10/9 - Epi 97 ... False Promises

Tuesday 10th Sept

Liked the first half of the episode very much ... the cvs should stick to simple human emotions, rather than go to ott drama - the second half of the episode resembled a bad BW movie from the 70's   ... and was poorly acted to boot. 

First half was really nice ... the feelings any normal decent human being goes through when he realises that even unwittingly, he has caused the death of another human being. The sheer overwhelming guilt, added to it the shame of bringing infamy to his whole family because of one unthinking act was very well portrayed by Anuj ... Chhanchhan understanding what he's going through, and trying her best to console him ... the paucity of words, the exchanged looks, the quiet reassuring nods, the simple touches ... the last bedroom scene was beautifully done ... especially when Manav sleeps in Chhanchhan's lap, and she also sleeps in the same position ... 

Also liked the way the entire family rallies around ... no one wants to eat, all are disturbed and upset ... yet all pulling together ... RanSan are completely converted, not sure about Manthan yet ... Good that CC finally told the entire family about Rupali, and everyone rallied to support Manav. 

Mahila Mandal scene was unnecessary and avoidable ... except that it brought home to Manav how his one unthinking act has brought so much trouble to the family ... wish this message would reach out more. Road traffic accidents happen in a split second of inattention ... and can have lifelong consequences. 

Cv's kept Manav's character intact ... the anger that he often cannot control ... when he lashes out at the journalists ... 

Rupali, after giving a decent performance in the Rupali-CC scene yesterday, was bad today  ... the broker-Rupali- broker wife scenes were badly written and acted. 

The CC- broker wife scene was very badly written ... how CC realises that Harish drank and her plea to the wife to admit to that ... CC retained her naivety here ... accepted too easily that broker's wife would actually agree to forgive Manav. 

The last BS family scene was not as well acted as the earlier ones ... seemed that both Anuj and San were not there ... it was their BD's ... that makes a difference to the scene. 

Precap - wasn't surprised that broker's wife went back on her word, of course ... so will Manav go back to jail? But CC sees the wife's mangalsutra ... so more inbheshtigaions ahead 

9/9 - Epi 96 ... Face Off

Monday 9th Sept

Mixed bag episode ... the setting is dramatic but the acting was good. The last scene was the best ... the confrontation between CC-Rupali.

Again there was attention to detail ... the accident victim told Manav which hospital he wanted to go to ... so that explained how the entire set up there worked for him ... apparently all set up by Rupali. Just wonder what if Manav had not braked in time and the guy had really gotten hurt, too hurt to specify which hospital he wanted to be taken to? Rupali's plan would have sunk without trace! 

Manthan is not pulling with the entire family yet ... his grievances with Manav remain ... so Babuji's dream to see the entire family united will have to wait a little longer. Mugut and Manek on the other hand are with Manav. Kaumudi trusts Chhanchhan and Manav completely ... she knows they are never irresponsible, so there has to be something wrong. 

The hospital scene was bad ... am resigned to the fact that hospital scenes in all telly shows are pathetic ... including that death announcement. And what was that about the delay about taking the guy to the hospital ... I thought ChhanMan took him there pretty quickly. 

The Manav-Chhanchhan bedroom scene was good but too short ... Anuj was good as the guy who is genuinely shattered to know that he has taken someone's life ... even a troubled but still reassuring Chhanchhan could not bring him out of that overwhelming guilt. 

Broker is actually alive, of course ... so Manav's guilt is completely misplaced ... 

Police coming to arrest Manav ... why did Manav Chhanchhan not tell the family about the broker's death? So the police have also been bought off by Rupali .. or this particular set of policemen have, anyway. This scene, like the hospital scene, was marred by poor dialogues ... 

Brothers and CC at police station ... Rupali calls Manav to gloat, CC takes the call and realises that this part is also Rupali's plan ... Manav had already told her about the broker plant, fortunately ... 

