Am I not a part of this family? Why do I not deserve to know about Avantika Tai?
Does my curiosity seem unacceptable and my concern, sly?
Tell me who she is for I want to set the things right,
Because it is beyond me to stand indifferent to Mai’s plight!
– IAdoreYouCreates
W H A T H A P P E N E D I N T H E E P I S O D E ?
The episode begins with the Kukki Gang surprising Manasi with a small celebration of the joy of her pregnancy. Apurva and the Kukki Gang tell Manasi that she doesn’t get to work now and that they will do all the work. Manasi is overjoyed at the excitement of everyone for the baby who is yet to even come into the world. Shashank watches them, feeling contented looking at his happy family, and realizes how he was not fond of all these things earlier but now acknowledges that the real happiness lies in such small things. He adds how his wife knows how to find joy in small things.
Apurva catches his sight and calls him to join them, asking him what he will do for the baby. He says that he will sing a lullaby for the baby. Manasi urges that only Shashank will get to sing for the baby and nobody else. Kukki breaks it to Apurva that Manasi is referring to her. Manasi wears an apolgetic smile. Apurva insists that she will sing, reasoning that the baby should be used to everything. To Shashank’s perfect singing and her not-so-perfect singing as well.
Manasi insists Shashank to sing a lullaby. He hesitates but eventually sings a soothing lullaby that leaves everyone emotionally overwhelmed especially Amey and Manasi.
Apurva realizes that some of the Kanitkars are missing. She sends Prachi to call Aparna Kaku and herself goes to call Dada-Kaka and Mai.
Mai opens an old trunk and gets emotional, looking at the memories of Avantika that she has securely treasured for all these years. She gets startled when Dada-Kaka knocks on the door. She hurriedly puts everything back in the trunk and hides it under the table. She opens the door and Dada-Kaka asks her what has happened. While she says nothing, he spots Avantika’s clothes and a small glass on the bed. He looks at the trunk under the table ends up lashing out at Mai for digging the memories of the girl who is now dead for them.
Mai gets emotional and asks him not to utter such words but he refuses to listen, sternly reminding her that they have no relation to Avantika anymore and he wants anything related to Avantika to be in neither his nor her sight.
Apurva overhears the whole conversation and eventually steps in, unable to stand Dada-Kaka speaking so harshly with Mai. She asks Mai what has happened and who Avantika is. Dada-Kaka asks her to leave but she refuses to as she keeps asking about Avantika. Mai folds her hands in front of Apurva, requesting her to leave. Helpless, Apurva nods and agrees to leave. Dada-Kaka stops her and says that whatever she has heard in their room should stay within the walls of their room. Apurva nods and leaves.
Shashank notices that Apurva is missing. Mansi urges Amey and Shashank to dance. Amey asks where Apurva is and Shashank says that he will get her. He goes to Apurva who has been watching them from some distance and asks her what she is doing there. He tells her that Manasi wants to see them dance. She tells him that she is not in the mood to dance since Dada-Kaka scolded her.
Unaware of the whole matter, he asks her not to take the words of elders to her heart until she reveals what has happened. She asks him who Avantika is and he immediately shushes her, to make sure that nobody would hear it. He asks her to let the topic go but she does not listen. She keeps on insisting to tell her who Avantika is. She says that she is the daughter-in-law of the house and his wife and she deserves to know about Avantika.
Kukki comes there and asks them what’s happening. She goes to him and asks if it is right to hide things from the daughter-in-law of the house. Kukki shakes his head and tells her that he will tell her what Shashank isn’t telling. He tells her to ask her questions to him, promising to answer them until he hears her ask about Avantika.
The mere mention of Avantika makes him choose uncomfortable silence. Shashank walks up to them and asks Apurva not to be stubborn enough to believe that everyone should know everything.
Apurva retorts by saying that she is going to be stubborn. She says that she won’t listen to him – not this time – and she won’t sit in peace till she finds out who Avantika is.
M Y T A K E
Transparency is important in relationships. There is no denying there. However, life and people have seldom been straight lines. The road has always been bumpy. The roads of life have unimaginable curves at times. The curves so curvy that can make you fall when you meet them but do not worry. Every time you fall, your people will find you and lift you up if you can’t get up from your place for however tough the road may be, no obstacles will be strong enough to hold you back from reaching your destination – the happiness of your people.
I am sure I am in the minority but I don’t feel that Kanitkars have betrayed Vartaks by not telling them about Avantika. Some wounds are far too brutal and deep for people to dig them and let anyone even see them, let aside allowing anyone to comfort them.
We don’t know what happened. We don’t know what it has taken for them to learn to live without their daughter. We don’t know what it takes for them to go on with a smile every day when the longing for their daughter is so intense that they cannot even bring over their lips.
