To be honest, I was expecting a ‘filler’ episode with the ‘pregnancy’ matter hogging the limelight, thankfully the issue was quickly sorted and things moves to next phase, to ‘Mission Riansh’ . How to get the ‘Riansh’ ship floating? Well, Riansh’s loyal, ardent & obsessive fanshipper comes to do the honors!
Kabir not just content with directing Riddhima through long distance, decides to enter the fray himself although in disguise. He enters VR Mansions as a wedding planner , is immediately met with suspicious Vansh who makes it a point of doing a background search of Devraj Rathore right in front of him. As expected, Kabir in disguise passes the rigged reference in flying colors.
Kabir has not only come to conduct the hasty wedding of Ishani & Angre but to further propel Riddhima closer to Vansh. He wants to ferret out the truth about Ragini’s murder. So Kabir decides to push Riddhima towards Vansh, make him fall truly, madly, deeply in love with Riddhima, so much so that he bares all secrets, particularly about Ragini to Riddhima – Will it happen?
Oddly enough, today’s episode reminded me of an old episode where Vansh while dribbling and playing solo basketball manages to strain his shoulders causing him pain. Riddhima comes to him, offers him some relief from pain. I am expecting something similar here, Vansh is going to get played by Kabir. This will result in set back to Vansh, a set back that is going to yield unexpected results.
However lets keep Kabir in the backburner for now and explore Riddhima & Vansh. Riddhima, an orphan entered VR mansions as a physio for Sia and as a spy for Kabir. She graduated to Vansh’s wife, throughout it all, she remained in the periphery, the intangible stamp of ‘outsider’ stamped on her. But today, she stood shoulder to shoulder with Vansh, in the center, offering counsel and sorting out the family issue and safeguarding family. Riddhima is slowly becoming an integral part of the family, whether she realizes it or not is not known but, she is in the process of becoming the lynch pin.
Another perceptive insight was offered by Dadi who equated Riddhima not with Anupriya, the ‘mom’ who ‘selflessly’ raised the kids but with Uma Raisinghania, the mother who left the kids and vanished one fine day! Yes! The same mother whose portrait grounds Vansh, prevents him from going rogue, stops him from crossing the boundaries of goodness. In one simple stroke, we are made aware that Riddhima is going to be that ‘figure’ from hereon.
Riddhima who had kept herself aloof from Raisinghania’s is slowly embracing her identity and is being gradually accepted by Raisinghania’s into their circle.. These developments are not limited to Riddhima & Raisinghania’s, the distance between Riddhima & Vansh is dissipating by degrees. The girl who longed to ‘belong’ is stunned and surprised when Vansh vocally & forcefully conveys that Riddhima is HIS wife and will not tolerate any slur to her name. She is moved when Vansh makes it a point of expressing his gratitude, an acknowledgement of her as family, as a valuable member.
Neither have fully let their guard down nor are they in ‘trust’ mode. But both are inching towards that spot where they are giving ‘benefit of doubt’ to each other. Vansh who hitherto treated Riddhima like a viper that needed to be defanged, has become protective, has become softer in tone and attitude. He is opening up to her, revealing shades not facets of himself. Riddhima for her part is now trusting him up to a point. She willingly shares her doubts and fears with him rather than playing Lara Croft! There’s still a fog of mistrust clouding them yet the rays of cautious trust is slowly dissipating the fog.
Into this conundrum walks Kabir, the hyena intent on sneaking an attack on the lion and bringing it down. He comes with the purpose of hastening Vansh’s downfall by tricking him to fall for Riddhima. The cocky Kabir envisages various scenes that will draw Vansh & Riddhima closer. Kabir is confident of bringing Vansh under Riddhima’s spell by throwing them together. He is equally confident that Riddhima is going to handover the key to Vansh’s riches over to him. He expects a deluge that is going to wipe out Vansh once and for all. He begins what he calls his ‘Mission’ to bring the couple closer.
However there’s a slight problem in the scenario that he has calculated. Whilst the scenario of Vansh being attracted to Riddhima may not be false, Kabir is underestimating Vansh’s ability to survive and counter attack. On the other hand, Kabir is vastly overestimating his hold on Riddhima. He erroneously assumes that Vansh is going to be seduced by Riddhima’s beauty and her actions whereas Riddhima remains unaffected by Vansh. THAT overconfidence is going to be Kabir’s undoing! While manipulating Vansh towards Riddhima, he forgets that Riddhima who has been fed a trowel full of misleading or incorrect information about Vansh will be able to see the ‘truth’ of Vansh’s reality. A fact that is at variance with what she had been fed. She is bound to wonder at the discrepancies. Kabir sent her to find a monster but what she finds is a man who shouldered the family responsibility without a murmer, a brother who is caring of his siblings needs, a son whose affection hovers as a protective shield over the family, a husband who respects and cares for his wife – a family man who will bear the brunt of all attacks but will not tolerate a scratch on his family!
Nonetheless it must be admitted that Kabir knows how to turn the screws on people’s emotions and manipulate them to do his bidding’s. A reminder of how Riddhima’s marriage occurred brings the incipient resentment and pain in Riddhima. A rather aggressive offer of help to Riddhima quickly rouses the possessive streak in Vansh, who rushes to help his wife while sending Kabir scuttling to where he he came from.
A lovely underlining of the moment that inspite of upcoming storm, upheavals in their lives, Vansh is going to be there for Riddhima. She is meant for him and no interloper will ever be able to edge his way between them! The hand that was inching towards Kabir’s waiting grasp is prevented in time by Vansh, who holds Riddhima’s hand, takes it within his own warm paws and aids her in her moment! *Beautiful*
Another interesting factor that happened today was Riddhima advocating Angre as the son in law of Raisinghania’s. Though, there’s no connection between Angre and Riddhima now, I feel, this moment is going to play out later when Riddhima will need a leeway into Vansh’s life sometime in future.
** Dadi surprised me today. I am beginning to wonder whether Dadi has anything to do with Ragini ? *Idle speculations*