Rupali-Chhanchhan ... best scene of the day ... the actress playing Rupali was good, supercilious and disdainful of CC ... so you know all this was my plan, what are you going to do about it? The edgy, almost out of control character was well done ... 
And Sanaya was great ... controlled fury in her voice and eyes ... momentary doubt as Rupali speaks, then she regains her anger and her courage .. do what you like, I will get Manav out of this. 
Always love Sanaya in these scenes ... she never loses her voice control, nor does she ever get shrieky or shrill when she gets angry. And Rupali was very good too. 

Precap - Manav is apparently out on bail and back home ... am wondering how will CC get Manav out of this one. The deal breaker will be if they can find that the broker is still alive ... is Nerd Vineet going to come back for that, or will it all be Chhanchhan, maybe this time with Manthan's help? Or with Manav himself? Will Umaben come back to help, now that she has also been de-throned from her MM? 

5/9 - Epi 95 ... Double Pronged Attack

Thursday 5th September

It seems the CV's finally heard all our complaints about not giving either Sonali and Thakkar or Mayuri a proper back story ... so they gave Rupali a complete history and made her a psychopath of sorts  So she's been planning this since college ... including giving up her own dreams and joining an organization where she could be in a position to win friends and influence a lot of people ... only Manav falling in love with Chhanchhan and getting married so quickly before she could set herself up in position was not part of her plan.

Again the cv's tried to keep it as real as possible ... Rupali is not the owner or the boss's daughter, but she has worked to get herself into the position she is in, which is why it took her time and she didn't attack Manav the moment they were out of college.

Double pronged attack ... fist the broker plant, to defame the entire family ... then the direct attack on Manav personally ... in between, another Manav-Rupali scene where she tells him her intentions, and spells out what he needs to do ... so Manav caught in a bind ...

I really like the CC-Kaumudi bonding - a very sweet relationship. And love the way CC senses that all is not right with Manav and Rupali, and first tries to clear her doubts by finding out the facts of Manav-Rupali relationship if they had any ...

Good juxtaposition of the cc-Kaumudi scene with that fact finding, and the solo Rupali scene where she details how she was crazy about Manav and planning to get him back in her life for so long ... the screenplay was good there and the story loops were all closed off quite neatly ...

RanSan are all sorted out now ... wish people would reform that quickly in real life too! Guess that would have taken much longer if the show had gone on ...

Loved the ChhanMan scene ... as always, this couple is each others' strength and support ... and they TALK to each other!!! No wonder none of the ChhanMan MU tracks have ever managed to last for too long 

The last scene was good again ... including the hospital precap ... will Manav recognise the broker and realise this is Rupali's trap ... she set him up well and good by the broker claiming the Borisagars cheated him, Manav's altercation at the police station, and then his 'death' ... so Manav will be held guilty of murdering the guy because of the fraud rice claim ... Manav is really stuck here ...

Where were these CV's for so long?  Now when the show is winding up, the scenes are suddenly more taut and the story less jerky and flowing better  than it has been for the last so many months! Including the clever use of BD's ... Anuj away on his movie promotion, yet his BD is not very noticeable, I only noticed in the police station scene ... and Babuji was missing in the family at the dining table. 

Two more weeks for this whole drama to be wrapped up. Will Nerd Vineet have any role to play at all? What will Chhanchhan do? How will she get Manav out of this mess? 

4/9 - Epi 94 ... Aitraaz?

Wednesday 4th September

I really liked today's episode ...

Despite the slightly cheesy ChhanMan scenes, the actors brought depth and feeling into them ... so I enjoyed the initial candle and hand burning scenes ... the second Chhanchhan hand burning scene was a little more rushed, but still liked it. I was glad that Manav had enough sense to stop Chhanchhan from saying sorry to Rupali ... and CC was more worried about Manav's contract so she was ready to let go her own feelings to say sorry to Rupali ... these little things show the understanding between the couple. ChhanMan will remain one of my favorite telly couples because of this communication which was their hallmark ...