To tell Vartaks would have needed them to go back to the same misery that they seemed to have somehow gotten themselves out of.
Kabhi kabhi kuch baate aisi hoti hai jo aap nahi bol sakte rather nahi bolna chahte.
Is it right and fair? I don’t know. Is it realistic? I think, it is. People do have skeletons in the closet that they would like if stay in the closet.
Avantika Kanitkar surely seems like a character to be intrigued about. I wonder, what must have happened that led to such bitterness to creep in between her and her parents.
I loved the small celebration. It was beautiful, like always. Surprises – doesn’t matter if small or huge – exist as a gesture to make our people feel loved and adored.
Showering your people with love never goes out of fashion.
Apurva and the Kukki gang taking Manasi’s responsibilities on them made me smile.
Manasi confessing that she knew that they would do something of that sort after knowing about her baby was so pure. Her words about how lucky her baby is to have such a family were genuine. These people are just so grateful to have each other and it is absolutely heartwarming.
Kanitkars aren’t strange or some extraordinary people in my opinion. They surely do have their own conflicts, differences of opinions, and chaos but they have their priorities clear. They know that no conflicts are and can be more important than their people. They wouldn’t prioritize their conflicts over their relationships. There can be arguments and fights but they wouldn’t have the strength to break their bonds simply because they know that their relationships matter more than their conflicts.
Shashank’s lullaby moment was another beautiful one. The song was so soothing to both, ears and heart. Amey and Manasi getting emotional by the end of the song gave away how overwhelming parenthood can be. Especially when it’s your first baby.
My heart goes out to Mai. To withdraw yourself from your kid lands you in unimaginable misery. I wonder what must have happened that Kanitkars have ended all their ties with Avantika. I am not going to make any predictions though. I would rather wait and see what the actual story of Avantika Kanitkar is but Mai’s pain – even after so many years – stays as raw as it could have been.
Her scene with the trunk that holds the precious memories of her daughter that she hasn’t seen for I don’t know how long was so beautifully shot. I loved it.
My heart breaks to see that she has to silently and secretly long for her daughter.
Dada-Kaka – more than mad – looked wounded to me. I don’t know how to put it in words but I just could feel it – that Avantika was not just his first kid but also that kid that he probably loved the most. Now, I know that parents do not differentiate and their love for all their kids stays the same but the affection for your first kid is always different and special. Because that kid gifts you the beautiful first experience of parenthood.
Dada-Kaka seems to have struggled a lot to bring himself to a point where he can pretend like Avantika does not matter to him anymore. Why he seems like he hates even the mere mention of her because maybe hearing her name makes a crack to the art of pretense that he thinks that he has mastered but in reality – it is fragile enough to break even with the slight hit by Avantika’s memories.
Apurva’s love for Kanitkars is too overwhelming to let her stand as a mute spectator when any such situations arise that disturb the beautiful bonds that she admires. Her interference may get annoying for the involved family members because that triggers what they are trying their hardest to avoid but her interference wouldn’t stop because her heart won’t let her sit in peace till she restores her family members’ lost peace.
Apurva has never been of the kind to fake and pretend. If she got upset with what she watched and heard in Dada-kaka and Mai’s room – it is her character to go to them and express herself. She won’t keep it in her heart. She says what she feels – which might not always work in her favor because you have to have that maturity to know when to choose silence and when… your words. I do feel that Apurva has that maturity now. Why she kept quiet when Avantika’s name popped up at the picnic but hearing it again and watching that name create problems between her Dada-Kaka and Mai was bound to get her to speak up.
You can blame her, not appreciate her actions and call her out but that’s who she is. If she won’t scheme, then who will? The good part is that her scheming is always for and because of someone’s happiness so even if that does invite some misunderstandings and outbursts – eventually it will settle down and work in her favor.
Intentions matter.
I can only wonder why Shashank is choosing not to make her aware of Avantika though. He can just tell her the whole thing and ask her to refrain from uttering Avantika’s name in front of Kanitkars.
I wonder if it is indeed that intercast marriage thing. Avantika fell in love with someone her family did not approve of and she chose to elope. I wonder if that holds Shashank back from making Apurva aware of it, knowing that once she comes to know about it, it won’t seem a reason valid enough to Apurva to end ties with Avantika and she will try to find Avantika and get her back to Mai.
But that’s just a possibility that I could think of. I am not very sure about it and I wouldn’t honestly like it if that’s the case.
p r e c a p :
Promise me that from today onwards, you won’t bring up Avantika Tai’s topic in this house.
I promise not to bring up Avantika Tai’s topic in front of you.
So it will be the topic of discussion with someone else. I wonder who.
A smart promise with twisted words that leaves her free to find out about Avantika which I don’t think Shashank even realized.