Nupur and Samrat

I could write one post on each of these characters - they're both similar too, but in the sense that they are so open on the surface, yet so unbelievably complex from inside.

Nupur - where is she coming from? Like Mayank, she has grown up before her time. Motherless, with a younger sister, her natural character of being a protective older sister is enhanced by the fact that she has to also be a mother to her younger sister. No wonder her escape is a world of dreams where a handsome Prince Charming will come and sweep her off her feet, and carry her away and love her and look after her forever. She wouldn't like it if it happened - because she's too used to being in charge, but hey, she can dream! She's spent her childhood looking after and worrying about her younger sister, probably protecting her from bullies and rowdy boys who laughed at Gunjan's specs, her quiet nature, so the innate protectiveness and caring part of Nupur has always been in full force. Probably to the point of being overbearing - she won't even let Gunjan speak for herself, she is always ready to defend her, like a tigress its cub.
Add to that her charm and sparkle and she's a diva in her own right in her little pond called Morena. So she's bright, self-confident, bubbly and chirpy and always cheerful. Right?
Wrong. Inside her is also hidden that motherless girl, who grew up too quickly, but who still longs to be held and looked after, protected and cherished, to be her mother's little girl. Maybe she has some memories of her mother and her parents' happy times together, and wants those for herself, craves them because she has seen so little of them. In that sense, she is the complete opposite of Gunjan, bright and confident on the outside, but a little lost and lonely on the inside. She is her sister's confidante, but like a mother always hides her own pain from her children, she doesn't show her own pain to her sister very much, until it becomes almost unbearable.

Nupur needs someone who will match her outer spirit and fire, not give her an inch, but who will recognize her need to be taken care of, her hidden insecurities. So far Mayur has been the first part, but he is yet to really recognize the hidden Nupur. He has started to – his comment ‘made of glass’ showed that he is starting to look inside her, past the bright outer shell, but he still has a long way to go. His own natural arrogance – Babloo ban gaya, paneer pakode khaane pade – shows that he still thinks he is making an effort to woo her. It isn’t coming naturally yet, as it is for Samrat.

Samrat - another outwardly superficial, inwardly complex character. One can understand him a bit better because he has poured his heart out to Gunjan. Or rather, to Nupur, mistaking her to be Gunjan. And Nupur recognized his pain, his fears, because she has faced them herself. How you can be lonely in a crowd, they both know that very well. How to put on a show for others, to be bright, laughing, the heart and soul of a party, because you don't want to go back to your inner loneliness, they both know that too. That is why Nupur gels so well with Samrat, because they really are twin souls. And that is why they will always be good friends, but never anything more. If they got together, their inner emptiness would become deafening after a while. Their relationship would always be superficial, because they would have this need to keep laughing, keep smiling, putting up pretenses in front of each other. He needs someone to look after him, someone with inner strength, but someone who makes him feel as though he is the center of her world, who will look up to him, depend on him. Who makes him feel needed. He needs Gunjan.

I can imagine Samrat as the typical poor little rich boy, growing up in a succession of boarding schools because his parents were busy making money, always hungry for love and affection, showering his money and treats among his friends, so that they would love him. A boy crying out for love, ready to do anything to be popular and in the crowd, because being lonely scares him. He has been lonely all his life, and his friends are the only people who save him from that dark place. But to keep them, he has to smile, to laugh, to be the best, by hook or by crook, even if he is crying inside.
And then he finds Gunjan, who knows him, faults and all and is by his side, who teaches him that he doesn't have to be the best all the time, he will still be loved if he fails once in a while - and she will be with him. No wonder he cannot lose her, no wonder he adores her - love is too small a word for what he feels for her. She is his soulmate, his best friend, his love all in one - she is the world to him because she loves him unconditionally and always. He always goes back to her - whether it be the dates with Sheena, whether it be the jail, whether when he's confused or upset - Gunjan will set it right - just by being there. That's why, whenever she leaves him, he moves heaven and earth to get her back, and there is no ego involved - he needs her as much, no more than, she needs him and he knows it.