Credit for this gorgeous banner goes to Maham (Allbut1)!
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Okay, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Reading the LUs and everyone's knee-jerk reactions first and then watching the episode is always a good idea because you go with such low expectations of what you will see that you are bound to catch a thing or two you didn't expect! 😆
Like everyone, I loved the first scene. It was so characteristically beautiful with that trademark combination of humour and romance that AarYa have patented and made their own. We continue the scene from the stair-face off of the previous episode where Ishita and Aarti are both staking their respective claims on Yash and his time. This was very symbolic. Ishita starts off at the top of the stairs, near Yash: she has the upper hand because she has just used her last trump card to get Yash's attention, Aayu, and has managed to make him promise that he won't tell Aarti about it. However, what follows is that she descends the steps as Aarti ascends them, showing her actions after getting Yash's attention. She brings herself down and despite the fact that she has lower ground, smiles up smugly at Aarti. Aarti, on the other hand, doesn't even realise she has the upper ground and the advantage on Ishita by being at the top of the stairs until she hears Yash's voice calling out to her. In short, she doesn't need to engage or compete with Ishita because there is no competition. She is the one Yash calls out to when he is vulnerable.
How adorable was Yash, stuck in his shirt, flailing his trapped arms around? Is it any wonder that his impatience trapped him while Aarti's patience set him free? I loved this scene for many reasons. First of all, it reminded me of the naada scene which was the first time Yash really allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of Aarti and consciously allowed her to help him, the first time he let her see him as anything less than a superman. Today we see that it is second nature for him to call out to her when he is stuck in such a situation because of the level their love has reached: it is unconditional and does not depend on outer experiences. There is no weakness or faultline in Yash that Aarti does not know of and so he has nothing to hide from her anymore.
Secondly, I loved this scene because it shows how Aarti will get Yash out of the trap in which he fell because of his own impatience with her patient hand. She has learned from her past experience with Ishita not to point fingers until she has conclusive proof and yet this is also part of the reason they are in this mess. Yash assumes that she is upset only over Aayu which is why he refrains from telling her about his mission, so as to not upset her if nothing comes of it. Had Aarti shared her suspicions on Ishita and what she knew about Ishita's history with Yash and her feelings, Yash might just have been a little more weary. But how could she trust that Yash wouldn't push her away for lying after how he treated her at the time of the kidnapping? Ishita may have been the instigator, but these two have allowed their problems and pasts to come in the way of their relationship and safety all by themselves! Thankfully, Aarti learned to be patient this time and she will extricate Yash from the trap. When she feels insecure and tries to withdraw, he will assure her of his love and need and put a smile back on her face. Balance will be restored.
The third reason I loved this scene was the contrast between Yash with Aarti and Yash with Ishita. On the one hand, he calls out to Aarti when he is most vulnerable and on the other hand, even when Ishita forces him into a state of complete vulnerability he pushes her away. This is what Ishita has failed to understand all this time. It is not enough to make Yash vulnerable and attack, because when he is most vulnerable is also when he is most guarded. We saw that aplenty in his journey when he would cling to Arpita and put up a wall between him and Aarti most vociferously when he felt most exposed to the latter. Aarti has earned the privilege to be in that space with him over a long time and many, many trials and errors where she has proven that she will never leave him, stop loving him or think less of him for his weaknesses. If Yash doesn't want to be near Aarti, that doesn't mean there is a void ready to fill, but that he is surrounded by a darkness that nobody can cross over.
Yash can really be such a baby sometimes and today's episode was all about that. He is mature and sorted out in so many ways, but can also be willfully clueless and oblivious about certain things, especially ones that make him uncomfortable. Even though all the signs were pain in front of his eyes, he refused to believe that Aarti was in love with him and acted like it was this big surprise when he realised. He again put a blindfold over his eyes when Aarti was pregnant and finding it difficult to tell him and once again, he is trying really hard to ignore what he doesn't want to see, that is, Ishita's interest in him and her advances. It is this quality that makes everyone so protective of Yash and today reminded me so much of that scene when Palak shoves Ishita away from Yash and tells her her food is yucky. The same way Ansh feels like protecting Aarti, Palak protects Yash from the drawbacks in himself, realities that she has grown up with and that have affected her on a day to day basis. And that is precisely why Palak, once the barrier broke, is so invested in Aarti; she can see that Aarti protects Yash from his own greatest weaknesses so she herself doesn't have to. It is the same reason she asked if she was brave like mumma.
Debate Mansion
Anupamaa
