The characters of Ambika VS Ambalika

I found it interesting how SP is showing Ambika and Ambalika. Very very little is known about these two characters, since they are not mentioned too much in the epic, so directors generally have the creative liberty to make them however they want.

I found it interesting that Ambika is shown as a bit rude and selfish, just like her son, while Ambalika is a lot more selfless and kind to others, just like her own son.

One can say it is natural for Ambika to feel jealous when her sister's son became King over her own, although hers was elder, but if you compare the same situation with Ambalika, she is shown smiling and encouraging when Dhriatrastra becomes King and Pandu leaves for the forests.

Ambalika looked happy when Gandhari's pregnancy was announced, while Ambika looked very stiff and uninterested when everyone found out about Yudhisthira's birth.

Ambika was totally uncaring and cold to Gandhari when she had a "miscarriage". I felt so bad for poor Gandhari. She was suffering from so much pain and agony, and Ambika showed zero sympathy for her. Instead, she glanced at her with something akin to disgust and hated. Of course, it's not like Ambalika offered her any sympathy either, but she simply stood back and did not interfere since Gandhari was not her own daughter-in-law.

What do you guys think? Is Ambika's character a bit predictable and cliche, or do you find it interesting?

Nice topic! Yep, it was really ruthless of Ambika to retort and ask her "Putr?, Tumne koi putr ko janam nahi diya hai" Being a woman, and considering how she herself had to go for niyog and give birth to a blind son, I expected some amount of understanding and empathy from her front.

As far as the starplus version goes it seems like built up frustration on ambika's part nothing has gone right, husband died and had no heir, vyas had to impregnate her, blind son, a daughter in law who blindfolded herself, son didnt become king and then was later installed without full power, daughter in laws pregnancy prolonged missed out having the heir to throne, instead of grandchildren got flesh. She seems more cruel than satyavati now.

Janaki, nice topic👏

I realize that the creative team has given its own touches to these two characters when all we know is the fact that these girls were married to Vichitravirya, got sons, one blind and another weak physically and then went off to the forest with Satyavathi when Ved Vyas predicted the beginning of the end of Hastinapur😊

But one can always infer a bit from the things we know about these girls.

For one thing, I feel that the way Ambika and Ambalika reacted when seeing Ved Vyas during Niyog, shows their character quite a bit.
While Ambika found Vyasa's physical appearance to be abhorring (thus closing her eyes), we find that Ambalika was the timid of the two. She seems to have a very soft nature and hence her shivering when seeing Ved Vyas.
One can infer that Ambalika most probably was the less dominant and the more subservient of the two woman. But with Ambika, one sees her pride at being the elder of the two..

SP has shown the tension between these two on more occasions. I specifically remember Ambalika insisting on the fact that Gandhari should be the one welcoming Kunthi to Hastinapur while Ambika was more on the opinion of her son..

Maybe Ambika's bitterness from her son not getting what he wanted is the root of her behavior. But it is really sad to see her the way she reacted to Gandhari and her plight. If not as a MIL, she should have felt sorry for Gandhari as a woman.. But her distaste at Gandhari's delivery was very cruel.

On contrast, I think Ambalika was afraid again. She seemed to be stunned and a little put out at what happened.. BTW, why had they placed the mass of flesh on the cradle like a baby?

Ambika is more real because she was able to sense the evident jealousy of Kunti when she was welcoming Pandu n Madri whereas Ambalika attempted to cover that human emotion, this is where I appreciate Ambika a bit more because emotions are dealt with up front. Also the cvs are attempting to indicate that the characteristics found in Pandu and Dhritarashtra had sprung from their respective mothers. So its more to serve the purpose of further highlighting Pandu and Dritarashtras character differences.

I think Mansi Sharma (Ambika) & Amita Chandekar (Ambalika) should have switched roles - if Ambika is supposed to be an unsympathetic MIL, then Mansi is not doing that too well. OTOH, Amita's sympathetic nature doesn't come off as well.