO said about swad and life is very true. Bad times make us cherish good times even more. Last straw of sadness for Sameer.. last time he is letting his emotions take better of himself. The learning from this life lesson of his is going to be lifelong.
VOs like these, make me connect with characters so much. And the way they are voiced are also perfect. Like I said, Sameer's VO is of someone very sorted, experienced, emotional, intense man. A big learning coming up for him! I look forward to this!
#Ep172 thoughts: Full thoughts are here (link).
Sameer's VOs were positive. What VO said was not only mentioning his last days in Delhi but also that sehne ke din emotionally too!
"Lekin woh kehte hai na, insaan jab tak sehta nahi hai, usko apni himmat ka pata hi nahi chalta, ya phir yeh koi signal tha ki sehne ke din khatm hone ko the"
Loved the letter leap! This week saw 2 contrasting shades of love. During dance comp, he saw himself as weakness, but she saw him as strength. During letter leap, the more he tried to distance himself, the more closer she got to him. He can't resist Naina with letters, what he will in person. The moment she is out of sight, he looks out for her.
Letter leap gave Naina lots of hints about him struggling emotionally, adhoori chhittiyan, stopping radio job, not talking on phone, (Dadi came back here too) and finally precap.. crying on radio. His last radio show, he gave hints. Two women of his life, noticed his sadness. Maa & Naina. For Maa it will make him go back to Ahemdabad, for Naina.. its all leading up to her connecting the dots when she comes face to face with him. She can read his face just like that! Naina's rose makes me believe they come face to face on last day of school.
PVKM has witnessed everything.. will witness their reunion too aka coming face to face! Bring it on!
#Ep173 went ahead and showed Naina & Maa connecting the dots already. Link to my full thots of this episode (link)
#Ep174 thoughts:
"Jaise hi kacha dhoodh peene se acidity ki saari jalan shaant hojati hai na, theek waise hi feeling ho rahi thi mujhe, jab Maa ne mujhe Ahemdabad jaane ko kaha tha. Lekin uss waqt mujhe yeh nahi pata tha, main wapas jaake kitnon ka haajma kharab karne wala hoon"
A relief VO! He knows Ahemdabad is his home, thats where he belongs. So he is happy and relieved. But the end of VO is fun one haha, so Naina & Sameer will come face to face but he is going to be acting aloof a bit, making NaMunDit restless a bit, that why is Sameer being this way! Lol Chalo fun days are back from Monday. Bye bye drama, hello old YUD! Trust NaMunDit to make it all fine super soon (few eps) in coming week. Full breakdown coming right up next week. Be ready!
Vishakha mentioning Mama & family, assures me they arent negative anywhere close to Dadi since she promised Sameer, he won't ever cry again after today. So, Maa knows what she is doing, if she is sending Mama to live with him. They must be trustworthy.
I have noticed as Delhi track is ending and its transitioning to full Ahemdabad track.. CVs are slowly toning down the drama factor and bringing in the old charm of YUD back one by one! Started off with Shefjun and that Sunday VO! I was completely nostalgic & taken back in time! Now, thats truly Yeh Un Dinon Ki Baat Hai!
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My full ending thoughts on Judaai: (link)
Bottom line is.. good writing didnt go anywhere.. Delhi parts werent written that fab as before + execution lacked but its just that it became dramatic for Judaai track + weekly stretches for each theme portrayed (and well oops to bloopers lol) I hope I have been able to bring in some positivity into how the Judaai track has been perceived. Cheers! And oh.. Good Bye Dadi! We. Will. Not. Miss. You!
Also with show going back to just Ahemdabad.. am very sure the lightheartness and simplicity will be back. Its just Delhi which took a dramatic turn.
PS: If heartbreak track was all about Ashi portraying Naina's turmoil. Judaai was all about Randeep portraying Sameer's loneliness and mending his broken family relations. Enacting emotional Sameer to the T, from his vulnerabilities to weakness to his desparation for Naina to his relief in seeing & feeling Naina. Wow Randeep! Now that these two have grown so freaking much during judaai, cant wait for their scenes together starting this week! Already their chemistry was fab, now I can't wait to see them back onscreen already. Bring it on!!
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