Also I like the Kaumudi-Chhanchhan bonding ... they share a very sweet sisterly relationship from the start, and it was nice to see Chhanchhan seeking reassurance from Kaumudi for once ... made them more realistic than CC always being the mature one. She is the youngest in the family, and it's nice that they haven't made her a 'mahaan' all knowing bahu ...
Mugut has had a very complete makeover all supportive husband now!

Rupali - Manav scene was good ... Manav had it coming, he had been completely clueless about Rupali's intentions ... Rupali (the actress) was very good in that scene .. made me dislike her completely. And I heaved a sigh of relief that Manav metaphorically slapped her off and threw the contract in her face ... I was afraid the contract had become all-important to him and he would do something really stupid!

Dadaji-Chhanchhan were very cute too ... although the RanSan expose didn't take much time, with Sanjana spilling the beans so quickly ... that whole scene was the only one I felt too rushed ... they could have taken more time over that. Chhanchhan in her Choonli get up was actually unrecognizeable at first glance ...  

Chhanchhan's worry about Manav's contract haunted her the entire day ... I could empathise with that completely ... nicely done.
And the last ChhanMan scenes was really fabulous ... Anuj and Sanaya nailed that one completely ... Manav's worry and tension, Chhanchhan's worry at his worry ... her puzzlement, yet just being there for him, Manav wanting her to promise to be with him always ... both actors were excellent, their expressions were spot on ... wish we could see them in a more serious show. That was the scene of the day for me.

So Rupali is up to something ... Aitraaz track coming up? The show is on till the 19th Sept ... so let's see what happens. And if the cv's actually manage to keep the track tense and taut for once.

3/9 ... Epi 93 ... Sorting Out Relationships

Tuesday 3rd Sept

More roothna manana on the ChhanMan front ... but Manav still has some major growing up to do!

Of course he doesn't kiss Chhanchhan in front of the family ... so how did a mirror kiss mean that he won the kiss challenge? Chhanchhan is a damn sweet wife, she doesn't object I would have argued that one out! And he's hung up on Chhanchhan wearing the dress ... ego at work here?

Dadaji pulls a fast one on RanSan ... teaching them the value of ethics in business ... and in winning challenges ...

Chhanchhan wears Manav's dress for dinner, but is worried how to wear it out in front of the family .. so cover it up with a saree ... Smarter thing would have been to change in the hotel washroom, Chhanchhan!
Sanaya looks damn good in the dress   and she has gorgeous legs ... forgot to mention that in yesterday's post

Anyway, cold coffee ne saare plans par paani pher diya ... or rather coffee pher di
Manav happily imagines CC in red dress ... another song sequence ... CV's heard us about lots of ChhanMan scenes

CC lands up in white dress, looking most apologetic ... another ChhanMan fight ...
Rupali is a pain ... who is she to tell ChanMan not to fight?
And Manav is really stupid ... seriously, who tells an outsider about their fights with their spouse? Manav needs lots of lessons on how to be a good husband!!! First rule of marriage - keep the fights within the bedroom ... or at most, within the family. Again Rupali most interfering ... and rather insulting ... Manav is apparently blinded by his need to cement that 'deal' ... he saw CC admonishing Rupali, but didn't see Rupali insulting CC

Chhanchhan apologises ... didn't see the need for her to apologise, Manav was the one being unreasonable  ... but I guess one partner has to show some maturity ... anyway, her flowers win over Manav so another foray into the restaurant ... the restaurant set seems to have been hired for the entire week
Has Manthan seen the light ... or was his giving the communication work to Manav another ploy?

Nerd Boy still has to be taken care of ... so he sees Chhanchhan in restaurant ... and calls Manav for help ... Manav apparently is his new best buddy and love guru Manav tells him to forget Chhanchhan ... of course Manav would say so
The hiding under the table was quite silly ... so Nerd Boy is not over and out yet ...
The most romantic couple bit was very silly ... did they get the title for hiding under the table? And they get one cup of coffee?!

