Posted:
I am back. I just wanted to bring up something that myself and many others have addressed in the past. I know many of us glorify Kartik's character due to the way Ankush Arora had enacted him, and due to the way the character was written with a strong foundation. He was indeed different, he was responsible yet playful, emotional yet strong headed, respectful towards women yet charming, and so on...
I know that many may pinpoint Kartik's misplaced trust of Taayi as one of his worst qualities, but what I believe to be have been the worst was the abuse he directed towards Survi, especially after marriage. Kartik has raised his hands towards Survi far too many times- from when she was 14 until the moment before finding out the truth about Taayi and the part she played in baby Kushi's kidnapping and murder attempts. In all of the scenarios the the incorporation of Kartik raising his hand and at times actually slapping Survi was added for dramatic purposes and was fortunately received by the audience (from what I have read in this forum and on Instagram) with anger and dismay, while applauding Survi when it came to her standing up for herself against her greatest weakness, her one and true love. Never has Kartik been shown to have been so careless and short tempered when interacting with other characters- something I appreciated- even though Bindu and Hema have done some horrible things to him, there has never been a scene where he has shown anger towards them, and instead has only gone out of his way to protect them from their own spouses- which is why I am even more disappointed in how YVR showed Kartik in such a light.
Post KarVi's marriage, the way Kartik treated Survi was sweet and what I thought was the true him, but once the honeymoon issue came about they made him violent towards her- holding on to her shoulders and pushing her against a wall or shaking her- clear domestic abuse that would have and should have been reason for a divorce/separation. Due to Taayi and her evil and annoying schemes we were expected to overlook this, but regardless is still very concerning. Fortunately, there was a scene where Survi, as Durga Rani addressed this to Taayi, but not Kartik... ever...
What I wanted to point out the most was how Kartik used intimidation (a form of abuse) and neared Survi (physically) in many instances in the KarViShi track. These instances bothered me the most, mostly because it was being passed off as romantic, and from what I had seen on Instagram even celebrated at times 🤢. I am most worried about this, because it seems like many of the fans on Instagram are quite young, and may use this as a way of influencing the way they see and understand romance/love/real relationships... but then again, I may be underestimating the younger fanbase.
I still love KarVi as a fictional couple for the history and friendship they shared that acted as a strong foundation for their relationship as a married couple, and I truly do not believe this current new pairing can ever live up to them in their enactment or writing, but at the same time I want to remind everyone that until the end they had many faults that could have been better addressed- With Kartik's abusive behaviour and Survi's lack of identity outside of kartik and his world. SonKush did a terrific job enacting this couple, but I believe if there was more room to explore both characters' individual faults and their fault as a couple in more depth with an emphasis on their emotions and dialogue delivery (minus the soapy drama😆) they would have pulled it off as the true professionals they are. Unfortunately, such material is more accepted and explored in Indian movies than tv shows due to the presence of TRPS 😡.
If anyone has anything to add, refute, or just share I would love to hear from you. I will try to come back when I can to continue this conversation if anyone wants to. Best!
Shiv Shakti