Precap - Rupali's true colors out in front of Manav finally? 

2nd Sept - Epi 92 ... Double Standards

Interesting episode today ... as usual, it was a bit rushed, now don't know whether to blame the impending deadline or not, as the writing has always been a bit sketchy ... although as usual again, the issues raised were very relevant to a lot of young working couples.
So Manav has no problem interacting with his old college friend who has openly admitted she had a crush on him, yet he doesn't like Chhanchhan working in an office where an unknown guy has a crush on her. He has no problem talking about his old friend time and again with Chhanchhan, but doesn't like it when she mentions another guy, or gets gifts from him. He wants her to agree to everything he wants, and doesn't understand, or doesn't want to understand that her hesitation is because she has to be sensitive to her position as not only his wife, but also daughter-in-law and lady of the house. Women have to tread this balance far more than men do ... a sad but true commentary on the double standards still present in society. We had this discussion around the Kaumudi Mugut track as well.

Manav follows Manthan's advice and decides to woo his wife ... but can't get over his jealousy about the gift from Vineet. Chhanchhan's annoyance was less over the dress than over his saying that if Vineet had gifted it, she would have worn it ... really, Manav?! As Chhanchhan said, falling in love, marrying the one you love is easy, but nibhaoing a marriage is far more difficult.
And deal is still "almost" done? When is it going to be "done"?

On the other side, Mugut and Kaumudi are on the same track about the challenge ... but among the other two couples, Ranjana and Manthan are putting challenge ahead of family, while Sanjana has veered around to family ahead of challenge.
Chhanchhan and Manav are working more on their own relationship than on any challenge!
Manav realises that he can't stay angry with CC for too long ... while CC has already decided to give in and wear his gift ... just for him. 
But Manav is an idiot ...  really, Manav?! Mentioning an ex-girlfriend, another girl at a time like this? When you're romancing your wife ... who's just been rather pissed off with you about that very girl?
Lol ... kiss challenge issued by biwi for once, rather than husband ... don't want to remember the previous challenge issued by a different Manav which got us all horrified ... then he challenged her to kiss him in front of the family ... now the tables are turned!

And time for Manthan to start veering around to realisation about family ahead of challenge ... German clients, he sends Manav off to romance Chhanchhan, thinking to cut him out, and his move backfires as the clients don't need Manav's fluent English, they need German. So he sends Manav off to romance Chhanchhan again ... Manav really needs to figure out his priorities in life ... and his timing!

Poor Vineet is getting an inkling that there is a man in Chhanchhan's life ... about time ... he needs to be let down gently.
Brothers Borisagar have a tough time dealing with German clients Manthan might regret sending Manav off too quickly.

Manav woos CC yet again and kisses her in the middle of the restaurant. Challenge is done. Chhanchhan informs him pertly that the challenge was for kiss in front of family, not strangers. Challenge not yet done.

Manav saves the day with an online translator. Both husband and wife seem to be truly the internet couple! This deal is actually done. Manthan also veering around to some sort of realisation ...

Chhanchhan challenges Manav silently in front of the family ... proving her point, it's not easy to be bold in front of a conservative family ... love that teasing glint in Sanaya's eyes ... utterly adorable!
Her smile wiped off her face and Manav gets up and approaches her ... is he really going to do it?!

Precap -open confrontation between Chhanchhan and Rupali ... where is this going to go? And Manav angry with Chhanchhan ...

*Edit* 
Posting this here because it is one of the sweetest interviews with Sanaya ... with Drashti, about their friendship. Reminds me so much of my friendship with my best friend ... when we get together, even our husbands and kids are resigned that we will always regress back to our college days masti and craziness! These two are adorable!
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpcb8CKplRs

TV This Month - September 2013

Indian Idol Jr ... Congratulations to Anjana ... lovely girl, gorgeous voice! Well deserved! Loved all the four finalists ... it was a tough call.

Madhubala

Qabool Hai

Don't know what people are watching these days ... please add whatever you would like to discuss.